I have a 2003 4/2 Rancher, I would like to hear from those who have 4/2 Ranchers any year. My has a manual transmission That I have adjusted so it shifts pretty well. As anyone had a realiability problems with theirs? Any good or bad points about this model? Lool forward to hearing from anyone. ---Mike

 

i have a 2005 4x4 model, same thing with a few extra parts. Reliabilty? Heck, Honda should have named it the Reliable instead of the Rancher. But that would just sound funny...

Good points- light, nimble, comfortable ride, easier on the pocketbook than a bigger quad but still gets the job done.

Bad points- little low on power at high-end, no 3rd headlight (unless you buy an aftermarket one) low ground clearance.

good machine if you just do trail riding and mudding, as well as some light hauling. I wouldnt try to pull stumps out with this, (I know it could, but i just dont want to! ) but they make good working rigs.

 

I agree with Quicksilver. I have 2001 350 Rancher and really enjoy putting it to the test.

The good: really is near impossible to break (I have really tried) and the best I can do is break the welds holding the rear rack in place and actually broke the rear rack assembly tubing below the plastic. I also have loosened the rear rack bolts over time but normal maintenance keeps then under a watchful eye. So assuming you stay within spec carrying things on the racks I can't find a way to break it.

The good/bad: I have ATRs on mine and turning while still or on dry pavement is an adult move. It is very very very difficult. The upside is when you are not on concrete or are moving it is very stable, easy to turn and really tracks in mud, snow and breaking +2" ice. I need that kind of traction and the hard to steer issue only comes into play when I am putting it in/taking it out of the garage.

I had a 4X2 300 before this and if I had bought the 4wd like I knew I should (I listened to experieinced folks who said ATVs don't need 4wd) I would not have even traded up to the 350. Where I travel 4wd is a necessity.

Enjoy your 400 4X2 and don't look back.

 

Here is the one bad point of that model that I bet none of you knew about. It has no cooling fan, the 3/4 electric shift has one but the manual one does not. Now it's not really a big deal 300 never had one. Yes you can buy the Honda one and wire it in, but takes few dallors. I would just buy on and wire it in a on switch.

 

I appreciate everyones comments. Even though I haven't put it thru a lot of difficult situations I have yet to get it stuck where I couldn't drive it out. I wish I had the ES mode it would be a little easier to shift. I did adjust per the owners manual the standard trans, it seems to shift without much trouble. It sometimes difficult to know when climbing a steep hill to know what gear to put it into. You don't want to shift while you are going up the hill, you will loose your momentmen. I think when you have a smaller motor in a atv with 4wd, the 4wd will suck some of the power from the engine, making it a little less effective. My is a 350 (actual is 329cc's). Would like to hear any additional comments anyone might have.--Thanks

 

Hey, I have the es 4x4 model, 05. I've only put about 45 miles on it so far, but from what I've been in/through, the only time I noted that the 4wd was necessary was when I went through a ditch that was rather steep, just a tad longer than the quad, and had a crest at the top of it. I noticed when I popped the front wheels over the crest, up on to the flat surface, the rear tires sudenly lost traction and the front tires pulled me on over. I could have redistributed the weight more toward the back, which may have helped, but it would have also increased the chances of going over backwards. It was one of those situations that had I moved down the ditch 10 feet one way or the other, I wouldn't have encountered that crest at the top.

 

I'm getting close to 4,000 miles on my 01 4x4 ES.........had to put a new choke cable on it and thats about it so far.
I have Rincon tires and wheels on it (rear wheels have the valve stem to the inside so the offset is right)
And there isnt a quad out there I have found with tires that can go where I can go in the snow.
I have even passed a few big bores when racing side by side thru deep powder (A new 800 bomb and an AC 650 V2)
I'm no kid on here bragging either........I'm 47 and also own an 03 grizz that I use when the snow is gone.
I have never been around a 2 wd Rancher out on the trail yet.......but I would think with the right rider aboard it would go just about everywhere a 4x4 would.

 

We are getting rid of the utilities and switching to dirt bikes for technical riding, so I just sold my 2wd. But, it was a great fun ride! That machine could do amazing things that you wouldn't think a 2wd could ever do, including rock crawling.

Around here, we don't have mud and you can only find snow if you go looking for it at high altitude, so 4wd is a luxury and not usually a necessity. The extra weight of a 4X4 is on the front end, where it does the most harm to handling.