Has anyone ridden both the 03 and the 04 Rancher? I cant decide which to buy. 03 is cheaper and proven. 04 is a new model with unknown new problems. The looks of the 04 kicks ***. Dealer told me the 04 is slower. Is this true? I asked him why and he couldnt really tell me. The one he had was a 400. Hondas website says they are 350's. What gives?

 

There is a new Rancher 400 AT (automatic transmission). Then there is still the old Rancher 350 (manual shift or ES, and both 4X4 and 2X4), which will get the new SUV body style for 04, and looks just like the 400.

There have been several reviews of the new 400 in the magazines and on the web. A few (but not many) folks have posted on it in here. Mechanically, the 350 is the same old bulletproof bike as before. On the other hand, you should be able to pick up the 03 (old body style) for a very good price!

 

The new Rancher AT has a lot of nice features...bigger motor, traxlok, trick transmission...

The only down side is that the new Rancher costs more than the Foreman 450ES.

 

The new Rancher AT MSRP is $5999
The new Rancher AT GPScape MSRP is $6199
The 04 Foreman 450ES MSRP is $6399

Not cheaper

 

The New Rancher doesn't cost more than the Foreman 450 ES.
It is even cheaper than the Foreman S. Don't know where you got your info from, dealer yankin your chain.

 

Spork and Speedy, you are correct the list price for the Foreman 450ES ($6,399) is higher than the Rancher AT ($5,999)...but who pays list?

The OTD (out the door) price for a Foreman 450 ES is $5,099 which is lower than the OTD price for a Rancher AT $5,199. The Rancher AT is almost $1,000 more than a Rancher 4x4 ES OTD $4,250.

I bought my Foreman 450 ES from Abernathy for $5,099 OTD.

 

That may be at your dealer. All dealers are different, that is why we compare MSRP.

 

Hi everyone I'm new to the forums.
Just to clear up this matter, dealer prices are different. At Kiser Honda where I live the Out the Door price on a 04 Foreman 450 ES is $7082.97. And the Out the Door Price of a 04 Rancher 400 AT is $6754.76. The OTD of a 04 Rancher 350 ES is 5342.38. I'll have to agree with speedy and sporkbomber on this one, compare with the MSRP. The Out the Door cost also reflects their costs (e.g. freight). In this case I would say the Foreman 450 is more expensive than the Rancher 400 AT.

 

It's only money, don't worry about it. They are both nice ATV's. We own an 02 4x4 ES Rancher. Have ridden a new 04 400 AT, two completely different machines. The new AT is like a smaller Rubicon but has the advantages of the 350 Rancher. Smaller and lighter, sportier. It is really a nice ATV. Completely new engine, not just a bored and stroked 329. New transmission. Bigger gas tank. Brake lights. Trax-Lok. This is a fun ATV to ride. I believe only the plastic is different on the 04 350 Ranchers.

 

I bought a new 400AT yesterday.Really nice machine! To compare to the 350 I would say the the power is better and it has all the features. The only thing that I find is it is kind of loud,not the exhaust but the air intake.You can really hear it at about 40-50kph. So far it looks to be a little bit faster top end. I held it for awhile and got 86km or 53 mph. It only has 15km on it.As for the electric shift it shifts alot better than the Rubicon.It is closer to the really electric shift.I like it alot better.