My Dad has a 04 rancher FM. It has lots of power in the first 3 gears and decent in 4th, but in fifth it dosent have enough power to run up past about half of its RPM range. It is especally bad on pavement. We adjusted the valves and it helped, It is bone stock from the dealer. We are at about 4600 feet. Is the jet wrong? Is it binding up the drive line and taking power? Does any one elses rancher act this way? I love the size of the rancher but this lack of power would make me buy a 500. Thanks for your ideas.

 

Not sure what the problem is, my Rancher will hit the rev limiter in 5th, but it takes a LONG time to get up there, and you can only cruise in 5th, not much power to pick up speed fast.

 

Yeah, the cam in that engine is designed for low to mid-range power making for a smooth powerband for pulling and "utility use". You can definitly feel the lack of top-end power up in 5th gear at wide open. It will get up there, but sometimes takes a mile or so to reach top speed. If you have the FM model, you wont have the speedometer, which is a bummer, so you wont know how fast you're going. I know mine will go about 50MPH top speed, depending on what kind of surface i'm on. If you can get to 50 or close to it, then it's probably alright. Maybe have a friend clock you with a vehicle or something.

 

My 05 Rancher 4x4 FM will do 51mph on a flat stretch of road.....but it takes a while to get there. I check mine with a Garmin GPS unit.

 

That sounds like what this one does. My Recon will run away from it on the road. I guess I use it in a way it wasnt made for, On the road for high speed transportation. I will get a 500 because i know i wont be happy with the way the Rancher runs on the road. My brothers 05 foreman is an awesome machine. Today I went through a field of 9inches of snow at 35 mph. It will cruise comfortably at 50 and pushing it to 58. Apparently Honda made the Rancher to crawl up hills and through trees. thanks for your replys.

 

Your welcome nohorses. For me, I am not concerned about cruising at 50mph on a road because for one thing, it's against the law and if stopped, you run the risk of getting your atv confiscated and paying a fine. Most of my riding consists of riding through wooded trails and over open, rolling hills. Top speed? Maybe 30. If I want to travel at higer speeds on roads, my truck is much more safer.

 

Actually My Recon is street legal. So in the eyes of the Montana Highway patrol I am just like a motorcycle, The troopers just wave at me. I ride my Recon from home to the farm (7 tenths of a mile) Every day. It is very handy to run errands in town with. And our farm is really only accesable by getting on the county road. It really isnt as scary as it looks. Its fun to ride in the Mc donalds drive thru with a rifle strapped on the front rack, you get lots of funny looks. More and more people are making there bikes legal, and the state keeps making it easier to do. I love my state.