Well, I cant find the thread, so I'm starting a new one.
I think it will be interesting to see Hondas version of the auto tranny market. I can't say that I will buy one though.. I knew they would do it, but I guess I was looking for more than the tranny out of an old street bike...(750 Hondamatic) The liquid cooling will be a nice addition, but WHY not the selectability of 2wd/3wd... (still gotta call it 3wd until they fix that)
The Polaris transmission is SEPERATE from the engine... which is NICE... if something goes wrong in the gearbox or you fill it full of water... its less expensive to fix... Hopefully the Honda will have seperate cases for the transmission and engine.
But, I have serious doubts about how that fully (juice automatic) will respond when filled with river water and a little mud... I KNOW that will happen, its just a matter of time..
Clutch changes can be made for the belt driven quads for more low rpm pulling power, performance, etc... I wonder HOW and HOW MUCH mods for this one will be????...
Automatic (juice) transmissions are NOTORIOUS for building heat, and the slower speeds and higher loads are going to push the temps even higher.. HHmmmmm..... Is B&M or Hughes gonna start making stall converters for them?.. I wonder if they have REALLY looked at the inconsistencies juice trannys have when they are exposed to different fluid temperatures?.. Especially Extreme changes.. There are ALOT of parts in there to break... I can see it now, The T.C.I. Sunday Mudhole Special.. a shift reprogramming kit so you can get a second gear scratch...
B.T.W. when I am referring to Juice transmissions, Im referring to auto trannys like in a car...
Polaris transmissions aren't really automatics... they are fork shifted manual gearboxes with an automatic external clutch (belt) and continually variable input shaft speeds...

Somebody re-assure me about this Honda... I thought they would have been more competitive with a new model...

 

Wheely,
I just LOVE it when you guys say things like that. Im glad you are ANTI-POLARIS... As a Polaris owner, I DON'T want people like you trying to represent my brand. Im glad you represent Honda... I'm sure ALL the intelligent Honda owners are going to support and back you in your quest to show your intelligence. Actually, they probably ran you out of the Honda Camp and youre just wandering hopelessly looking for a place to call home.. It AIN'T anywhere near here bud..!!!! Get to steppin!!
I'll Swear, You musta left your common sense in the delivery room!!!

 

I wish I understood how the Hondamatic worked. I can't seem to figure it out. Is it just like an automatic car?

I found this.....

http://www.cadvision.com/baierm/betsy.htm

But it doesn't explain the Hondamatic at all. Hmmm...

Like I said, I don't have a clue how this Hondamatic works. But I know a lot of people that didn't want an ATV that was "automatic shifting" until they rode a Polaris automatic and discovered that it wasn't the same as a car. I hope it's not like that, or at least improved.

Cars do a good job of keeping in the right gear, but not as good as a CVT. Going down a hill in a car and then immediatly going up a steep hill can really "confuse" the transmission sometimes, and on a quad, I wouldn't want that.

If it offers a car-type automatic as well as manual shifting, then I am really impressed. That's pretty cool!

I think they should have put a 2wd option, and either a Polaris, Suzuki King Quad, or Bombardier style 4x4 system. It hink it's great that it is under 600lbs though.

 

AS a mechanic I can only think , wonder how thick the book on that tranny will be? Will I be able to fix one? Will I have to pull it out and send it to Tranco or AAA to have it fixed? After working on my first 450ES transmision this past week I can only think these new high tech Quads are becoming more and more "Dealer freindly" but still I can hardly wait to see one and see how it performs.

------------------
Kevin Gowdy aka Kagey 1999 Polaris Magnum 500

 

I'm thinking this new automatic will send Polaris, Yamaha, and the others scrambling back to the drawing board. Honda never comes out with something on a whim, without having done their homework. The Honda Rubicon will be the 4X4 quad others will be measured up against. I'm considering selling my Big Bear next spring, and will have to take a hard look at a Rubicon, instead of a Sportsman or Grizzly. TF

 

I owned a 1977 Hondamatic before. I sold it to help fund my Polaris. I never had any trouble and it had plenty of power and speed. Now that it is gone I have thought it would be neet to stick that 750cc and automatic in a ATV. Mine had a high and low range and you could shift on the fly. It was pretty good at engine breaking also. With the smaller rear wheels of an ATV you would have had a ton of torque. I guess I will never know.

Dan Daugherty

 

Dand11, I would be interested in hearing more about the Hondamatic, since I am completely ignorant about it.

Was there a distinctive "shift" or was it more fluid? Did it create much heat? Were you able to also shift manualy, as reported on the Rubicon? Was it quieter than a belt driven automatic? How large was it? (Belt driven automatics tend to be quite large)

Thanks for the info, I am already planning on getting a new Rubicon and I will probably go to the dealer to put a deposit down as soon as I find out a little more about it.

Perhaps you could e-mail your response as well.

 

Phoenix1 The shift on the Hondamatic was very smoth. It felt like the belt drive on my Polaris because you never feel any gear change. It has no clutch. It did not have individual gears just a high and low range that you could shift between with out coming to a stop. You could get a real good start by running up to about 30 mph in low range then dumping it in to high. The norm was to leave it in high all the time unles you were in soft ground or had a load in stop and go traffic. I tried going form high to low once and it didn't sound very good. It didn't make any extra noise or excessive engine rpm. I don't recall it running hot but air cooled engines are a little warm on your legs. The size was about the same as the manual Hondas.

Dan Daugherty

 

Thanks for the Info, Dan. It was very useful.

 

The new Hondamatic works like nothing else, not even the autotrans on Honda's 750 bike.


It runs like the hydrostatic drives found on Honda's mowers and tractors. It converts engine power to hydraulic pressure in a pump. Then the pump drives a "pump motor", another hydraulic device. Its all one unit, and the ATV design is continuously variable and multiplies torque as the reduction ratio increases.

If its anything like their tractor drives, its a stout product. The press material says its got 100 patents.

I think using engine oil for the trans is a good idea. if you spring a leak in the trans, yu've got a lot more oil and the warning lights should tell you to check the engine. You can filter out sediment. I guess water in the oil wouldn't be so good, but water is hydraulic, like oil, so in a pump it should work alot longer than the engine would run with water-contaminatd oil.