I have heard that you should not get an atv with a belt transmission due to the fact of slippage when wet or too mudded up, is this true or have they improved the belts that this no longer an issue?

 

If you get a belt wet will it slip? Sure.
BUT; The belt cooling intake is at or above the aircleaner intake. What dose this mean? That if your belt cover is sealed up like they should be your engine will suck water and die long before your belts get wet.
IMHO, it's a non-issue.

 

Name a interresting Utility ATV thats not a belt drive, 95% of ALL Utility ATVs are belt drive so take it from there. Yamaha,s "one and only" Utility ATV there old been around forever 400 Big Bear and its not there mud running power house champ by a long shot.

 

Entire Honda line is belt-less, suzuki 500 vinson auto-clutch was a nice machine.

Polaris and kawasaki have had serious issues with their belt drives in the past. Suzuki has had a couple of issues also.

As for worrying about getting them wet, that's not my concern. MY worry is whether they'll work on a day to day basis. Yamaha seems to be the only ones able to do that sufficiently IMO.

 

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: maddog56

Entire Honda line is belt-less, suzuki 500 vinson auto-clutch was a nice machine.



Polaris and kawasaki have had serious issues with their belt drives in the past.



As for worrying about getting them wet, that's not my concern. MY worry is whether they'll work on a day to day basis. Honda and zuki seem to be the only ones able to do that sufficiently IMO.</end quote></div>

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote> Honda and zuki seem to be the only ones able to do that sufficiently IMO</end quote></div>

The only Suzuki that has no belt drive is there little 376cc Eiger/King Quad. If Suzuki was not a belt drive fan then they would not of put one on there top of the line 750 and NEW 450 King quads.

Honda utility are not known for there technological break thoughs or performance.

Polaris, Yamaha ,Arctic Cat,Can AM and Kawasaki (At one time) have been using belt drive on there "MUCH" more powerful snowmobiles for decades and decades ,so i doubt the belt system can throw them a curve ball.

 

Like TLC said, belt drives have been in use by most manufacturers for decades in machines with far more horsepower than ATV's.

Honda continues to utilize gear shifting and has a tendency to lag behind somewhat in innovation in many things with ATV's. This could be in part due to the fact that they were never into snowmobiles like the others.

I ran my Yami belt drive into everything the non belt drive units were in and never had a belt problem. I love the fact that your not searching for the right gears for the conditions your in.

My only complaint about utility ATV belt drives is their lack of instant neck snapping take-off but this I'm told can be corrected with a clutch kit.

With snowmobiles on the other hand I can do a nice long dance with the ski's in the air but that has more to do with power to weight ratio.

 

What do you mean by the right gears for the conditions I'm in? Any input would be appreciated since this is my first ATV.

 

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: tequila13

What do you mean by the right gears for the conditions I'm in? Any input would be appreciated since this is my first ATV.</end quote></div>

When your on uneven terrain (hills up and down) and in different conditions (hard dry level surface or muddy wet bogs) with a standard transmission you will have to shift gears to match the speed and load of the ATV.

The auto belt drive pretty much does this for you so you can concentrate on the driving technique more.

 

TLC,

The 500 VINSON was availible with a manual transmission auto clutch. You asked for machines that weren't belt drive, the vinson was a very good one. Whether it's currently on sale or not it was as of quite recently. The foreman rubicon and rancher series are also excellent atvs with auto clutch manual shift transmissions.


I edited my post because I meant Yamaha and Suzuki, not Honda. That should be clear in that I was talking about belt drives, in which Honda has none.



Yes those other companies are using belt drives, but other than Yamaha and Suzuki the atvs they produce have had serious reliability issues when it comes to the belt drive trans. I don't give a damn what's working in the sled motors, what matters to me is what comes down the atv pipeline. If they were using the same designs and parts then I might agree with you, but they aren't holding up the same way the sleds do.

 

The Vision came in both belt and 5 speed. It was a nice ATV ,I looked for one used, I just did not mention the Vinson beause it is not made any longer since it got replaced by the newer more powerful belt drive 450 KQ. And no the Rubicon is not a 5 speed.

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Yes those other companies are using belt drives, but other than Yamaha and Suzuki the atvs they produce have had serious reliability issues when it comes to the belt drive trans.</end quote></div>

Never here of any belt drive "production" problem on any belt drive ATV that needed to be corrected. Our 97 Sporstman has the exact same primary "part for part" used on the non ebs 05-06 400/450 sportsman's. Where is the changes?

I hear about wet belts but thats due to riding in over deep water or a leak in the water tight housing somewhere,which is easy enough to correct,but has nothing to due with the mechanics of the primary and secondary itsself in anyway.

Can,t blame the drive system because someone can,t put a water proof belt cover on right,or a vent hose it not tight.

The primary secondary springs and belt are the same type as used on there sleds. Many clutch kits that can be used on the ATV or sleds.