Well, I purchased a new 04 foreman 450S model this past October. The 6 month warranty was out last week. I went riding and mudding yesterday and noticed the front brakes getting a little spongey again so I knew it was time to clean and adjust them. After putting it all back together I decided to check the wheels up and down for free play in the bearings and low and behold the left one moved dramatically. I looked under as I shook it again and it is the left lower ball joint extremely loose! I have a little over 700 miles on it and I am guilty of playing in mud and water. The boot looks great on it and sealed just fine. Seems like a short life to me, only 6 months old. What do you guys think?

 

Is yours one of the recall units? Check the Honda website, they list several models with a defective set of ball joints.

 

I got my recall notice on my 05 Rancher AT, my boots are fine. The recall is not for defective ball joints, it's for defective rubber boots that let dirt in causing premature failer of the ball joints. I would bet your early failure has to do wth the mods to your rig, especially the lift and tire size changes you've made.
Good luck!
John

 

You could very well be right about the modifications and the premature wear. I only ran the lift kit for about two months. The reason I decided to remove it was because I had it on the lift cleaning the shoes before and noticed that when it was unsprung on the jack, the front cv joints would bind as you turned the wheels to adjust the brakes. I immediately removed the lift kit at that point and time. I couldnt agree with you more about the possibilty of the premature wear being caused by the lift kit I had on it. Also, the recall is for the tie rod ends and boots instead of the ball joints from my understanding. I wouldnt be surprised if there is a recall in the near future on the ball joints though. I have seen two other newer model ranchers with stock wheels and suspension with ball joints that came all the way loose! I suspect there may be a defect in design.