Hi I am new to this forum and would appreciate any input you guys can give me. I currently own a 01 rubicon and have been very pleased with it. I am in the market for a new quad and have narrowed it down to the rincon and the prairie. i like to ride trails and play in the mud a little. I like the power of the prairie and the price is about $1000 less around here due to some promotions on the prairie. I am a long time honda rider and have always been happy with the reliability but always wanted more power and selectable 2 and 4 wheel drive. I posted on the kawi site and just wanted to get some opinions from the honda guys to. I ride fast on the trails and like to jump a little. Please give me the pros and cons to each and help me with this big decision. Thanks in advance for any and all reply's.

 

I own a Prairie and endured the same dilema as you before I bought it. I also like to ride trails fast. It basically gets down to one trade-off: speed for comfort. The prairie will smoke the Rincon, anywhere and in any situation. The Honda is more comfortable, anywhere and in any situation. I chose the Praire because the power is undeniable. The Honda would also be a fine choice though.

 

i love my rincon. i ride pretty fast on the trails, and yes, it is most definately a quad that absorbs the rough spots. we dont have alot of mud out here, not for long anyway so i cant speak much on that. i have had it in a river that ended up putting water over the front rack and it did fine. i also do some jumping and it feels fairly well balanced off the ground and seems to land well (not rough or bouncey, the shocks soak it up and bring you back to ride height nicely).

i turned 800 miles today and its still going strong.

 

I have a couple friends with prairie's and there is no doubt about the power. For the size you can still play with them quite a bit so the fun factor is still there. They have great ground clearance, especially if you upgrade to bigger Mudzilla's. The ride is a little more choppy and there are some reliability issues with the 4 wheel drive engagement and belt/clutch problems but nothing TOOOOO serious. I would be very happy with one. I don't know anything about the rincon but I will buy anything with the Honda name on it and not think twice.

 

I have a prairie 650 the biggest issue at the time was price which was about 1000 bucks less talked to a local dealer that sells both,told me that both machines are very reliable, my friend bought a rincon because some scum bag stole his 400 foreman,rode it it is very comfy a lot better than the grizz for sure either machine is great I would like the suspension on my bike or put my drivetrain on the rincon and you got a perfect machine. you lose a little bit of the ride with the 650 thats why I went with the rad outlaws the ride better but that isn't an issue with the IRS on the honda he has Vamps on his and you lose nothing,try them both out you won't regreat either bike that's for sure.

 

Hmm, with the prarie, you get two advanteges over the rincon. A much better price tag, and a quad that is Much more "Fun" to ride. the prarie is probably the Sportiest utility quad there is, besides the Vinson that is. and the Power output is no joke, that thing hauls.

 

As far as price, going off of MSRP the difference is about $500. not a huge advantage when you get up this far in the price range and you can almost certainly get the Rincon for under $7k. As

Who's sportier? Not sure as i have not ridden a Prarie but i do know the Rincon can keep up with my up with my riding buddy on his Raptor about anywhere we go. Rincon has almost 3 inches of clearence on the Prarie in the back. I think the Rincon does have a little drift as a result of the IRS when wide open (about 65) on dirt road in corners. i usually have to slow down a little there.

good luck deciding on what to get.