I sold my 98 Z-3 (sniff..sniff... but I didn't use it much)... but the up side is that I have some $$$ for a 4 wheeler. (I'm thinking about an 05 Rubicon) Used to ride a Honda XL 250. I have ridden some friends Polairs belt drive machine and an 04 Rubicon. Being a newbie, I have been reading some magazines and some of the postings on this site to try to get an opinion on the Rubicon. Seems to me the ATV mags seem to pan Hondas. Most of what I see on a local club websites are Kaws, Yammers, etc.

I saw that the "Rincon" riders have their own place..... I just wanted to get some direction/opinions. etc on the Rubicon...reilability, qurks etc...

BTW I'm 49 and when I have been riding with friends we go trail riding and some mud boggin....

Thanks for opinoins, leads, etc.

 

Buy it and don't look back. I love my '02 Rubicon. Reliability has been great and the minor upgrades on the '05 are a plus.

 

I have an 05 Rubi and I absolutely love it. I thought that the auto would be boring but it is not. I usually ride in auto mode unless I am climbing a hill or going through some deep mud or water. The power and RPM's seems to be right where you need them.

The engine brake is incredible! I can crawl down a very steep hill in low range and never even think about using the brakes. If you do need the brakes, the new disc brakes on the front will stop you on a dime.

I put 26" Mudlites with ITP Type 5 rims and I does great in the mud. I would highly recommend it to anyone. It is very smooth in all shifting modes and the power is nice.

Let me know if you have any specific questions about it and I will be glad to try and answer them.

Good Luck!

Cirviver

 

May want to check out Dirt Wheels this month, they have a good review on the Ruby...

 

DITTO!!

 

Hi OldX,

Here's a copy of a post that I replied to a few days ago.

I'm new to the forum and I'm really not to sure about what is an acceptable post, and what is not. I realize that I'm in the Honda room so please, I don't want to be looked at as a troublemaker, but I do have some interesting information about the Rubicon as I have owned one.

Look guys, I'm not here to bash Honda in any way, shape or form. You asked about the Rubicon ................ I bought a new Rubicon in 2003, thought I had the cat's meow until I went out riding with the guys and started swaping quads. I quickly realized that the Rubi rides like a TANK in comparisson to the others. I found myself being constantly winched out of mudholes that the Polaris would cross without effort (4x4 vrs. 4x3). Some of you may or may not believe me but, I have been bogged down (stuck) to the point where I "floor" the throttle and the wheels do not even spin. "buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuhhhhhhhhhhhhh".

One of the guys I ride with has a Rincon. It has a decent ride, much MUCH better then the Rubi, but it does NOT have a low gear. He recently told me that he's trading it in because of it.

In my opinion, the Rubi has it's place in the market. It has the absolute very BEST tranny of any ATV in the world !!! It's a Honda, so reliability is paramount. It's very well built and I believe that it will probably outlast any other brand (I mean many, many years down the road). It has an increadible resale value and always will. It's an awesome quad if you don't plan on riding very far (I mean for hours at a time), or real muddy terrain. Probably a good ATV for farm work but then again, it is outpulled by just about anything out there (I have witnessed that time and time again).

I have owned Honda's for well over 20 years (ATV's motorcycles) and I have always been a die hard Honda nut, and I still am to some degree however, after comparing it to the Polaris 500 HO, side by side, it doesn't even come close. Take it from a guy's who's been there !!

Last September I traded the Rubi on a 2004.5 500 HO and due to all of the upgrades on the 2005 Polaris, I traded the 2004.5 on a 2005 500 HO "LE" and I have absolutely no regrets whatsoever.

Look, I'm certainly not trying to tell you what to buy, but before you spend your money have a long hard look at all of your options.

After all this is an ATV forum, a place where we can ALL share our experiences. I have owned and truly enjoyed the Rubicon, but having purchased both the Rubi (new) and the Polaris 500 HO (new), I can assure you that Honda desperately needs to pull up their socks to get back in the competition. (IMO)

As a "die hard" Honda man, I have always said that Honda is known for their reliability but nowadays, all ATV's are dependable. I have never had one once of problems with both of my Polaris and in fact, I had to take my Rubi in for warrenty work as the "speed sensor" was pooched.

Anyhow, we all have different needs. Perhaps your best bet is to visits the ATV dealers in your area and try them ALLl out before you buy. Again, I'm not trying to tell you what to buy. It's your money, it's your quad.



Just my 2 cents.

 

rubicon is too heavy 2 wheel drive is best

 

Get the 05 Foreman5004x4

 

Well ..
I would normally agree...
All my buddies are Honda freaks.....
They all said I would regret getting a Polaris....
And sure enough....MY 04 600 has less that 70 hrs ans I have the Front Gear boxx out and having to take to dealership...also I think that the Engine has a oil leak....
Do you know the SH@# I have gotten from my buddies...
I bought my wife a 2005 400AT....I find myself riding that because I'm scared that my POLARIS will tear up.....

JP

 

Well Orphanmaker,

I don't know what to say........... I have never experienced spending all that money on a new quad (on my 4th new one so far) only to have it fall apart. That's enough for any man to walk away from a certain brand for life !! Unfortunately, all manufacturers produce a few "lemons" out of the batch. Make no mistake about it, the Rubi tranny has fallen to peices before. A very good friend of mine is a mechanic at a Honda dealership and he has told me a few "horror stories".

Personally, I have never had ANY problems whatsoever with both of my Polaris. A friend of mine bought a new 500 HO in 2003 (same time I bought my Rubi) and he recently develloped an electrical problem (control module or something), anyhow it turns out that it was an eazy and inexpensive fix.

I don't know bud, if that sort of thing ever happened to me, I would probablly walk away from Polaris as well but again, I have NEVER ever had any problems whatsoever.

I must reiterate that in comparisson to the Rubicon, the 500 HO stands miles ahead of it. (IMO).

You know, I seriously considered the 600 before buying my 500 HO. The only reason why I didn't was because of the 500's reputation. It truly is a bullet proof proven engine.

Try raising a "stink" with Polaris, maybe they'll cover the cost.