Hello everyone im a new to the forum. I'm looking for a utility ATV for all around performance. What I will be doing with it will be mostly pulling a disk drag and other ag acc. Also during hunting season not looking to mud bog but will not whine when pulling up to a mud hole. Im not too sure about a belt driven when going through water or have they came a long way with the belt

Thanks for all the comments

 

have you considered the honda rubicon 500

 

well lol i have always owned a honda and was looking at the rubicon and foreman 500. I have been away from the atv world for about 10 years now and really dont know what is hot and what is not


Thanks

 

The belt air intakes are at the same hight as the air intake for the air box,so if your in that deep of water don,t worry about a belt slipping because the engine will drown when it takes its first gulp anyways.

I hate to say it but if mostly all your doing is dragging farm equipment around I would get a straight axle ATV with a low range. Straight Axles do not carry the trailer Tongue weight on the suspension like IRS do.

 

you said, you want an atv for all around use, the rubicon has bery good power, it's bery stable and no velt, it uses a sealed hidraulic transmission , it has high and low gears, 3 modes on the transmission, there is nothing like it out there. I own a 2001 model and to this dayit runs purfect. there are bigger atv's with more power and inependent suspenssion all around and all kind of accesories, but the rubicon is unick

 

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>well lol i have always owned a honda and was looking at the rubicon and foreman 500. I have been away from the atv world for about 10 years </end quote></div>

Your in luck because Honda has done nothing for the last ten years and you will feel right at home.[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img] J.K.

 

depending on how heavy your disc and other equipment is though.... the rubicon uses ~6qts of oil @ $8/qt with a $15 oil filter so oil changes will be expensive and more frequent because of the towing. A yamaha with the starter clutch on the belt drive would also be a good choice because the belt is always tight (no slip). Other brand (polaris, kawi, can-am) engaged the belt-- but they do it seamlessly now.

 

The Rubicon was exactly what popped into my head, too, when you said you want to pull an implement.

Yeah, it takes a lot of oil for the hydrostat transmission, but it is also very well suited for high torque/low speed situations like pulling or dragging.

The Foreman would also probably be a good choice. It's your basic air/oil cooled 5 speed with auto-clutch.

Both are solid axle machines, which don't squat under hitch weight of a trailer, and also feel a bit more sporty sliding around corners, and are more planted on side hills. IRS is nice, though, for it's plush and smooth ride going fast over rough stuff, and for ground clearance.

If you decide you want IRS, Honda's only option is the Rincon which is pretty tall geared if dragging an implement is in the mix. Yamaha's Griz 700 might be a good choice. Good belt drive system, power steering (would be nice when running a sprayer with one hand, or whatever), low range and locker...

 

The foreman with power steering is probably your best bet... solid axle... decent power... course... for 6849... you might be able to find a grizzly700 too...

If anyone out there owns a foreman with Power Steering... please let us know how much they like it, and if they've compared it to the Grizzly's power steering...

 

If you want something simple and reliable that can get the job done I would look into the Honda Foreman 4x4. It's a manual shift, selectable 2wd/4wd, solid rear axle and 475cc which is really all you need. MSRP is $6449. If you want electronic shifting or power steering you can add that too, which I personally don't see a need for, but hey its your call.

For $150 more you can look into the Kawasaki Brute Force 650 4x4 solid rear axle. Its an automatic with a CVT belt drive (don't let that scare you) with selectable 2wd/4wd, solid rear axle and 633cc V-twin engine. With an MSRP of $6599 it by far is the quad that gives you the most bang for your buck.

I hate talking to salesmen but in this case visit a dealer and get an idea of a price range. Sit on some quads and see what is best for you.