yep- and just add a twin cylinder rotax with twin Siemens VDO fuel injectors and a 46mm throttle body - aaaaand, remove those low "stump grabbing" rear a-arms and go with a rear trailing arm .... and it'll be a wonderful machine

 

Honda has tons of motorcycle engines they could put in a new Rincon. Could easily put an 800+cc v-twin in there with power steering and a front locker. Will they, probably not. The Rincon is underpowered compared to many 500 cc machines. The can-am outlander 500 has quite a bit more power, 46 hp vs 39 hp. They should almost consider dropping the Rincon from their lineup totally unless they're going to do something somewhat dramatic. Most people would rather have a 500 Foreman anyway.

 

As said, I drove a Rincon for a day out in Utah. Hated it. By comparison I rode a Honda Rancher with power steering and the 5 speed transmission the next day. I enjoyed the Rancher. They've got to do better with their "flagship".

 

The trailing arm will grab stumps also but it just doesn't articulate very well. It's easy to hide on the outty max (longer wheelbase) but the 1up models are jarring. There is a reason why can ams have marshmallow seats, it's to hide the rear suspension movement. Also it leaves the cv boots and axles susceptible to big rocks or stumps. Can am makes a great machine but they have there own problems and it's usually more costly

The Rotax twin, I'm mixed on it. Incredible power but it carrys it's weight extremely high and as a result, your legs feel like they are wrapped around a horse. Not to mention how high centered all outlanders and renegade are. A direct result of the motor. I'd rather have the xr650r derived motor in a lightweight package like the rincon matted to a similar 5 speed dual clutch trans that's in the rancher AT. That would be a nasty machine capable of competing with a outty 800 and it would be much more versatile as well. Can only dream lol

 

you couldn't be more wrong regarding the TTI- the rear of the can-am is complety open (as seen in pics below)- where there would normally be a lower a-arm, there's nothing. The Polaris has a bit more room, but the Honda fails miserably at stump grabbing- it one of the reasons I sold both my rincons. Regarding the "marshmallow" seat... EVERY big bore atv has a marshmallow seat. Actually- the 2012+ can-am seats are firmer than most- and the tti allows for a true "up & down" motion of the rear wheels, lessening deflection and keeping the line straight and under control.


regarding the wide saddle- you have a point there. it is a wide seat, however. I can't even to begin to compare the xr engine to the rotax; the rotax wins every aspect hands down- way too many aspects to get into now, but I'm familiar with both engines and the xr can't even be in the same class of engine the rotax is. Regarding the 5sp clutch- again, no way... you could NEVER use a 5 speed clutch and have it be more versatile in a trail environment than a CVT... ever.

 

I'm not really in the market for a new machine but if I were and it had to be a Honda, I don't think I would even look at the Rincon. Probably would either be a 500 Foreman ES or 420 Rancher ES. The Rancher's smaller size and weight I would think make it a bit more sporty. I think its also quite a bit faster than the 500 Foreman too, tops out at about 60 mph I've read. Rancher seems to be just about the perfect size too. Not so big that it feels bulky but not small enough that it feels cramped. Its just right for someone of average size(5'11", 200 lbs) like myself.

 

popular with the hunters to get through the dense forest... hunters also love the suzuki eiger. my fil bought the popo hawkeye 300 for hunting- he loves it- it's a nice small 4x4 atv with a full IRS- basically a mini sportsman. I'm not sure, but I think polaris has the only 300cc class 4x4 atv with IRS

 

Don't really feel like arguing this. I know what's up between these powerplants [IMG][/IMG]



I love both powerplants but the Hondas power/weight ratio is far superior and just allows for a more comfortable and controllable riding style. This powerplant in a 640lbs rincon would stay right with a 800+ pound outty 650-800. The xx has more GC than the renegade for what's it's worth

 

\
not arguing- discussing.
still- couldn't disagree more- I think you're far off with your ratio assessments. The xr is overweight & underpowered compared to other similar cc 4-strokes. Honda's p/w ratio is severely lacking on ALL their utilities. As a matter of fact- excluding Honda sport quads (which are leading class), none of their utility atv's can come close in any aspect with any of the other leading Asian & north American utilities.

as far as riding experience... see that tag in my post listing (bottom left) all those atv's... that's maybe 1/4 of what I've owned in the last 25 years- many of them Honda xr, cr and ex machines. not exactly a noob either

 

What motors are these? I can't think of any 4t motor outside of a ktm 525 and the 450 MX bikes that is lighter/more powerful per cc but the Honda is virtually maintenance free. Change the engine oil and filter along with valve inspections every 100-150 hours and that's it. The 450s are maintenance queens and the 525s are even worse. There is a reason this powerplant dominated baja and Dakar. I'm talking dirtbike/atv motors only of course.

As far as the xr/xx powered rincon goes, 55 horsepower in a 640lbs machine would have the power/weight ratio of 11.8 pounds per HP. The outlander 800 makes 72 HP but weighs about 800 pounds. That's 11.1 pounds/HP. Pretty close and that's before it meets the transmission. Honda will never do it though. Lol