What a problem. Maybe the great people on atvconnection can help me decide. Next spring I am going to be purchasing a new atv. I live on a farm, out in the country (where else would a farm be) riding distance to the river is about 10min away where there are some trails, sandbars etc... I dont know what would suit me best. Right now my decision would be between a Sportsman 500HO, a Honda Rubicon, OR a Honda 400ex. 95% of the time I would be doing fun riding, up and down gravel roads, trail riding, wanting the speed and jumping ability of the 400ex, the other 5% of the time, it would be nice to have a atv with a rack mainly, but then the towing ability of the sport/utility atvs would be nice. I am not sure that for that 5% of the time though it would make sense to spend the extra money on the Sportsman or Rubicon and give up the "fun" of the 400ex. I have riden the Sportsman, havent ridden the Rubicon or the 400ex, although the Rubicon sounds about par with the Sportsman. I used to have a 250R 3-wheeler many years back and would guess the 400ex is comparible to that? Has anyone else gone through the same dilema as this, what did you do? Do you wish you would have made a different decision? Is there a FULL rack for the back of the 400ex or has anyone fabricated one? How fast is the 400ex?
I do like the old chain and sprocket setup on the 400ex as you can replace all the parts cheap, change gear ratios etc... but that really isnt a deciding factor at this point. I am just not sure what I would be the happiest with. I do know that that 5 or maybe 10% of the time the racks and towing would be nice, but I could live without it. Sure enough though there will be a new top dog Honda sport machine coming out this fall that will stomp the 400ex and I would want that, it will be the same price as a Rubicon or Sportsman 500HO then what do I do? WIth the rumor of Polaris coming out with a Sportsman 700 that throws another wrench in the works, but I wonder what the price tag will be on that if it ever comes to be, and also what Honda will do in reaction.
Quite a problem isnt it?

 

I think you answered your own question! Besides, a H.O. would be tax exampt for farm use.

 

Why dont you get a wolverine. They are sporty and have racks.

 

Prairie 650 V-Tiwn 4x4!

 

Right now, the Kawasaki Prairie 650 V-twin and the Yamaha Grizzly 660 are the fastest 4 stroke utility machines out there and are just about as fast as a Honda 400EX. They are well worth checking out. They are also both 2x4/4x4 capable. I've ridden the Prairie 650 and it is a blast! I'm not really up on my knowledge of Polaris, but you may be able to buy racks for the Scrambler 500 which comes in 2x4 and 4x4 models and is a chain drive. It is very close in speed to the others. Also, if you like 2 strokes, Polaris makes a 400 4x4 (I forget the model) that is about as fast as the others also and is a utility machine. There is no perfect machine, but there sure are some good ones to choose from. If you are into big jumps etc., and high speed, you should probably stick with the 400 EX, the Yamaha Raptor, or the Bombardier DS 650.

 

Why don't you get a 400EX and a ral chea used utility quad (like suzuki 300 with triple range? You won't be scraed to beat the poor suzki...and you'll keep shining your 400EX...

 

One other thing you MAY want to consider would be to get the 400EX, fab a reciever/ball on the back of it (or anyway to hook up a small trailer) and then that could take place of your need for racks. Not sure what you are wanting to use the racks for (small sprayer or what) but this is just another thing to consider.

 

You say you live on a farm? Me too, and we have a tractor for the hard work around here. Then.... for the fun of it, we have a 400ex and a 300ex! Have fun 100% of the time, get a 400ex!

 

I use to want a work quad then i just decided on a 250x because i did think i would jump or anything well wen to the river and started jumping and wantin to go fast and all that good stuff and sold my 250x the best sport quad ever the 250r.
I say go with the 400ex.

 

Saw last night in the Rocky Mountain catalog that they have front and/or back racks for the 400EX... don't remember how much, but I am thinking they were $50-$60... somewhere in there.
That is what I would recommend doing... it even looked like if you felt the need, you could take these racks off when you weren't using them and then put them on when you needed them.