Hello everyone.
Im new here and dont claim to know anything except turning wrenches on older ATVs. Apparently they have all gotten better in the past few years while Ive been replacing parts. A purchase needs to be made soon and am giving the Rubicon 500at 4x4 serious thought. I am finding these things out of state for $5300 which makes the trip worth while to avoid sales tax. Just a few questions I was hoping that real people in the real world (unlike dealers) could answer.
(1) has the automatic tranmission proved itself reliable? I would rather replace a $40 belt twice a year than a $1500 transmission every 4yrs. Of course if no replacement is necessary that would be a good thing.
(2) The Hondas dont have a front locking differential, how major of an issue will this be with light towing in mud/snow
(3) Would this be considerd to be a wise choice for towing,hauling as well as moderatly technical trail riding?
(4) Does anyone know what top speed on this rig would be? Seems like expectations are somewhat lower with the hondamatics than with a belt.
(5) I have not yet inquired about the extended warrantys. What is covered, what is the cost, Does it become more expensive with the automatics, When you bring a machine in is it a flat fee or a percentage split?

I hope someone out there is able to answer these questions, Havent had any good luck with salesman these days, they all have to run back in the office to get an answer to my questions. It becomes annoying, makes a person wonder what gets lost in the translation.

 

i've had my rubicon since may 1st and im very happy with it.
i live on a small farm and i use mine for plowing horse sh crap and haul wood,plow snow
and anything else i can use it for.
and im very happy with it.
i have put close to 1800 miles on it since i got it and havent had a single problem with it.
as for the tranny i think its sweet.
five hi gears, five low gears, in manual shift mode.
or fully automatic in auto mode.
its low gear cant be beat as far as im concernd.
tons of power in low.
i tryed to pull a tree that i couldent put my arms around and it was thirty feet long.
well it wouldent pull it but it dug 4 big holes in the ground just like a locked in front diff.
as long as the wheels are fairly straight it spins all 4 wheels like its locked in.
when im plowing all 4 wheels spin and when im towing or draging somthing its the same.
the only time i saw one wheel spin was on my friends rubicon. (and he has 3000 miles on his without a hitch.)
i went through this mud hole where on the other side you had to go up a hill and there was a step up to the hill and i just powerd through it.
but my friend took it easy and when he got to the step he got stuck.
and when he tryed to go up the step he was on an angle so one tire lifted off the ground and it started to spin and the other dident.
so i told him to try again but this time try it straight on, and he went through it with no probs the second time.
the locking diff would be a nice addition but not a nessescity.
i havent found a spot to deep or sticky to stop my rube.
the only thing i do is befor i get into some sticky stuff i put it in manual so it wont shift unless i want it to.
also to much throttle in auto going through mud and swamp it will shift then bogg, but in manual it wont do that.
also the new rubicons are supose to have 2 and 4 wheel drive and when the 4x4 is engauged its like a locking front diff.
i think the honda is a great work horse.
my 03 500 manual arctic cat was a great work horse too.
but it spent more time in the shop getting fixed then on the trails or working.
the rubicon is a sweet quad that will do anything you want it to do without any problems.
and thats more then i can say about my old quad.
i have a friend that has a 650 cat and when he works his the belt smokes and stinks bad.
and my other bud with his 600 grizz is always getting his belt wet and then it slips and squeels till it drys out.
i dont like belts, there to much maintanence.
besides belts are ment to hold your pants up and thats it.
hope this helps.
good luck.
ken.

 

One of my best friends just purchased a new 04 Rubicon about 6 weeks ago..I think he has 50 someodd hours on it now and absolutely loves it! Top speed is well over 55 even with the bigfoot tire kit he has on his. He said it still was pulling strong. I know it dusts my 04 Foreman as far as power and everything I have read on the transmissions is great! I think its the perfect machine. If I had know how great an automatic could be on the trail and could back up time, I surely would have bought the Rubicon automatic. The only thing bad about it is that its full time 4wd. There are kits to take care of that for less than 300 dollars though, so thats a problem that could be eliminated. Riding with him, I know it is an awesome machine. Honda designed the transmisson way back in the early 60's, believe it or not, for a scooter...later they tried it on a motocross bike in the early 70'd I believe it was, and now finally have it in full production on the atvs..Its an amazing transmission that shares the oil with the engine, so Honda says to keep it serviced regularly, and expect no troubles!

 

Hi BARBWIRE. I work at dealer as a technician and have quite some experience with the Rubicons. I would say yes, the trans has proven itself reliable. The most common major problem we've seen is the relief valve on the oil pump sticking (the one that controls oil PSI to the trans). The symptom shows up in shifting, and is easily diagnosed with an oil pressure test. This is mostly an 01 problem, but we've seen it on some later models as well. We've only had a very few actual auto trans failures. Either repair requires case splitting. We've also seen a variety of electrical problems. The most common being speed sensor failure (an easy repair). The Rubicon does have self diagnostics for electrical, which helps alot. As far as engine, we've seen a couple come undone. Longevity with normal use is excellent. I don't consider any of this to be a bad service record as we've sold literally many hundred of this model. I would recommend the extended warranty if we're talking the OE factory Honda aftercare. This is an extension of the standard 6 month warranty to 4 years. Of course, maintainance items are excluded. The Rubicon is complicated and some repairs are potentially expensive enough to make it a good deal. For detailed warranty info, the best source is the contract itself. Find the owner's manual on a new Ruby, and there will be a warranty paper in it, or with it.

 

i dont beleave your friends rubicon will do well over 55.
thats bull
my 04 will do 50 to 52 mph flat out.
and my best friend has two rubicons and his are exactly the same as mine.
i dont mean to **** you off but your friend is pulling your leg.

 

i agree my rubicon only does a max of 51 mph and that is with stock tires

 

I am just a tad biased. We have an 01 Rubicon with 5000 miles and 425 hours on it. To this day, I have spent a total of $25 on repairs, one upper control arm bushing, shaft, and both seals. I have kept up with the scheduled maint 100%. This has been an excellent ATV.

There is not an ATV on the market that has a trans that even come close to the Hondamatic. It is the greatest thing ever put in an ATV. For what my friends have spent on belts, I could replace my trans.

A locking diff is more aggressive. I have yet been where (not that is doesn't exist) where my friends with their "true 4-wd" have gone and I haven't.

Our Rubicon has carried over 400 pounds for 99.9% of its 5000 miles.

We have done 53 mph on several occasions. One time on the Montana/Idaho boarder at 6500 ft, we did hit 55 mph passing up our friends 2000 Traxter. One time taking my daughter to the hospital after an ATV accident, I traveled on the highway 53 mph on the pavement for 22 miles. No problems.

Personally, I don't purchase extended warrantees. If I did, I would only purchase a "factory Honda warranty". Several of our friens have Rubicons, and so far they have all been 100% trouble free. Use Honda filters and a quality oil (like Valvoline 4-stroke 10w40 ATV oil).

If we were to buy a new ATV today, it would be a 2005 Rubicon GPScape, a Red one with Wings. And so far, when our's reaches 10,000 miles that’s what we are going to buy.