Hi guys i have a very similar prob with our UK 500 hydrostatic called a foreman over here.but rubicon with you

Anyway what happens is when you are trying to use more than about 75% of its power ie towing hard, uphills or just given it full throttle it grinds just like a chain going over a worn sprocket. the only 2 gears in the machine have been changed even though they werent worn but its no better. it then jumps between the gears ie if in low the gear selector jumps back to a position betwen the Low and high and from high to neutral and loses drive as it grinds away. Our local dealer which is one of the largest in the uk has had it in and tried various things but to no avail. Does this sound like the same problem? as i could do with sorting this so we can sell this machine.

If this isnt the same prob then sorry for hijacking your thread and i will make a new post.

 

Yes all 3 of you have the same problem with your oil pressure and transmission, your just all experenising it doing different things.

I guess like I said before, it will be expensive to repair. You could strip the fourwheeler down and sell the parts on ebay.

 

When any of you changed oil on your units, have you seen any sign of metal shavings in the drained oil ? This is a sure sign of the hydrostatic tranny assembly going out. These shavings will make their way into the oil pump rotors and relief valve which will cause total mayham.
Honda was making techs replace oil pumps, they tried the same deal with me on a unit I have apart on my bench now. I have ended up with many of these units brought over to our dealership. Same complaint, pissed at their local dealer because they never fixed their unit. Had people come from as far as 500 miles away to get their unit repaired here.

I'll finish this post later.... the kings royal is on ESPN2, I race sprint cars so that is where my interest is right now, our local boy, Donny Shatz won.

I'm back. From what I have seen on these units that have had only the oil pump replaced, is scored oil pumps again along with the transmission unit shot. Eather a sign of the tech not being thorough and splitting the oil tank, removing the metal plate that covers the oil gallery under there (metal shavings hide in there) and cleaning ( I can tell those by the origional thread locker being on the bolts and no wrench marks on the bolts) or pulling the hydro trans unit and cleaning the sub-transmission mainshaft bearing of shavings. This bearing is also the rear bearing for the hydro tranny unit. Metal shavings hide in these spots. Replacing the bearing and cleaning EVERYTHING would have saved most of these units. Also seen 0-rings not in place for oil galleries etc... on these units that have been apart.
I have had Rubicons from towns all over North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota and Canada on my bench for re-repair where only oil pumps have been installed in the past. Many so bad that all bearings in the engine and sub transmission (including one-way bearings on the flywheel) were surface littered with shavings. Along with messed up check valves ect... (many units can be repaired by unsticking the check valve)

Not all Rubicons have transmission failure, don't get these posts detour you from owning one. All I suggest is regular oil changes. Also a good Honda dealer for support.


----- Gimp -----

 

This is an oil pump test ... This is with the Honda oil pressure gauge ...

This is the 8mm allen bolt you remove the check oil pressure ..

This is the Honda adapter for the Honda oil pressure gauge..

This is the oil pressure at idle .. Minimum is 16 PSI..

This is the oil pressure at 5000 RPM .. Minumun is 116 PSI ..



This is the idle & 5000 test with Fluke equipment ..

 

The bike will not shift. It just flashes on the digital screen. When you put it in reverse it starts cutting out. I put it in the shop and they said they went through the electrical plugs, replaced the shift motor, angle sensor, and a new computer(ECM). I think that is what they called it. I was told that it is possible to maybe flush through the tranny with diesel then start over but I don't know. I have been quoted $2000 to fix the problem but to me the bike is not worth that. I was wondering if nothing else is there a salvage place to find that tranny or a bike that has been wrecked that I can rob it from. That is if no one can solve my problem. Any info is greatly appreciated!

 

You could try 2 things, ebay, and call Honda the numbers in your owners manual. Tell them you have done alot reading on these forum sites about your make, model and year. Just ask if they would be willing to look into your fourwheeler and good will you a new HFT unit if you have a Honda dealer put it in and you pay labor and rest of the parts.

This may help and or may not. Sometimes Honda looks at how many Honda's you have bought over the years and if you bought there extended warrenty.