[tj200]

Hi Guys,

I have had a 1991 Honda Fourtrax 300 for many years. The atv was abused but always ran great. I had purchased a new Polaris Sportsman 570 a few years ago and hated it ever since and eventually sold it out right. I purchased a 2013 Honda Foreman 500 Camo from the Honda dealer this weekend. It has 900 miles and they let me ride it around the parking lot. Everything worked great. Got it home and I couldnt get it past 2nd gear unless I came to almost a complete stop.

-I let the atv warm up for a while thinking that was the issue but still the same thing.
-Adjusted the clutch per the manual and that made no changes.
-Jacked up the rear end and I am able to run through all the gears with the atv stationary

I am calling up the dealer since they offered a 30 day warranty and I dont even have 1/4 mile on it. What do you guys think the problem is?

 

[shadetree]

welcome to the forums. I have not looked your model up ?, is this a electric shift ?, or manual shift model ?. if I had to guess , gonna say the clutch Is not adjusted right ?.

 

[tj200]

welcome to the forums. I have not looked your model up ?, is this a electric shift ?, or manual shift model ?. if I had to guess , gonna say the clutch Is not adjusted right ?.

This model is a manual shift. I followed these instructions:

 

[Jeepwm69]

If you properly adjusted the clutch and have the proper oil in there it should shift.

So it WILL go into 3rd, 4th, and 5th if you slow down quite a bit?

 

[shadetree]

ok, here's what I want you to try. this is a trial an error, so you may have to do this adjusting a few times ?. start the atv, get on it, with your left foot, lift the shift lever up, and HOLD IT THERE !. when you do this, does the atv want to creep at all ?, or stay put ?, if it creeps when you do this, while giving it some throttle ?, then the clutch is not right !. turn it off, loosen the lock nut, while holding the lock nut in place, turn the center bolt counter clock-wise until it starts to feel tight ?, then turn it back clock-wise about 1/4 turn, then hold the center bolt in place, lock the lock nut down. and try the shift lever again. start it up, raise the shift lever, HOLD IT THERE, give it some throttle while holding the lever up, does it want to move now ?, if not ?, then it's adjusted. you can check this by letting the foot shift lever back down, this puts it in gear, now give it some throttle, and it should work right. the reason you could shift through all gears while you had the atv up off the ground ?, is because the tranny was not under a load ?, so this would explain why it shifted through all gears without the clutch being in the mix of this.

 

[tj200]

Thank you guys for the responses. Shadetree, you really know your stuff and looks like a great asset to this forum. Here is a slight update, I called the dealer when they opened this morning since I purchased it right before they closed on Saturday. They said to get it down here that it doesnt sound like it should operate like that. My neighbor dropped it off for me since I am working and the salesman said hmm, maybe its supposed to do that and he got a tech. The tech rode the atv and said it has an issue, might only be a clutch adjustment. I found out a friend of a friend is a tech at the dealership and I messaged him through Facebook. He responded with its not a clutch adjustment, its something major. They are going to start digging into it. He said he has never seen a Honda do this before in the few years that he has been working there.

Is this a sign that the wheeler is going to potentially have issues going forward? On Saturday I worked out a cash deal on the used wheeler over a new 420 Rancher and the price difference was about $1800. Would you guys go for the new wheeler or would you guys trust this after the fix? The dealer seems great and they noted I didnt put any mileage on it since taking delivery Saturday.

 

[Jeepwm69]

I would let them fix it.

The new Ranchers have more or less the same engine as your 500, but that smaller engine is in a full sized frame now so I see zero reason to buy a new Rancher.

If they'll fix it, ride it. If not, get your money back and keep looking

 

[shadetree]

thanks tj200, I don't claim to know it all ?, but I've been around the block a time or two !..lol. I say let them fix it, the trx500fm is a better atv than the trx420 in my book. if that dealership can't fix it ?, bring it to me, i'll show them how its done !..lol.

 

[tj200]

Hi guys,

I just heard from the tech at the Honda dealer. The fiber plates were sticking against the metal friction plates. The transmission shifts by hand so they are ordering a clutch kit for it. There is evidently a perfect imprint of the fiber plates on the metal ones. They said it could be from sitting for a long time. I have googled around and could it be from the previous owner not using Honda GN4 oil?

 

[shadetree]

Hi guys,

I just heard from the tech at the Honda dealer. The fiber plates were sticking against the metal friction plates. The transmission shifts by hand so they are ordering a clutch kit for it. There is evidently a perfect imprint of the fiber plates on the metal ones. They said it could be from sitting for a long time. I have googled around and could it be from the previous owner not using Honda GN4 oil?

it's posb ?, but I highly doubt it, they do, and will stick if they sit for a long time ?. they may have called this one right. I hope they don't charge you for the clutch kit ?, it should have been road tested BEFORE they sold it to you !. make sure to tell them they better not charge you for this kit ?!.

 

[tj200]

Hi guys,

I just heard from the tech at the Honda dealer. The fiber plates were sticking against the metal friction plates. The transmission shifts by hand so they are ordering a clutch kit for it. There is evidently a perfect imprint of the fiber plates on the metal ones. They said it could be from sitting for a long time. I have googled around and could it be from the previous owner not using Honda GN4 oil?

it's posb ?, but I highly doubt it, they do, and will stick if they sit for a long time ?. they may have called this one right. I hope they don't charge you for the clutch kit ?, it should have been road tested BEFORE they sold it to you !. make sure to tell them they better not charge you for this kit ?!.

Yeah hopefully they dont charge me. They did say they were going to get it right. The paperwork I signed shows 50-50 on parts for 30 days. I am going to give a little bit of push back if they charge me for the clutch kit. The atv was dirty when I bought it so I doubt it went fully through their shop even though they said it did when I bought it although the oil was clean. I was able to download the service manual someone posted on this forum. I am all about preventative maintenance so according to the maintenance schedule on 3-3 I might go and change the oil in the front and rear, engine, oil filter, brake fluid, and grease. I will inspect the air filter, fasteners, check valve clearance, and the spark plug.

 

[Jeepwm69]

thanks tj200, I don't claim to know it all ?, but I've been around the block a time or two !..lol. I say let them fix it, the trx500fm is a better atv than the trx420 in my book. if that dealership can't fix it ?, bring it to me, i'll show them how its done !..lol.

Well the 2012-2013 Foreman was just a 420 motor with a bigger cylinder and piston, and bigger clutches. Crankshaft, crankcases, and exhaust are exactly the same on a 2012 420 and a 2012 500.

500 got a bigger frame, and more CC's, but the bottom of the engine is pretty much the same.

 

[shadetree]

thanks tj200, I don't claim to know it all ?, but I've been around the block a time or two !..lol. I say let them fix it, the trx500fm is a better atv than the trx420 in my book. if that dealership can't fix it ?, bring it to me, i'll show them how its done !..lol.

Well the 2012-2013 Foreman was just a 420 motor with a bigger cylinder and piston, and bigger clutches. Crankshaft, crankcases, and exhaust are exactly the same on a 2012 420 and a 2012 500.

500 got a bigger frame, and more CC's, but the bottom of the engine is pretty much the same.

are the newer 500's liquid cooled now like the 420's ?.

 

[tj200]

Just to give everyone an update. The dealer is waiting on more parts. Sure enough after further investigation there was a bent shift fork as well. I am going to see if I can get free oil and filter out of them or maybe a helmet. This is the longest I have been without a wheeler in 15 plus years.

 

[Jeepwm69]

thanks tj200, I don't claim to know it all ?, but I've been around the block a time or two !..lol. I say let them fix it, the trx500fm is a better atv than the trx420 in my book. if that dealership can't fix it ?, bring it to me, i'll show them how its done !..lol.

Well the 2012-2013 Foreman was just a 420 motor with a bigger cylinder and piston, and bigger clutches. Crankshaft, crankcases, and exhaust are exactly the same on a 2012 420 and a 2012 500.

500 got a bigger frame, and more CC's, but the bottom of the engine is pretty much the same.

are the newer 500's liquid cooled now like the 420's ?.

Yep. First year of the liquid cooled 500's (non Rubicon, which started in 01) was 2012, which is also the first year of EFI on the Foreman. The 2012-up Foreman motors are basically the same engine as the 07-UP 420 Rancher motors. They share cranks, mufflers, crankcases, top ends are interchangeable, Foreman has different clutches and a different stator.

You got the last of the air-cooled machines, which I much prefer. I watch all my buddies wash out their radiators while I just sit there sipping a beer.

 

[Jeepwm69]

Just to give everyone an update. The dealer is waiting on more parts. Sure enough after further investigation there was a bent shift fork as well. I am going to see if I can get free oil and filter out of them or maybe a helmet. This is the longest I have been without a wheeler in 15 plus years.

Someone must have really been hammering on it to have so few miles on it and already have a bent shift fork.

A family friend (President of Sanyo) once told me that quality control on refurbs was better than new quality. When they take something back and have to go through it everything gets double checked. They're having to tear that whole motor down to replace that shift fork so when you get it back you ought to have a new machine.

 

[tj200]

Friday night the mechanic called me up as they were closing and told me that he just finished it up. He said that it was a massive job. Whole front end had to come apart. Saturday morning I went to the dealership to pick it up and it runs great. I like not having to listen to the clicking noise that my Polaris Sportsman had in the automatic drivetrain. The good news is they covered everything, no leaks, and shifts the way it should.

 

[retro]

Great! Thanks for letting us all know what was wrong and that its fixed!

 

[Jeepwm69]

Good deal. At least now you KNOW that everything has been gone through. There's something to be said for having a machine with no "what if's" that might pop up.