Sunshine got to ride her new Rincob for the first time in the rockies. She loves the ride and handling which is less straining compaired to the Rubies we still have. I got a turn on it for a day as the girls went shopping {goodie} We got into trail 758 which came to a gate that had trees across to enterance so we went on along a trail that seemed to keep going and came to a very steep decline. It was very narrow and not what you could relax on. I found the engine braking missing a very low speeds which caused me to ride the brakes all the way to the bottom. If I had my Rubicon I would not have touched the brakes.
The ride was awsome but like I said I was not comfortable with the engine braking. We never got into a place that it was short on power and got close to 25 mph so I guess as usual what ever you like or are comfortable on ride away.

quote:

We never got into a place that it was short on power and got close to 25 MPH so I guess...

WOW I didn't know a Rincon could go THAT fast.

OOOOPS I guess I should have said MPG.

My 05 Rincon is great in a lot of ways but does lack on steep downhills - yes, you are on the brakes all the time when the hill is very steep. There is some engine braking at about 7-8 mph and if the hill is somewhat steep. I make sure I'm in 4 wheel drive so that any brake I touch will brake front and back brakes. In 3 years I've never had a problem even going down the very steep stuff.

Yes, the steep uphill is no problem for the 650 Rincon. I have plenty of power and grip (BigHorn tires make a difference).

All machines have their pros and cons.

Kaye

05 Honda 650 Rincon - BigHorns

Good report Mr Bean....real sorry I missed you guys this year. You need to come back and visit us. Bring the Rincon and we'll only ride up hill!

There's a lot more good things about the Rincon then bad, I like the way they ride and handle. Like Kaye says, you get used to the white knuckles.
Or just trade it for a nice CanAm....

I found that it is less of a pucker factor coming off the steep hill with the transmission in manual electric shift, then in the auto mode. This way you can keep it in 1st to get that little engine braking it has. That and mumbling to yourself, "be the ball, the ball to be, is to be the ball". I found myself mumbling this coming down off of Flag, then east side of Napoleon, and Pitkin side of Hancock.

I sold my Rinny due to the lack of low gear and engine braking. They increased engine braking in 06 but it still only works above 9 mph effectively. I like my Kawasaki Brute the V-twin has all the power I need even at 13K feet climbing. With 4wd in low range the brake will hold 2-3 mph on descent.

I parted with the Rinny today. After hardly making it up Flag Mtn even with a added K&N and modified air-box. I still didn't think I was going to make it.

The Rincon is a good low altitude machine, but as mentioned lacks power and a low gear for the mountains.

I was looking/researching ever since I got back, and today was the day it went. The 3 I was looking at was a Polaris 550XP, Grizzly 550&700, and the Can Am 650 EFI. My signature shows what I bought. 1st addon was a ATVQS Sticker.

From the best low altitude machine to the best high altitude machine...all in one day.

Be interested in how it works out for you. So you traded the Rinny?

Yes, I traded in the Honda. The local CanAm Dealer (40 miles away), is also a Honda and Yamaha dealer. I didn't get as much as I would have selling it outright, but it was still a fair price for a trade.

Congrats Kenny on the new quad. We ride 05 Rincons that are jetted - never had any problems in the 3 years we've ridden them. We ride the 13,000' peaks and never a sputter.

We are going to wait on our new purchase until we see what Honda plans to do for the 09's. Like you, we may jump over to another brand if Honda doesn't make some changes.

Kaye

2-05 Honda Rincons - BigHorns

Sorry the Rincon did not work out for you.
Congratulations on the new machine..

Ride safe

I can understand leaving the Honda nation. I was a Honda "die-hard" forever til the 03 Rincon. Loved the engine performance and the ride can't be beat even by Polaris. Best handling trail atv I've ever had. But that darn transmission got to slipping and Honda wouldn't fix it. Yes I did change oil/filter on schedule. I had the 3 yr. extended warranty. Honda will never get a dime of my money on anything again. Had to trade it in on a Suzuki KQ 450. Started with Suzuki in 1983 with 125 QuadRunner went to Honda and now back to Suzuki.

Honda used to "lead" now they "follow"

Kay when ever you trade, ask the dealer if you can trade out your big horns with the new tires on the new ride.

Bear - thanks for the tip. The Bighorn tires will be put on the new machines once we decide which quads we will get.

For the most part, we have been very happy with our Rincons. They are well made and tough machines. We have 3,000 miles on them and haven't done anything but change the oil and filters. We've hauled them to Arizona, Utah and all over Colorado - they have served us well.

I'm not one to make a quick decision, so we are checking several quads out to see which one will fit us.

05 Honda Rincons - BigHorns