Reviews for Honda FourTrax Rincon

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Below is a review I wrote on Powersports back in October 2004 on my Honda Rincon. I would like to add a few more observations at the bottom. "I had been researching the big bore market for quite some time after selling my previous quad. A '92 Suzuki King Quad which in its own right was one of the best, if not the best in its day. I did a lot of searching, reading, riding and talking before being sold on an '03 650 Kawasaki Prairie originally. I only kept the bike for 2 days before re-selling it back to the dealer. Basically I was already used to an Independent rear end quad coming from the King. So I decdided to be paitent and not jump in too quick again and continued looking. I needed IRS I felt because of the very rugged mountain trails and terrian here. I have always been a Honda fan for their quality and service. So now I have opted for the '05 Rincon non-gps model. Basically it has about the same amount of drawbacks as the Prairie 650 did, only in different areas. No one can judge for themselves until they have ridden these bikes in the types of terrians where they will be used. Others' opinions are hard to draw conclusions from. So I decided to try the Rincon because I had read it was more of a trail bike. First off Power/Motor. A big debated issue with the Rincon. When I first got the bike home it felt quick and nible. Not as quick or strong on the bottom as the 650 Prairie though. It did have a bad sputter or hesitation right on the bottom if you hit WOT. So I got the dyno jet kit and installed some different jets and re-adjusted the carb. This did help. The hesititation is gone completely now and the quad has a little more low end. After I did this mod I also installed a K&N High Flow Air filter. Now the Rincon will wheelie if you hit WOT and pull back on the bars pretty good. Power is good and is ample for this bike but is not its strong point or key feature like the Prairie. It's only part of the package. I would also rate this Honda motor above any in terms of reliability and quality. Honda's strong point has always been the longevity and dependability of their engines in pacticular. One thing that kind of eerks me about this engine is the cold natured beast. It is very cold natured and it hasn't even gotten real cold here yet but needs the choke to start usually and then often dies or takes a very ample amount of time to warm up. I would say on a scale of 1 to 10 I would give the Rincon a 7 in Power/Engine. Handling/Ride/Tranny. Probably the Rincon's strongest feature is the suspension and handling ability. Although even that is somewhat hampered by the 3 speed transmission in certain conditions and no low speed engine braking.(More on that in a minute). The quad handles and turns very easily and with precision. It's easy to break the rearend loose and power slide this quad also. It is a blast to ride this quad on open roads, logging roads, or fire roads. The faster, the better it likes it and you always feel in control. It isn't overly plush either like some have reported the Sportsmans to be. It's more on the sporty side with the IRS ground clearance. Also the quad isn't too big or bulkish feeling on the trails either. Here's the problem. If you are going to be riding the Rincon in very steep or moderatley steep trail conditions you may have trouble. And not just decending or downhilling. The 3 speed's 1st gear is pretty tall and it's too tall for serious trail riding in very rugged and steep conditions. You can not lug or crawl at very slow speed on technical trails with this bike. It is simply not made to go slow with. Up or down. Up you are always giving it more throttle than you should have to and going down is probably worse because there is NO engine braking at slow speed. The quad basically freewheels like it was in neutruel when downhilling. It's not a big problem unless your riding conditions are of this kind. Great in the flat or hilly country but where I live there are some of the most steep rugged mountain trails around. I am an experinced rider and it's made me hold my breath on a couple occasions when decending steep inclines. Also when climbing you need a lot of low end power to creep or crawl or to blast up a short steep incline while using only a small amount of throttle to remain in control. It fails there also because of the tall first gear. You can do it, just not as well as others with a low first gear or low range or manual transmission. Another note about the tranny, as with the engine, as the oil also flows through the tranny it takes an ample amount of time for it to warm up and shift correctly. When first started, it may want to rev high before really moving and does not perform as well as it does after being ridden for 5-10 minutes. So fast speed handling I will give the Rincon a 9. Slow speed handling in the above conditions a 3. Finish Style and Build. That's where Honda truly shines and is really what sold me on this bike at the dealership. The Honda quality is second to none and the plastic and finish on this bike are outstanding. Truly the best looking, built big bore I have seen. The LCD display is great also as are the brakes. Some have complained about front drums but I have no problems with them and the rear disc will stop you in a heartbeat. And you will be needing to if riding in the steep terrian!! Also with Honda there are no belts, period. Which even if you like belt trannys it's still one less thing to go wrong. The low maintenance factor is also key with Honda as oil changes are about it, besides the brakes with this bike. I just completed my 100 mile first service and it was no problem for me. Another thing I noticed coming from a Prairie is the quietness of this bike. Which is another plus for me, it is very quiet, more so than the belt driven CVT type quads. Also the shaking at idle complaint is bogus to me. I could care less if the bike shakes or not. It smooths right out as soon as throttle is applied. But this is a problem for some? So in this department Build/Style I give the Rincon a 10. Odds and Ends. I feel the Rincon is a GOOD bike but not a great one. It has good features for certain people in certain conditions it may be perfect. For me it is not, and much like the Prairie which had good engine braking, it lacks certain features I think would really help my style of riding. So there are trade offs with each brand. Best decide which fits you best and don't simply make up your mind in the dealer's parking lot. There are not too many steep hills there!! Keep that in mind when deciding. I may keep the Rincon for awhile longer or may sell it if the opportunity comes. I am looking at trying a 750 Kawasaki Brute Force out now as many have said it is a complete package that has more of the features that would suit my conditions better" Ok that was back in October and my findings are about the same now. But after putting over 200 miles on the machine the power has improved. The Rincon is a wheelie riding delight. It wheelies very easily now. It has ample power but not the kinda of "scary power" found on the other big bores like the Brute or Prairie. Also it seems to run best with the idle bumped up high. It will not die or stall as easily but is harder to shift. So the idle must be turned down so much for the tranny to engage correctly. I switched to Rotella T Synthetic oil at 175 miles. This does help. It lessens warm up times and makes for smoother shifting and starting. I also re-adjusted the mixture/carb screw again and have it tuned pretty well. The power is better on the bottom but the stalling is a bothersome issue for me. Also the positve battery cable keeps comming loose. I have tightened it twice and now its getting loose again. You have to shake it to get the Rincon to start. After detailed reports and self hand investigation I have decided agasint the Brute Force as well. A list of probs a mile long, Tie rods, over heating, carb needle and now another list has croped up this winter, snow in air box, frozen brake cables etc.. Also the reverse design flaw on the King Quad is a question mark in manys mind. I am liking the Rincon better than I did. I am gonna see what comes out this summer from both Kawasaki and Honda. I am actually considering going back to a Prairie or getting another one to go with my Rincon. If these issues aren't improved upon from both Honda and Kawasaki's 06 line. Well just a small update here. I had to adjust my front brakes in after they became kinda spongy and un firm. Did the adjustment per manual instructions and it tightened them back up no prob. All in all everything is about the same now I have 360 miles on the Rincon with just the above and regular service intervals with no problems. Although there has been a recall on this model from Honda due to the Tie Rod Ends. I haven't received the second letter as of yet. But took the bike back to the dealer for the fix. Still worst thing about the bike is steep inclines. I don't like climbing them with this quad. I really like the Rincon but where I live there are some trails I am not comfortable trying with the Rincon. 1st gear isn't low enough to suit me on really steep technical trails, up hill or down. But I actually feel safer down hilling with the Rincon that I do trying to climb steep hills with a 2nd gear for a first. Kinda un-nerving since I came from a 300 Suzuki King Quad. I just try to stay on more open/fire type roads and medium trails with nothing too extreme. I think its a fine machine but for more of a flat land country than up here. Also another thing I noticed that makes it even harder to control while down hilling besides no engine brake is the soft front suspension. It will compress bad when downhilling steep trails and when this happens the IRS kinda pushes the bike making it very easy to loose control and start sliding. Useing the 4x4 mode does help the engine braking to a point though but it is not designed to be ridden on these type of trails safely IMO. Also note I sold the Rincon in August 2006 at 700 miles. I still have not purchased another Atv but currently am looking at an 07 800 Sportsman and 800 Can Am.