School me on 4x4 ATVs

Jody Treadway

Jody Treadway

Croc wearing fool
Moderator
Joined
Mar 20, 2005
Location
Hendersonville, NC
Long story short, I'm considering purchasing a used 4x4 ATV for general use and light wheeling. I have had a Honda Fourtrax and a Yamaha Wolverine in the past and had good service out of both. I'm 6'4" and around 260 so at least a 300-350cc would be needed.

I'm not interested in highly modifying one, but looking for something I can use of our workdays at our club properties and ride around Harlan and Windrock on main roads. I would add more aggressive tires and a winch, but that's about it. My budget would be no more than $2k but hopefully less than that.

What would good candidates be?
 
If you're looking to play around a little when not using it for work, find one you can take in and out of 4x4. The ranchers are 4x4 full time I believe. I'm not sure what they're going for right now, but look around for a kawasaki prairie. They're the older versions of the new brute force, they're 650's or 700's can't remember, it's a V twin and hauls ass, and it's selectable 4x4 with a selectable front locker when needed. Forgot to mention it's automatic so the wife and kids can drive it no problem.
 
I had a Suzuki Eiger (400) I used for play and work. Always did what I needed it too without breaking. I'd think they'd be getting pretty cheap nowadays since most people go for the big engines.
 
I've got a 95ish Polaris Sportsman 400 4x4 2-stroke. Its a blast. Selectable 2wd or 4wd and Hi and Low range. The newer ones with IRS ride a little better than the solid rear axle, but its hard to beat overall. Light enough to pick up one end by yourself, but as fast as modern 700cc utility quads and 450cc sport quads up to about 35-40mph. Thats stock, but add a pipe/carb/reed valve, you'll jump from 35-40hp up to 65-70hp. Mine is still stock, but there are some shops that are very dedicated to the Polaris 400 2 stroke platform even though its been out of production for over a decade.

Also, you can find them for $1500ish or less with racks and winch.
 
Late 90's early 2000's Honda Foreman 400, 450, Base model or S but not the ES model should be added to the list IMO. The mountain I worked for in NH had a fleet of them that saw use close to 365 days a year. We used them in the summer to mark race courses and do trail work and the snowmaking crew used them to place guns all over the mountain before there was enough snow on the ground to use the sleds. Most of them looked like hammered hell after a few years but other than fluid changes they had countless hours on them.
 
jeepinmatt said:
I've got a 95ish Polaris Sportsman 400 4x4 2-stroke. Its a blast. Selectable 2wd or 4wd and Hi and Low range. The newer ones with IRS ride a little better than the solid rear axle, but its hard to beat overall. Light enough to pick up one end by yourself, but as fast as modern 700cc utility quads and 450cc sport quads up to about 35-40mph. Thats stock, but add a pipe/carb/reed valve, you'll jump from 35-40hp up to 65-70hp. Mine is still stock, but there are some shops that are very dedicated to the Polaris 400 2 stroke platform even though its been out of production for over a decade.

Also, you can find them for $1500ish or less with racks and winch.
Click to expand...
This is your best bet if you want something that will haul butt and still have 4x4. I was given one that didn't run, cleaned carb all new chains and sprockets and drive belt and it was good to go. Only down fall I found was that it had three chains all different lengths if I remember right
 
Search for a stock Honda with foot shift. They may cost a bit more than other brands, but a cheap one is out there! I'd go for an '02+ Foreman 450 with selectable 4x4.
 
Choices are going to be slim in that price range. I had a '97 Foreman 400, which is an excellent bike. The old Fourtrax 300 is also a beast. When I decided on another ATV, I was looking for almost the exact same criteria that you mention. Everything pointed me at the 2005 and newer Honda Rubicon 500. The transmission is better in these years and it sits higher. The old foot shift is super reliable, but you will get tired of it. The low range pulls amazing and the solid rear axle is better for pulling trailers, etc. I put a Superwinch Terra 35 on it and a trunk. I was scraping the drive today with a 4ft blade with no problems at all. I've left it stock except for 26" dirt tamers which are 1" over stock size. The 500 for me was the perfect size to mix between trail riding and work. It's small enough to maneuver but big enough to pull any load I throw at it. But, expect to pay at least $3500 for one of these if not more for a nice one. I have almost 5K in mine with add ons, but I'll keep this bike for years to come.
 

Attachments

  • 10606100_636920282401_3579597918338070440_n.jpg
    10606100_636920282401_3579597918338070440_n.jpg
    80.2 KB · Views: 442
  • 10614189_636920267431_7781978590107510046_n.jpg
    10614189_636920267431_7781978590107510046_n.jpg
    113.3 KB · Views: 369
Used Honda rancher with 420cc engine and fuel injection. Foot shift and dependable. Definitely a work horse. They can usually be found for around 2500. It is the only utility four wheeler I would own. Ridden a bunch and everything bigger feels like driving a small car in the woods. Some of the smaller bikes are great for riding but lack in power when working with them.
 
I 2nd the Honda Foreman 02+. I've got an 04 with alum wheels and 27" Zillas. It's pretty quick and is a honey badger. Mine might sit for a few months occasionally and will still fire up and run like a champ. Can't always say that about the other brands.

I also put a multi mount winch setup on this one vs one in front. I leave the winch on the back 90% of the time. It doesn't effect handling and arguably more useful.
 
paradisePWoffrd said:
I 2nd the Honda Foreman 02+.<snip> Mine might sit for a few months occasionally and will still fire up and run like a champ. Can't always say that about the other brands.
Click to expand...

Work on plenty of 4x4's.. Honda's are the easiest to fix. Polaris, YaHaHa, SuSuki, CDI's fail, carbs gum up. Any that are running, run out well. Honda's are more forgiving cleaning carbs because they are better quality to start with. As well, most 4x4's other than honda rely on belt drive to the transmission. Kawa's and Polaris's like to eat belts if used for combing beaches or other heavy load activity..

my $.02
 
I would go with a Foreman 450 or 400. The Foreman 400 will sit a little lower to the ground but will have about the same amount of power as the 450. I have a 99 450S (Foot Shift) with 3500 miles on it and it runs perfect. I had to install new valve seals this past weekend but that is no problem on these push-rod engines. I had the head off and valve seals installed in less than 2 hrs.

The Honda 300 is a great machine also. They have gotten a big following in the past few years though and hold there value better than the Foremans. It is a little smaller frame bike but dead simple to work on and parts are cheap. They have common problems like the rear diff, caused by lack of maintenance (Seals go out, water gets in, bearings go out, etc). They have the common drum brakes that don't work but there are several disc brake kits on the market that take care of that problem easily.

I have rebuilt several Honda 300 from the frame up. I love to work on all the older air-cooled hondas because they are pretty simple and open. If you have any questions let me know, I may can answer them for you.
 
I know it's out of your price range, but I sold my Grizzly 700 a few months ago. Arguably the best fourwheeler I ever had. EFI is awesome in the winter time and compared to a similar big bore bike, it was MUCH lighter. They're starting to come down in price finally. I sold mine for 4400 and could have gotten more, but I was ready to let go of it.

A Honda will run forever, but keep the brakes clean and adjusted. If you're looking at an older one, they'll have drums all the way around it and they're notorious for not working. I can't figure out why it took the factory so long to start putting disc brakes on them...but they do have aftermarket setups for running discs on the front. The 400-450 Foreman would be plenty enough for anything you'd need it for.

I do still have a Yamaha Big Bear 400 and it's a very reliable and capable machine. Definitely not a speed demon, but it's still a 5 speed and geared pretty low. It's got some 26" ITP 589s and a Warn Multi-mount winch. I'll second that those are amazing and I normally leave mine on the rear mount as well. It's nice to be able to use it like a skidder when you need to. It's also nice to have a receiver on the front and rear for moving trailers around!

You should be able to pick up a Yamaha 400 for pretty cheap these days. Not sure what kind of tires you're looking at, but I love the 589s for an all around tire. They're 6ply and I swear the rubber compound has cast iron in it because they'll last damn near forever.
 
I've seen the Yamaha Grizzlies do some solid work. Not sure of the price Jody, but I've got a buddy who has an older one he may sell. He is a serious maintenance freak and owned it since new.
 
I had an 01 yamaha big bear 400 4x4 and it was a worn out POS that had been ran hard it's whole life, but I still had a lot of fun on it. It had Super Swamper Vampires on all 4 wheels and would go anywhere you were brave enough to point it. Not super fast, but I loved having the foot shift for wheelies and general messing around.
 
I'll tell you from experience that they are no fun with full time 4wd. If you get an older model make sure you can retrofit it to disconnect the front diff. There is almost no oversteer and the understeer is sometimes a problem in sticky situations.

I had a Yamaha Big Bear 350 and I did not beat the crap out of it but was still able to tell that it was a very capable machine. I've ridden it with hip waders to keep from getting wet before and only time i got stuck was when I high centered on a submerged stump. There two of us riding with guns and treestands, easily 500 pounds.
 
Last edited:
X2 on selectable 4x4. My 97 Foreman 400 was fulltime and it sucked sometimes. I love that I can run 2wd on my Rubicon. Only need 4x4 every now and then so 2wd steers much easier.
 
And it does donuts and powerslides better!
 
I've got an 01 foreman 400 on trade a couple months ago and really like it, it was full time 4x4 but the PO put a warn kit on it that you can disengage the front. Runs great and I'm happy with it so far
ImageUploadedByTapatalk1424494754.840346.jpg
 
I have 05 king quad 700 I might be willing to sell Jody. I have stock tires/wheels and a set of itp's w/ 27". Auto (belt driven), low/hi range forward trans, selectable 4wd, selectable front locker, winch (needs some work ), Suzuki rear bumper and tube front that i built. Plastic is decent(red), new jug and piston last year (my stepson ran it low on oil, runs great now ). Pm if interested and I'll get you some pics and a price.
 
I agree with Honda suggestions, but IMO you're going to have a hard time finding a decent one (or finding one at all) for 2k or less. They hold their value better than any of the others, and obviously there's a reason for that.
I've been looking for awhile, too, and I originally wanted to stay under 2k, but have come to realize that I'm just not going to get a decent one for that price.
 
Back
Top