I will be getting another 4wd in the near future. I am no real fan of automatics.......I just prefer the simplicity and time proven reliability of a manual transmission. However , I do really like the Rancher package (large enough to do the job, but not a huge heavy hulking beast either!), and would consider an AT if it has substantially more power than the Rancher 350. Any automatic transmission is going to be less efficient than a manual, and my impression from many posts is that the automatic transmission eats up the extra displacement that the AT has over the 350.

So, my question is for those who have ridden both the AT and 350. How do they compare in relation to power???

Other considerations will be the higher price tag ($1,000) and slightly greater weight of the AT (35 pounds). I do like the TraxLok 2wd/4wd system on the AT, but rumor is that it will be on the 06 Rancher anyway (and a Warn 424 can fix that if it is not).

Another alternative is to just step up to the Foreman 500. It is only $300 more than the AT, has the manual transmission I prefer, TraxLok, and only weights 40 more pounds than the AT (but a substantial 75 pounds more than the 350). But, I mostly do fairly technical tight woods trail riding with the utilities, and any increase in size and/or weight is a definite disadvantage. Only real attractive thing about the 500 however, would be the extra horsepower if I had to pull another broken down bike out of the woods.

What I actually would prefer, is a manual transmission Rancher 400! Anybody from Honda out there???

 

I have had both. Last year I had a Rancher 350 2wd manual transmission. Handled great and fun to ride , but decided I wanted and needed a 4wd model. I sold the Rancher and bought a new Foreman, which has a lot less power than the Rancher, but more bottom end grunt and a transmission that is geared too low. This past February I bought a new 04 Rancher AT for the girlfriend. I love riding this thiing and its a lot faster than the old 2wd Rancher was. This thing will fly. The transmission works flawlessly and is a blast to ride. Handles just as good as the 2wd Rancher did. The only time I am not crazy about this auto transmission is if you get up against an obstacle, like a log or ledge for instance, and try and take off to cross it. The transmission isnt geared quiet low enough to just lung and jump it. Usually you have to roll back a few inches and then nail it to get it to cross. Also when pulling another atv out of the mud with a tow strap, the Rancher AT will not spin the wheels, which can be good or bad. Sometimes it could use a little more bottom end grunt! ESP 1 seems to help in these situations. Other than these couple of situations, the Rancher AT is top notch in every way. Starts in gear,, working brake lights, handles great, the ride is good, good power, trax-lock. Great machines.

 

For the type of riding that you say you do, I would say the AT would be great. My buddy and I both have 350 Ranchers. His is bone stock and regularly races against our neighbor's 400. The 400 is faster by about 1 quad length. So, it does have more power. It is said that the AT does not like increased tire sizes but several folks on here are running 25s and 26s fine. I don't think the 400 would be a good mudder, but that doesn't seem to be what your looking for. My neighbor's 400 is great on woods trails and has decent power. It is nimble and quick like Ranchers usually are. I don't know what your budget is but also check out the Rubicon which I also have experience with and love.

 

I ride the utes mainly in the national forest, so sound is a big issue. I am running FMF MegaMaxII mufflers, and I was resonably happy with the power, until I had to put quiet cores (and running only 8 discs) on both of them . Now, they are probably back to around stock and the power is adequate but nothing special. Hence, my desire for some more power!

 

We have a 350 Rancher and I have ridden an AT. I thought the AT was a little quicker but I could be wrong. I have read they are close and the extra 50 cc was to compensate for the loss due to the auto trans.

 

I have the 400 AT, and have NOT ridden the 350 ES, so you can take my opinions with a grain of salt. I love the AT. I had big reservations about an auto, mostly because I liked the idea of engine braking. I chose the AT because you can switch between the auto mode, and ES mode. As it turns out, the engine braking on the AT is top-notch. It was a no-brainer for me.

 

I have written many responses to this type of question. I am sure you have already done a search in the Honda folder. My opinion has not changed over the past few months. I still think that the AT is a better machine for ME. Since everybody uses them for different reasons I thought I would share what I do with mine.

1. Haul dead deer from gut bag to truck
2. Cruise around land
3. Ride agressive around land
4. Trail ride at local riding park in Missouri
5. Go mudding at same park
6. Tow 1300 lbs. pop-up trailer up muddly hill when my buddies mini-van gets stuck.
7. Tow out mini-van.

Of course there are other applications for the rancher at but these are my main uses. Before the AT I owned a 350 4x4 ES model that was a good working machine. For me, however, I was not able to have as much fun with the machine because of the 4-wheel drive and the non-auto mode (although this was not that big of a deal). If you plan on doing similar things that I have listed above then go with the AT. If not, think about how you are going to use the machine and go from there.

A couple of other things:

1. I do not think that the foreman comes with 4-2 wheel switchability.
2. I am sure you already know this but the 350 has more torque (lower gear ratio) in my opinion and would be better suited as an eveyday workhorse.

If you have any others questions you can always pm me.

 

I personally own both machines. A 2000 rancher 350 4x4 and a 2004 rancher at. Like others have stated, in auto on the at you do feel the need for a lower first gear, but this is in the most extreme pulling situations. In all my experiences the at makes up for this by switching it to esp mode though.

also in a drag race the at whips the 350 hands down. from takeoff to finish the at will smoke the 350 and ive had my at up to 54 with some throttle left. its a much faster bike. with the addition of traxlok it makes this machine much more nimble on the trails than the 350 ( no 424 unlocker ).

when purchasing my quad i was experiencing the same conflict as you, but i love my machine and think i made a great choice. its just right for me...... oh yea just installed 26x11x12 mud machines and am experiencing no major loss of power but it is noticeable. thats ok though they only come on during the right conditions

 

I just bought the 400at. My buddy has the 350es. The 350 is definatley geared lower in first gear. Which is good or bad depending on how you see things. If towing/pulling is the primary use for the quad, then get the 350. If you only need it occasionally get the at. I actually bought my at for less than my friend payed for his 350 one year ago. Also like others have said the at is faster and quiet a bit quieter to run as it does not wind up the gears.

Have you test driven the at. I'm guessing you havent because if you did it would make the decision easier for you.

Good luck. I know how hard it is to make this decision. I went back and forth for about 2 weeks before i slapped down my money.

 

I should have made this clearer in my original post, but I am looking for more POWER, not top speed. I mean like power to climb a steep, really tough hill, stuff like that. The trails I ride are mostly tight and somewhat technical. You never get out of 3rd gear. Sure, there are also some fast fire roads, but if I want to go fast on fire roads, I would be on one of my sport bikes.