Could anyone tell me the pros and cons of these two machines? I'll be purchasing one of them this weekend and would like to hear some personal experiences. Any information or advice would be greatly appreciated. My main purpose for the machine will be hunting/exploring and trail riding with an occasional mudding excursion. Specifically, I would like to know if there is any way to get the Honda's front differential to lock, but any and all info would be great.......thanks.

 

could be wrong on this but there was a cat on a new yami 450 that went on a run with us last long may weekend. man that thing was fast and good in the mud even though he had whatever tires it came with. good ground clearence . good on fuel
now i believe it comes with a shiftable 2 or 4 wheel drive and disc breaks all around, but not sure.

 

The Kodiak beats the Foreman in speed, but I don't like belt drives. It all depends on what you want. The Foreman would be the more reliable/work oriented choice.

 

Forman is a great reliable quad, slightly slower than the kodiak, but I don't like belt drives, especially in the long term.

Switchable 2-4wd is great its standard on the new Formans, and highlifter offers an automatic locker for the front diff (detroit locker) for about $350, or a spool style locker for $35.00.. I have the later, it made steering stiffer slow hardpack but was worth it for traction and price. IF you want true 4wd and easy steering, go with the detroit locker.

 

Just a question. with the detroit locker, can you switch it out of differential mode?

 

The kodiak 450 is a good machine, has disk brake all around and selectable 2-4 wheel drive plus dif lock. Yes it is alot faster than the honda but don't get me wrong the forman is a good machine and not everyone flys down the trails. Really depends on what you want if you need the locked diff you will have to spend money on the honda, but the kodiak already has it. Both reliable and the belt drive on the kodiak is one of the best and long lasting.