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Posted by: RaptorRidr660R
I would say they are all about the same, but Honda stands out to me, I have had 30+ year old hondas stock that still ran fine and everything worked!!! But as far as the new ones go, the big 4 all are about even to me!
Posted by: Specta
We have two Hondas with a total of over 7100 miles and well over 800 hours of riding time and have only spent $25 on repairs. I think my vote goes to Honda.
I was out riding last week and came up on a guy sitting on the side of the trail on a fuel injected ATV that just quits on him while driving. After letting it set for a bit is fires up OK. He said it is very difficult to put into reverse and grinds really bad when he puts it in reverse. His master cylinder leaks brake fluid and his clutch is going out. All this in only 800 miles. His ATV is way faster and way more powerful than ours, but guess who was first to the top of the hill?
Our next ATV will be a Honda too.
Posted by: reconranger
The manual transmission Hondas, that are foot shift (not ES). Recon, Rancher, and Foreman.
Posted by: RedGoblin
For straight up reliability, you will NOT get better than a Honda. That is beyond contest. They are lacking in performance however, compared to the competition right now.
Posted by: CaptainQuint
I would have said Honda until recently. I know a guy who has a Rincon and bought a Recon for his wife and he has had nothing but trouble with both of them.
I had an old 89 Honda Foutrax 300 4x4 that I had for years and never had a lick of trouble with it. All I did was change the fluids and keep rubber on the rims. Old girl never missed a beat and was still tip top and looked new when I sold it.
Posted by: ThrashAndCrashUntilItsTrash
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Originally posted by: RedGoblin
For straight up reliability, you will NOT get better than a Honda. That is beyond contest. They are lacking in performance however, compared to the competition right now.
I have to go with RedGoblin on this one!!!!
Posted by: alwaysride
There is no way anyone here can say that there is a brand more reliable than honda. I will agree that all the brands are reliable and will last a long time. I mean i beat the snot out of my 360 with over 2000 miles, no probs. But honda is the most reliable.
Posted by: weez440
quality and reliability i would say all of them are pretty good except polaris their reliability and qulity is very poor.
Posted by: sorit22
Out of all the ATV manufacturers, which do you think has consistently had the best reputation for build quality or reliability?
Posted by: JeffinTD
For outright reliability and fit/finish, I'd also have to say Honda. One thing no one could argue about, with a Honda you will never, ever shread a drive belt
Within the brand, if outright reliability is the goal, I'd say footshift over auto, and air cooled over water cooled...
The flip side, though, is that you seem to pay a little extra for a Honda when compared to similar units of other brands, and Honda is a bit behind the curve when it comes to some features (like not having dif-lock, for example).
Posted by: JeffinTD
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little people
Little people in Ohio, I believe Their mowers and generators are top in their market in my opinion also.
Something I don't believe anyone else has mentioned yet is resale value... Before I bought my 500 Foreman, I looked a bit at used 450's, but everyone was asking so much for decent ones...
Posted by: Basher
I've owned a Kodiac, a Sportsman 500 HO, and a Foreman 450 ES. I have made two observations: 1) The Honda was designed by engineers who understand how and where ATV's are used. I've had comical problems with the Yamaha such as light bulbs that fall out of the holders and choke cables that freeze up because nobody thought to use a 5 cent rubber boot to protect it. 2) The Honda is definately underpowered and undersuspended when compared to the other bikes I've owned, but I still own the 450ES and plan to add a Rubicon soon. The 450ES hauls the Elk off the mountain as well as the Sportsman did and is reliable as a hammer. I never think twice about lending it to friends because I know it's going to be reliable and come back working as well as when it left. I liked the power of the Sportsman, but could never adjust to all that extra weight and the sore neck I got from wrestling it through the mountains. I believe what most people really attribute to Honda quality is their attention to detail. Their designs are well thought out and it shows. Too bad they are so slow with all the bells and whistles, but I can live with that. Reliability is the #1 concern for my machines. I spend too much money hunting to risk owning a machine that requires fixing or may leave me stranded 15 miles from camp.
Posted by: spyder6
id say everyones reliability is about the same, japanese companys a little more for some reason, but it seems like american companys have the best component duribility
Posted by: spyder6
i woudlent say that their reliability is very poor, their reliability is very good, theres just alot of lemons that come out of the factory
Posted by: spyder6
i wouldent mind having a honda, infact, i think it would be an awesome quad to strip down and throw performance parts on, but i only have so much money, and all of its going towards makeing my 800 the best it can be
Posted by: Zman31
In my OPINION, Honda used to be but I think they're slacking off just a bit. I think the other manufactures have nearly caught up. Many have excellent quality on certain models and average quality on other models.
Posted by: WindmillAtWork
I have two Honda Cars. One a 1999 with 129,000miles on it and one a 1990 with 249,000 miles. Both run as good as the day I bought them new!!! Just change the oil/tires and not much else needed compared to a Chryler I had. I was dumping like $300 a month into it and it just touch 100,000 miles. I'd say Honda build quality that lasts!
Posted by: propnut
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i woudlent say that their reliability is very poor, their reliability is very good, theres just alot of lemons that come out of the factory
what? that's one of the craziest things I've ever read!
variability is a major cause of poor reliability
Posted by: propnut
I find it hilarious to visit some of the other brand's forums and see how some people think.
A fellow brand owner will complain they got problem[s] ("lemon" as the others in the forum call it) and the brand loyalists in the group ostracize them and call them a big baby because they complain about having to repair or modify (code for fix the dumb stuff from the factory) thier new quad regularly. They say its all part of the price for buying the best built, best performing ATVs. Funny how some people reason.
Maybe they don't know what it's like not having to work on something to ride, even with hard riding.
I seldom see 10 year old ATVs from certain manufacturer's on the trails. But all those problems are fixed now, right? maybe? I hope so????
I'm not taking a chance on that.
Posted by: PETE16
It is possible to get a really good one or a really bad one from any manufacturer, however you just get more bad ones from all of the other manufacturers than you do from HONDA.
HONDA is still the most reliable, durable, and also has by far the nicest fit and finish. The other manufacturers have not "caught up". When it comes to quality HONDA is in a class by themselves....and it doesn't matter if we are talking about atv's, cars, bikes, generators, outboard motors, lawnmowers, etc, etc, etc. I have to give those little people credit on this one
Posted by: PETE16
I have a Honda 5000 generator and it runs as smooth as silk. Quiet too!
Posted by: PETE16
Propnut: Good observation I've noticed the same thing as well. They can always justify what they bought and why they bought it even if it turns out to be junk. People seem to have a hard time to admit when they have made an unwise purchase, I guess because they've spent so much money. What they need to do is recognize that they have made a mistake, admit it, sell it (ofcourse taking a severe loss) and buy the reliable dependable brand ! Problem solved
Posted by: PETE16
Agreed! I'm a serious hunter too! Reliability is the #1 priority in my book and Resale value is also high on my list. Honda is tops at both. Although I don't believe a Foreman 450 is underpowered. I realize they are not built for speed and certainly ride rough, however they are extremely good at what they were designed for ("work") and I think they have more than enough grunt/torque to do most jobs....for 433cc they have exceptional pulling and hauling capabilities. Pound for pound I'd say they were probably the strongest machine built, until the new Foreman 500
Posted by: Toyeboy
Honda has the best quality and reliability but not the best inovation in comparison to other brands, But I haven't haven't had any reliability problems with Suzuki at all yet, But not the same goes for my old Polaris 400 I had a lot of problems with it. IMO Honda, Suzuki, and Yamaha have the best quality/reliabilty in that order.
Posted by: CaRider67
I bought a new Foreman 400 in 99 and took it back for the first 25 hour service and the machanic did all the service accept,now get this,forgot to fill the crank case with oil after he installed the new oil filter.They loaded it up on my pick-up for me and I road it for a total of 7 1/2 miles before it finally got too hot and shut down.I was shocked to check the oil and none was found on the dip stick.I never thaught about checking the oil after they serviced it but they were the ones that cranked it and loaded it for me at the shop.I took it back to the shop needless to say I was very PO'ed.They checked it out and found nothing wrong after it was filled with oil.I got a lfetime warranty in writeing saying they would replace the engine free of charge if the engine ever broke due to the oil being left out by their service men.I now have 4000 miles on it and no engine problems to mention.Iwill say Honda has got my vote.BTW it does have a sticker that says Made In The USA on the back fender.>>>>>>>>>>
WOW.....not an experiment I'd ever want to try but good to know. THAT is impressive.
Posted by: VT1911
I've had everything from a Honda Big Red to my latest, a Polaris MV7 and even though the Hondas have always been of good quality they lack in personality and features these day's, which may be why they are generally more reliable, simple is always more reliable. It's hard to say which brand is better since many complaints are raised when ATV's are subjected to severe abuse. Everything has its limits and anything can break if it is pushed too far. Proper care of your equipment will usually have more to do with reliablity than anything else.
Posted by: BARNONE
I bought a new Foreman 400 in 99 and took it back for the first 25 hour service and the machanic did all the service accept,now get this,forgot to fill the crank case with oil after he installed the new oil filter.They loaded it up on my pick-up for me and I road it for a total of 7 1/2 miles before it finally got too hot and shut down.I was shocked to check the oil and none was found on the dip stick.I never thaught about checking the oil after they serviced it but they were the ones that cranked it and loaded it for me at the shop.I took it back to the shop needless to say I was very PO'ed.They checked it out and found nothing wrong after it was filled with oil.I got a lfetime warranty in writeing saying they would replace the engine free of charge if the engine ever broke due to the oil being left out by their service men.I now have 4000 miles on it and no engine problems to mention.Iwill say Honda has got my vote.BTW it does have a sticker that says Made In The USA on the back fender.
