So just got back from a camping trip and rode family Honda Rubicons and Rimcon. They were both fine for my riding.

We typically do trails, most mild, some pretty rugged IMO. I have no interest in high speed running. I think I topped the Rubicon out at 50 and that was more than enough for me....EVER.

I liked the Rimcon's 2wd/4wd option and the indpenent suspension. On the rough trails the Rimcon was much easier to handle then the rubicon.

That said when I go to buy mine I am not stuck on any name brand. I like the Honda well enough but wonder if I should consider the Yamaha Grizzly or other brands (CAN-AM?).

I like the looks of the new Grizly and the fact that it has a lockable differential, power steering, and indep suspension. I don't know that I like that belt driven transmission. The honda's appears to be a variable speed enclosed tranny. Seems more reliable to me. I would imagine that belt system could be a mess in mud and water.

Again these are a novice's opinions and may be completely wrong.

I'm looking for opinions on the different units. Leave the manufacture loyalties out of it please, unlike my Ford devotion I have zero when it comes to ATVs.

I'm looking for reliablility first and foremost, features and comfort second and speed a distant third.

Thanks guys and gals....

Jim.

 

Reliability, comfort, and performance on the trail: those qualities scream Honda Rincon. Everyone I know that has one loves them. Very few of those people have had any problems with the Rinny. I personally own a Brute Force 750 and love it. Its a monster in the power department and is purely built for power. Its not a "great" trail machine, but I have a great time with it. The belt system isn't a bad setup. I have not had a bit of trouble yet with mine, and that is with 26'' mud lites, burn outs, ***** to the wall pace on trails. Can Am's are very well known for having poor frames. I would stay away from them. Get some seat time on a Grizz and see what you think of them. The power steering would be great on the tough trails.
There is no substitute for displacement, remember that. I think you would be happy with a Rincon. My .02. Good luck.

 

I ride a Honda on some of the toughest trails in the southeast. I have buddies who ride Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki, and Kawasaki. The atv's today are made so well I think it comes down to what is most comfortable for you. My Rancher is a mountain goat, but not the most comfortable ride. It has never let me down and brought many miles of fun with it. So have the other brands my buddies ride. If I were in the market for a new ride, I would probably go with the Rincon. I've had great luck with Honda and would probably stick with that. Best of luck.
Rich

 

My brother and neighbour have the Grizzly 660's and I have an 07 Grizzly 700 with power steering. It has been a great bike so far. It rides nice and the power steering is awesome for those long rides. You don't get the bars ripped from your hands when you run over a big rock or a log. If you want to read up on all brands of ATV's from the people that actually ride them you should look at nyrocatv.com there is a ton of great information there.

 

Hondas get out done by about every other make and model. They have good reliability and ride pretty well but the suspension travel, poor ground clearance & lack of a front diff lock really hurt it offroad. If your trailriding is mild you should be more than capable enough on a Honda. Yamaha also has some very reliable capable bikes you might want to look into.

 

I have a 96 Yamaha Big Bear 350 that has nearly 7000 miles on it now, never had to do anything to it, same for my 2004 Bear 400 with ~1200 miles.
I've ridden 2 Polaris before, and honestly I don't care for them at all. Seem cheap and one of them kept dying even though it was less than a year old.
The 2 Suzukis I have ridden I liked, they seemed to have plenty of power and seemed pretty well put together.
I agree with scott about Honda, they are super reliable but average just about everywhere else.

So based on my experiences I like Yamaha and Suzuki, but that's just my opinion. Go out and test drive different makes and models, find one you like. Just keep in mind if it's not comfortable driving it around at the dealership, it sure as heck isn't going to be comfortable on a trail.

One other thing, I would honestly consider a manual tranny if you can find one. The reason I love my Big Bears is because they both have semi- manual trannies- you shift but there is no clutch. I've seen a few guys have some problems with automatics, especially after going through water.

 

The Rincon is a great ATV. However the Yamaha Grizzly 660 and 700 are also amazing ATVs. I think I'd have to go with the 660 and the 700 over the Rincon. The 660 is also actually faster than the 700. The 700 does have a smoother powerband though.

 

how about the reliability of those belt driven transmissions?

Most of the stuff we do isnt really difficult probably 7/10 for difficulty. The hondas I've riden have handled them with no problems.

I like the look of the grizzly but I dont want bells and whisltes if it leaves you dead on a trail.

 

I have never heard of a problem with them. I think you'll be okay !!

 

I'm waiting on word of a new job if I get it I'm buying one as a present to myself so I have a few weeks to research. Going to go out shopping and look around, I just figured the hillbillies here would have some insight.

 

With indepedent suspension invest in the kevlar boot gaurds.
I've own 3 ATV
Honda is not the fastest or the prettiest.
But honda's keep it pretty simple!
Less to Break IMO
My last is grizzly 660
bad boy!
Don't worry about the belt drive

 

Honda makes a good ATV, just watch out for the ES "electric shift" models. Good idea if they get it perfected.

 

Good to know about the belt driven transmission.

Now what am I missing about the connection between Independent suspension and the boot guards?

 

The CV boots are pretty exposed with the cheap plastic skids that come with the machine. I put some aftermarket skids on mine but I am also looking at getting the kevlar boots.

The Yamaha belt drive is self adjusting so it always stays tight and the belts last a very long time. When they need to be replaced you can do it yourself in the driveway in about 45 minutes. I have about 1300 miles on my 700 and the belt still looks new.

No matter what you get you will find you will want to do some tweaking to get the bike where you need it to be. They all have some minor issues that need to be addressed. Like my 07 700 (the first year) had some leakage past the air filter in the airbox. A simple airbox mod fixed this and now the 08's have an improved airbox lid to solve the issue. I also added skids, 26" mudtires, by-passed the reverse switch (to remove the rev limiter in reverse) and fixed the faulty gas tank air pressure valve that Yamaha put on the 700's.

My point is that no ATV is perfect. They all have their own issues and it is best to educate yourself so you know what you can expect fix right out of the gate (like the Suzuki King Quad's poor air filters. Fixed by adding an afermarket one) and what kind of maintenance is required (like the Kawasaki belt drives require regular adjusting to work properly). Then ride them and see what feels right for you. I would do some research on the ATV site I mentioned above. Every issue for every brand of ATV can be found there with a little digging and like this site there are a lot of guys that can help you fix any problems you might have.

 

I just wanted to add to my coments.

The Grizzly busted the left inner cv boot.

The design and simplicity is of the best I've evr seen.
I haven't been inside many newer bikes.
But the rear diff is so simple.:santa:

I still haven't been in the locker on front yet. But I can't get over the simplicity of this thing.

But still for and unexpereanced rider . Never lock the front without a rev limiter{most aftermarket ignitions remove the limit}. It can kill.

Old thread
I wonder if the OP is still shopping