I've run my AT for over a year now, and I Love it. My neighbor has a 450, and he loves his. Tough decision for you, but I highly recommend sitting on the units and see which one feels better. I went with the Honda for all the reasons you listed. It is slower than the Yammy, but it does have nice power. FOr the past 2 months, I've been using it to haul logs out of the woods, and I mean a LOT of them. In ESP 1st gear, it holds RPMs well and pulls just fine. I worry more about my hitch holding up! It's taken a beating wihtout any problems - other than my neutral light occassional comes on while it's in drive. Couldn't figure that one out, but it hasn't done it in a while. Maybe got water in an electrical connection. In the trails, I don't have any problem hanging with the 450. I truly believe it has better handling, b/c I'm not a better rider. It is so ergonomically comfortable, way more so than the 450 in my opinion.

I also like the Honda amenities that you don't realize. THe other day I backed into a tree on an angle, which popped my rear fender loose from the foot rest section. All I had to do was re-pop in the well designed plastic connector. What a relief. DO that with the yammy and there's a good chance the fender would have cracked.

So, don't discount the 400AT. It has treated me well. Good luck.

 

Lightman -- Sorry, my friend's Kodiak was manual shift and running between 4 to 15 mph required two and three gear selections to keep from using a lot of high rpm's. If the new one's are automatic then my comments are irrelevant.

 

kckcjam - is your friend's 450 an '05 with IRS? If so and you've ridden both, please comment on the ride quality comparison as well as steering effort required.

Now that you mention it - you say you chose the honda for the reasons I listed. Now that I think about it, the only thing the honda really has going for it is the mechanical trans. It's slower, less comfy compared to IRS (i assume), has the weird size tires/rims, lacks in the looks department(although thats not really that important), and as I've found out today - I can get an 04 rancher for the same price as the 05 kodiak...

I guess the real question is, can I live with the belt drive and poor water performance of the kodiak or not!

 

You can't tell you have a belt drive from a performance standpoint vs the fluid drive honda.I am not sure how deep you plan on riding this thing but I NEVER took on water on mine.Of course I know it's not a u-boat[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]I like the mud and water too.Because of this I now will have to service the swingarm bearings on the 650[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-frown.gif[/img] What I am saying is don't worry about the belt getting wet,if she is riding with you and your 650 it is no more likely to ingest water than it is.
02 650 camo

 

Kodiak1 my 650 has huge snorkels..
Snorkel Pic

 

LOL.....that looks like multiple periscopes!!!....I thought the 650 was stock........as least as far as that part went.
02 650 camo

 

One thing I belive you truly have to consider is stick resistance. Have you ever riped a boot open on your prairie? You have 4 of them on a prairie and a rancher If you get a Kodiak or any IRS for that matter you have 8 just sitting there waiting to get riped open. And there is -only 2 options to getting it fixed- fix it your self (very dirty and agravating job) or taking it to the shop (Hassle and costly job). And one other thing you have to cosider is the many more parts to worry about on an IRS that will wear out. I would personaly choose the Honda because that is all I have ever owned and they have never left me out to dry on the trail like my brothers Artic Cat has on more than a few times. But good luck on your purchase.

 

have you ever thought about a outlander 400? from what i've heard and read the best 400 out there, may be a nice model to look into

 

I have heard good things about the outlander - I'm just somewhat opposed to Bombardier products. I used to race pwc for years, mostly seadoo's (bombardier product) and they were so unreliable and blew up so easily I just swore never again. They may make a decent quad, I don't know. Do they have rotax engines?

 

Lightman - the answer to your question is "no" - it is an 04 model. I couldn't understand why you thought the Yammy had IRS, b/c his does not, but I just saw the commercial for the new 450. I wasn't that impressed by the 04', and like I already stated - for ergos and comfort in the seat, I'll take the Honda every day. I just didn't fit right on his Yammy, and that translates to my being able to kick his fanny in the trails.

I've never ridden an IRS. Never wanted one b/c in the hills of NW PA, I've heard rumors of more easily tipping with the IRS as you scale the side. DOn't know if that's just hype or not.

My opinion is that the Yammy is ugly, so I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder.