Any opinions on this machine? How does it compare to other 400's on the market. Does anyone know of any comparison write-ups on 400 utility machines available on the net?

I was looking for a Sportsman500. I like the independant susp., but am thinking it's too big, both in size and weight. I am a big guy 6'6", 240 lbs, so I would like a bigger machine but it won't even fit in the back of my Dakota with out having to drive it over top the wheel well humps.

Any opinions on the performance of the Kodiak are appreciated.

 

With the price of a 500, you may be better served with a 650 prairie or 660 griz. Anyhow I've had a kodiak for a couple of weeks. My first impression was it was alright. I was very disapointed in the steering but loved the low gearing. The thing didn't turn well and washed out in turns. I found out they only recomend 3.6 lbs of air in the tires. After putting 6psi up front and 5psi in the rear it handled honestly like a sport machine. It feels a little rigid in turns due to the narrow trek, but after an hour or two it's easy to get used to. After break in I realized this thing can be pushed very hard in the swoops for a utility.
The gearing is excellent, low is only needed for slow manuevering up rock faced inclines and deep mud. Although not a must, the high range still has ample power for any situation, just to much wheel spin for my taste. By the way I run in 2wd 95% of the time until rough terain is encountered.
As far as how does it stack up against it's competition, it has more hp than anything in it's class, less the 400 prairie. Even beats out the 450 foreman,500 rubiconand 500 suzuki, but no where near a 500 polaris, standard or HO. I previously had the praire, the ultramatic is much better at delivering power, it feels more like driving a standard transmision, one that's always in the right gear. The prairie felt more like a snowmobile, either wide open or idling. The kodiak engages at a much lower rpm which delivers more power to the ground at low and midrange opperation. Wide open throttle the kawi is superior, but for trail riding low and mid power is more desireable than wide open throttle to tap into the machines grunt.I'm 6'2 260, fits fine. Power is good, not a 500 HO good ,but .6 hp better than the 500 rubicon. Price is good, you'll pay 300-350cc class price for a 401cc. Weight and handling are light. 3 things suck, the rev limiter in reverse, which can be overidden(I only did this to have full power to reverse out of mud holes). The front transmission snorkel may come off( mine has not). It is a simple thing to look for just make sure the hose clamp is secured, for piece of mind I took mine off and put rtv sealer(blue glue) at the fitting and sealed it back. And lastly the rear disc brake pad is said to wear out in 3 months. An aftermarket pad is sold for $25 that will not wear out as quickly, many people have had thier second heavy duty pad for a year and a half, the factory rear pad just sucks. That's about it, all snorkels are about rack high, which is about 32" so don't plan on going deeper than that in water unless you extend them. One more thing I've had 4 auto atvs this one has the best engine break on it, I swear it's like throwwing a standard transmission in 1st and crawling down a steep hill. By the way it also has the best transfer of power to the ground of any auto I've been on. It is very manageable, but full throttle in gravel leads to 40 feet of rooster tailing or donuts if you cut the wheels. In 4wd and low this is not a problem at all, one can climb a steep loose gravel washout without ever spinning a tire. And the tires are exceptable for factory, better than most. Rock crawling is great, mud, better than 85% of the factory tires out there, but still doesn't hold a candle to a mud tire.

 

I am 6'6" and weighed as much as 210 lbs when I was riding the Kodiak. Agree with Bugflipper7011's post. There are aftermarket mods to bump it up to a 500cc if you think it isn't powerful enough. I have a feeling you will be happy with the stock engine power though. The transmission is amazing in that it always seems to be engaged exactly where it should be. You won't feel cramped on the Kodiak.

 

Thanks for the comments. Anything further relating to a 2000 model Kodiak? Were there any changes for the '01 or '02?

 

Only change that I know of during the 2001 year was an updated water pump design. The older version has a seep hole at the bottom with no clear tube coming from it. The reason for the tube is to stop muddy water from going in the seep hole and ruining the seals. If you don't plan to ride in lots of mud then you won't need to worry about it. Otherwise, you can replace the water pump when it goes bad ($130).

The 2002 has a rear brake light.

Good Luck.

 

I have found some 2000 models to go look at, but have some questions. Did all of the 2000 Kodiak Ultramatics have selectable 2wd/4wd. I have a magazine article that indidates that it was 4wd only(??)

What are your experiences with front wheel spin on this machine? How good is the limited slip front diff? Is a locker a good investment? How does it steer with a locker diff installed? Are there any conversions available to allow a selectable differential lock (only when you need it)?

Some of my riding will be in the bush, cutting own trails, climbing some rock, some water, mud etc, the rest will be on overgrown snowmobile trails and the odd abandoned rail bed.

Sorry for the dum questions, but I like to go into things with a little knowledge.

 

Check this out. It is an old review on the 2000 Kodiak.

As far as I can tell, all 2000 Kodiaks came with 2WD/4WD selectability.

http://www.atving.com/editor/review/...iak/review.htm

Don't believe the ATV industry about limited slip front. It is NOT a limited slip. It is an open differential. If one tire is on ice or up in the air then that is the tire that will spin!

Not sure a locker has been released yet. Read about it but don't know anyone who has one. If it is anything like a Jeep, locking them up solid all the time will kill the handling and wear the tires out quicker. If there isn't an option to lock and unlock it then it won't be much good except for straight ahead mud bogging.

Good news is that you probably won't need locked wheels anyhow. If you put aftermarket tires on it this quad will go through almost anything. You can even go with larger tires. If you get in really thick, heavy mud, put it in 4Lo and you will have plenty of power to turn larger tires in the mud.

Later,