My roomate is very serious about buying a new Rancher 4x4. He is torn between the ES and the normal foot shift. Has anyone had problems with the ES in extreme cold ( like -25 on an open frozen lake) or lots of water riding? Please give me any opinions you might have also.

 

I never had had any problems with mine in the cold or what water i have been in but, did just come back from riding the Little Sahara sand dunes in Oklahoma and did have a problem of it sticking one day when the sand was really blowing hard. Happend to 2 of us with Ranchers with the ES shifter.A slap of the handle bars would usually free it but,was a pain to fight it. Still all in all i would buy the ES program again. The 2 strokers with us had problems with airfilters clogging up (yes Yama's) and guess who had to tow them LOL

 

I have not had any problems with the ES system either and absolutely love it. I ride in all kinds of terrain: rocks, water, mud you name it. However, if your buddy is going to be sinking his quad like a submarine, the ES system is computer controlled & water and electronics don't mix.

I have had a few "oops" sink it to the handlebars situations, and the ES never complained.

01 Rancher 350 FE1

 

One of my friends has a 2wd rancher with the ES. I drive it a lot and i love the ES. It's great for keeping your feet out of mud and water and it shifts smoothly. He gives his rancher heck though and when we were off playing in a pond one day his ES went out while the rest of us with various manual shifting quads kept on truckin. He did have to get it VERY wet to make the ES quit and it wasn't a lot of trouble to hook up the included manual shifter and ride back to the camp. He stayed off of it the rest of the day and i guess it dried out or something but the next day it worked fine again. It is still working today w/o any probs and that was about a year ago and that quad has been through some punishment.

Also the Rancher is a great choice if you ask me b/c they handle great for a utility quad and the powerband is snappy at all rpms. the factory floorboards and mudflaps keep you clean when mudding. And it comes from the factory with practicaly 10 inches of GC. It is also incredibly powerful his will smoke the tires out on the asphalt. Yall may not think it's so great but it beats the crap out of a trx 300

 

Stroker: Tell your friend to buy the ES. I have driven it in sub -30 temps and no problems. The only problem at that cold is the plastic becomes somewhat brittle, but what isn't? It works fine, and no problems to date. ES and the floorboards make it more than worth it, trust me. You can look at some of the pics of our quads on the link below if you like. Later,
Scott

 

To keep it short Stroker. All the replies so far are right on the $. I love my ES. My wife has a Recon and I do like the manual shift to. But once you get use to shifting with your thumb, You will be glad you got the ES.

 

ES....THE ONLY WAY TO GO

 

my friend has a 2000 fourtrax 350 es 4x4, I have a 2001 fourtrax 350 manual 4x4. And his ES has had nothing but problems, first the recall, then a month later huge shifting problems, (a sensor was gone) and then a week after that it still wouldnt shift properly, my manual has taken his to school on everything, im sorry but the es is garabage, you cant beat shifting with your foot. actually feels like your driving a quad, not a wheelchair

 

I have a 450ES (1500 miles) and a 350ES (700 miles) and have had 0 problems.

Temp

 

if you do normal trail ridding the es is the way to go. but if you going to be in lots of water or mud by a manual shift. i have the manual shift 2x4 and it has LOADS of power for a 350 i can wheelei it in second gear without having to pull on the handles bars.
realy even though the es sounds good if it's going in mud or water get the regular shift and some aftermarket floorboards.