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It’s a fact that Honda’s are almost indescribable. ButI was wondering, what is the hardest to kill Honda? I know the old girls are tough but is there anything new as tough as the old ones?
Thoughts?
Thoughts?
What is the hardest to kill Honda Atv?
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That’s what I’ve always been told, At least honda uses gears and not CVT transmissions. You get water on the belt and your done. But I’ve also heard that the electronic shifting on the newer Honda’s work decently but are a pain when they break.
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this is kinda of like, whats better FORD or Chevy DODGE
there is NO best model to be honest, as too many variables determine too many things in what lasts the longest
a BAD part can make its way onto any atv leaving a factory!
and I also fully agree the reputation HONDA"S had/has is based off the older atv's it made 20-30 yrs ago
and its still riding on them old atv's reputation to sell the new models they make
BUT the new Honda's are just like the rest of them made,m over loaded with WAY too many electronic crap that is, sadly NEVER going to be as reliable as the old things that didn;t have the same electronic's and over protective emissions crap
there are LOYAL followers of every brand and folk's that have gotten problem free LONG life out of every brand
which IMO< tells me, that a HUGE part of long life, is the OWNER, how he cares for something or NOT, how he rides and uses it
there is a LOT of basing of brands and I don't really par take in it too much
I DO think Honda's make very reliable atv's, but at same time, the amount of HP they make, make it pretty hard to really BEAT them to kill there motors!
you kinda have to sink them, to kill em
but that doesn't mean there the most fun , or BEST HP to LB
if your atv only go slow, and another model goes FAST, one will always get more abuse from weight in motion
older honda atv's were simple , smaller machines, built honestly to be OVERLY built for the HP they made
modern testing, STOPS this sort of building of anything, as OEM"S don't want to waste money, or make anything that lasts TOO long, as there NEED to sell more and more to stay alive!
Modern testing , allows them to know exactly HOW strong a part must be , and when a part will FAIL
they do NOT over build things, as they once did, due to NOT having the testing they do now
the modern world is a throw away world, last JUST long enough to get past warranty, and MAKE you THINK you got a deal, and sell you another one mind set!
there is NO best model to be honest, as too many variables determine too many things in what lasts the longest
a BAD part can make its way onto any atv leaving a factory!
and I also fully agree the reputation HONDA"S had/has is based off the older atv's it made 20-30 yrs ago
and its still riding on them old atv's reputation to sell the new models they make
BUT the new Honda's are just like the rest of them made,m over loaded with WAY too many electronic crap that is, sadly NEVER going to be as reliable as the old things that didn;t have the same electronic's and over protective emissions crap
there are LOYAL followers of every brand and folk's that have gotten problem free LONG life out of every brand
which IMO< tells me, that a HUGE part of long life, is the OWNER, how he cares for something or NOT, how he rides and uses it
there is a LOT of basing of brands and I don't really par take in it too much
I DO think Honda's make very reliable atv's, but at same time, the amount of HP they make, make it pretty hard to really BEAT them to kill there motors!
you kinda have to sink them, to kill em
but that doesn't mean there the most fun , or BEST HP to LB
if your atv only go slow, and another model goes FAST, one will always get more abuse from weight in motion
older honda atv's were simple , smaller machines, built honestly to be OVERLY built for the HP they made
modern testing, STOPS this sort of building of anything, as OEM"S don't want to waste money, or make anything that lasts TOO long, as there NEED to sell more and more to stay alive!
Modern testing , allows them to know exactly HOW strong a part must be , and when a part will FAIL
they do NOT over build things, as they once did, due to NOT having the testing they do now
the modern world is a throw away world, last JUST long enough to get past warranty, and MAKE you THINK you got a deal, and sell you another one mind set!
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Anything will last with proper maintenance but I understand what you’re asking. Kinda like fords legendary 300ci I6. You never hear about how a 351 ran for 400k miles lol. I was actually shopping for a raptor 700 when I ended up finding my 400ex but I’m not sad, Honda just didn’t offer as large of a motor in a sport quad as I thought I needed. The 400ex has thoroughly impressed me in both power and design. Due to the previous owners laziness on a rebuild I’m WAY deeper into the engine than I ever planned to be but it has taught me a lot about the machine and in stock form is very well built and reliable.
My buddies always had Honda’s growing up when I couldn’t afford one so I rode their stuff a lot. 2 of them had ranchers that we just absolutely thrashed on. We ran them through creeks, jumped, wheelied, found top speed on them, and never had a single issue. One of them also had a Yamaha yzf250 that seized up just cruising down a back road.
Another friend has a Polaris magnum 330 that practically fell apart after a few years.
This doesn’t mean that Polaris or Yamaha is junk but from my personal experience, Honda builds good, reliable machines and I’m happy to own one
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My buddies always had Honda’s growing up when I couldn’t afford one so I rode their stuff a lot. 2 of them had ranchers that we just absolutely thrashed on. We ran them through creeks, jumped, wheelied, found top speed on them, and never had a single issue. One of them also had a Yamaha yzf250 that seized up just cruising down a back road.
Another friend has a Polaris magnum 330 that practically fell apart after a few years.
This doesn’t mean that Polaris or Yamaha is junk but from my personal experience, Honda builds good, reliable machines and I’m happy to own one
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TRX300 88 to 97
Not as comfortable as my 02 450 foreman but strong and reliable lol that's why I have 6 of them!!!!
Not as comfortable as my 02 450 foreman but strong and reliable lol that's why I have 6 of them!!!!
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My uncle owns a 02 foreman 450, don’t think he has even done a oil change on it lol
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Been thinking about this for a while and can’t come up with anything.
On one had, I’d have to go with the TRX300, but then again that rear end isn’t very hard to kill. Then I think about the 400/450S Foreman, but remember all the problems stripping the splines on the axle/ring gear. Probably not as common as 300 rear end problems though.
But are we talking about a BRAND NEW TRX300 or 400/450S vs a newer Honda? Because those no longer exist. So we must be talking about right now, this moment in time, an good/average 300/400/450 vs a brand firing new Honda. In that case I would have to say a new Honda is more reliable than any average older machine you can pick up.
I mean let’s face it, you buy a new machine it has warranty, you hop on and ride it. It’s not very likely you’ll run into things like...bad bearings, worn ball joints, worn tie rod ends, etc. However with most used machines you can expect all of that stuff unless your buying it to immediately do a full rebuild on, assuming you have the skills and time to do so, and even then, most people I see doing these “nice” rebuilds aren’t considering the seal surfaces for their wheel bearings or differential seals, so how long their fixes will last with some real use can be a bit of a crapshoot.
So, what’s the hardest Honda to kill? I guess I’m not really sure. I could kill any of them pretty easily if that was what I wanted to do. lol
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On one had, I’d have to go with the TRX300, but then again that rear end isn’t very hard to kill. Then I think about the 400/450S Foreman, but remember all the problems stripping the splines on the axle/ring gear. Probably not as common as 300 rear end problems though.
But are we talking about a BRAND NEW TRX300 or 400/450S vs a newer Honda? Because those no longer exist. So we must be talking about right now, this moment in time, an good/average 300/400/450 vs a brand firing new Honda. In that case I would have to say a new Honda is more reliable than any average older machine you can pick up.
I mean let’s face it, you buy a new machine it has warranty, you hop on and ride it. It’s not very likely you’ll run into things like...bad bearings, worn ball joints, worn tie rod ends, etc. However with most used machines you can expect all of that stuff unless your buying it to immediately do a full rebuild on, assuming you have the skills and time to do so, and even then, most people I see doing these “nice” rebuilds aren’t considering the seal surfaces for their wheel bearings or differential seals, so how long their fixes will last with some real use can be a bit of a crapshoot.
So, what’s the hardest Honda to kill? I guess I’m not really sure. I could kill any of them pretty easily if that was what I wanted to do. lol
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I'm pretty sure its this...
Attachments
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I have an 84 Big Red too! Awesome machine, totally original. Still has the original tires and they hold air. I can ride from my house to trails and we take it up to a bar 15 miles away thats on the water. The trail is an old railbed. (a bay off of lake Ontario) When we go through the town who ever is riding the Big Red gets all the attention! People love them!
I also have a 96 TRX300FW. Also an awesome machine. Still getting it sorted out as it sat for a while but I'm sure it will be very reliable.
I also have an Outlander XT 650. A beast. Its been apart more times than I'd like but it also takes 10 times the abuse, is 10 times faster and is 10 times more comfortable to ride!!!
All that being said, your question was which is the most indestructable...I'd say I own 2 of the most reliable Honda's made. And that's why I wanted them!!
I also have a 96 TRX300FW. Also an awesome machine. Still getting it sorted out as it sat for a while but I'm sure it will be very reliable.
I also have an Outlander XT 650. A beast. Its been apart more times than I'd like but it also takes 10 times the abuse, is 10 times faster and is 10 times more comfortable to ride!!!
All that being said, your question was which is the most indestructable...I'd say I own 2 of the most reliable Honda's made. And that's why I wanted them!!
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Are you referring to the millennium trail in Prince Edward County? I’ve been up and down it a couple of times on my old Honda, never let me down (besides the time my starter clutch went). It’s 50km to the end and another 50 back. The tourists do give you a look when riding down it but what are they going to do?
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The newer Honda models are quite an improvement over the old, as far as traction goes. My 85 250 Big Red, 90 trx300 and 99 trx350 were all still going strong when I sold them. The 2008 trx420, 2015 Rubicon and the 2018 Foreman are an improvement over the old. You notice the better traction in the 4X4 function when riding in the snow or climbing steep trails, the better cold wx starting on the injected engines. You basically just change the fluids and filters and keep on riding these machines. Personally I believe the newer machines are better than the old. I use the basic foot shift models, with no power steering. Keep them simple and they will last a long time.
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as far as I know ?, honda never made a '99 trx350 ? , unless this is a Canada model sold as a '99 ?, honda only made the old school trx350's up until '89 here in the states
. as far as newer models being better than older ?, I have to disagree. newer models today are made cheaper !!. cheaper parts, sold high dollar ! ( cept for some models ..trx420's comes to mind ). the materials they make todays models out of..well..just flat out suck !!. fuel injection has its + and - as far as I am concerned. they work great from cold starts !. but when they fail ?..unless your a top notch mech that went to mech school ?, your up the creek, leaky boat, no paddle !..lol. power steering and all these fancy gadgets honda put on newer models ?..speedo's for example...DO WE REALLY NEED TO KNOW HOW FAST WE ARE GOING IN THE WOODS ??..for real..so we can tell our buddies how fast we were going..RIGHT BEFORE WE SLAMMED INTO THAT BIG OLE TREE ?!!..LOL. all honda did was make it easier for some folks to ride..they did not improve on anything with newer models, more or less..they just made them more complicated , thats all they did !. the #1 atv back then, and still to this day by all standards ?..the trx300 !!. it sold more units than any atv sold today.
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OK if you say so! Except the orange rancher I bought new in 99 was a 350, are you saying they weren’t building 350 Ranchers in 99? The 300 sucked in the snow! The 420 will run circles around it! The 500’s with the locker will run circles around the 420. The 300 wouldn’t start when it was cold! Not good in Alaska. The injected 420’s & 500’s will start, even without a preheat! The 420 Rancher without a speedo, needed an hour meter installed so you would know when to service it. The 500’s with the speedo have both an hour meter and odometer... and on and on...as far as I know ?, honda never made a '99 trx350 ? , unless this is a Canada model sold as a '99 ?, honda only made the old school trx350's up until '89 here in the states
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Could be, who can remember from 20 years ago. Whenever they first made the orange Rancher...The interesting thing about the 350 Rancher was the carb heat they installed, They realized they had a cold start problem with the 300. They installed a DC heater element in the carb intake.
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Yep, was actually optional on the late 300’s ,98-00, and it came on the 450 Foreman’s as well 1998+. I can’t remember if it heats the intake air up or if it heats the fuel in the bowl, something tells me it’s the fuel? But it’s been a long time since I’ve had one apart.
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For heavens sake, I just tried to kill a bug moving around on my screen! It was a honda bug, it kept going
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news flash !!! the trx350 rancher did not come out until 2000 bro !. might wanna check your vin number on your atv ?.OK if you say so! Except the orange rancher I bought new in 99 was a 350, are you saying they weren’t building 350 Ranchers in 99? The 300 sucked in the snow! The 420 will run circles around it! The 500’s with the locker will run circles around the 420. The 300 wouldn’t start when it was cold! Not good in Alaska. The injected 420’s & 500’s will start, even without a preheat! The 420 Rancher without a speedo, needed an hour meter installed so you would know when to service it. The 500’s with the speedo have both an hour meter and odometer... and on and on...as far as I know ?, honda never made a '99 trx350 ? , unless this is a Canada model sold as a '99 ?, honda only made the old school trx350's up until '89 here in the states
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