I have a 95 Honda Foreman 400 4x4 and am getting 25 inch Carlisle Trax Max tires put on tommorow. Is it worth it to lift it? What parts are all involved with a lift kit? Does it put any extra strain on the atv? Is your suspension stiffer? I ride Trails,Ditches,Backroads and my share of mud. Thanks for the Help!

 

The 25" tires should fit fine without a lift. I think if you would get 25 or 26" tires it might need a lift. The 400's seem to be lower than the 450's. I wouldn't put a lift on my machine because of the extra strain on drivetrain components. Do the 25" tracks max tires look like blackwaters?

 

Yes they look similar. I don't think as aggresive I will fill you in once I got them. The reason for the lift is not to fit tires it is for ground clearance but thanks anyway!

 

DON'T GET MAX TRAX'S. My friend has em on his 350 big bear and they wore out so quickly it was funny. I got my May issue of dirt wheels and highlifter came out with 28 inch mud tires stated to be better than the rest. I am thinking about getting Dirt Devils on my Polaris 300.. Lift it. anything will help in deep mud.

David

 

I'd suggest you leave it. In my opinion one of the benefits of the Foreman 400 is it's low center of gravity. I ride alot where there are quite a few hills and the Foreman is fairly stable while side hilling and climbing. Unless you are riding strictly in mud, I would leave the machine at the stock height, especially if your going with 25" tires. I also think a lift would cause a lot of unnecessary strain on the drive and suspension components of your machine.

 

Attention David"expressor300". What was your bigbear friend riding in? Do they do good in mud? What do you mean they wore fast, how long did it take? Its kind of to late they'll be here tommorow.

 

Josh-If you ride in rutted areas, the lift will make a big difference as to whether you high-center or not. As far as increased dirveline wear, I can tell you that 2", or less of lift, will not hurt at all. I have been running a Highlifter kit since 1997 and have had no problems. My ATV is ridden everyday of the week for at least 45-60 minutes. The people that have problems are the ones that go overboard and go beyond reason. I ride with too many people with lifts that have had no problems to tell you it will cause driveline probs.

 

I would not recommend the lift on the Foreman. I have lifts on my Grizzly, Honda 300 4x4, and my Foreman ES. The Grizzly and the 300 have handled the lift just fine - it doesn't seem to stress the parts as bad on these bikes and they both have over a 1000 miles on them with no problems. My 2000 Foreman ES had to have the front bearings and all four ball joints replaced after 4 months and 430 miles on it. The lift stresses the ball joints so bad that the rubber boots get pinched and get holes worn in them. At 510 miles the rear u-joint snapped and bent the output shaft coming out of the engine. This requires complete disassemble of the engine - not fun. With 25" tires you won't need the lift, we run 27" Vampires and they fit with no lift just fine.

 

If it's not too late take a look at the Carlisle Trail Wolfs. I bought some for my Recon and loved them.

They are economical, yet built on a 4 ply base, I was told it is the same base as Blackwaters, and the tread is great.

In fact, when I sold my Recon I kept the Trail Wolfs and sold them to my neighbor; he currently has them on a 250X and they work splendid for him as well.

They are availible is sizes that will not need lifting.