honda 420 vs kodiak 450

[m7 carver]

just wondering which one would be better for work and trail riding

 

[underdog]

My buddy has a Honda 420. Awesome little machine. Goes anywhere he wants it too.

 

[Longhorn]

If there is ever a choice, always go Honda LOL...

 

[TheMuffinMan]

https://www.snowandmud.com/forum/f21/honda-420-kodiak-450-a-49012.html

 

[Bullseye]

Love my Honda 420ES !!!

 

[AkNomad]

Depends on what you are planning to use it for, trail riding, mud riding, hunting, etc, etc. MY wife has had 2 Ranchers, a 350 SRA model and the one she has now, an 09 420 AT with the EPS and IRS. The latter machine is a much more comfortable riding machine but is geared for trail riding with not much low end torque. We cured that by adding a gear reduction and now she can play in the mud and not worry too much about getting stuck.

I've got several friends that ride the 450 Kodiak and they seem pretty happy with them but they have had some issues with the front axles breaking. The diff lock is a nice option that Honda doesn't offer. I don't think you can wrong with either one but if it were me, I would go with Honda and put an SRA gear reduction in it.

 

[byronkentgraham]

as i said before. go to the 500 honda or bigger. the 420s are garbage. we twisted transmissions off both the 420s we had in less than a year.

 

[Bullseye]

as i said before. go to the 500 honda or bigger. the 420s are garbage. we twisted transmissions off both the 420s we had in less than a year.

Twisted transmission off ???????? Stock machines ??? Manual shift or Electric shift ??? What kind of riding ??

I upgrade my tires to 26" mud tires with 1 1/4" lugs and haven't had any issues !! Love my 420ES !! Not one complaint, good old reliable honda !!

 

[AkNomad]

I'd be interested in hearing how you twisted the transmissions off of 2 machines myself. Never heard of that happening before.

 

[Bullseye]

just wondering which one would be better for work and trail riding

Don't know what kind of work you are talking about.... BUT.. I use mine to push snow in the wintertime (for myself and others). I've got a Moose County Plow (kind of like a plow truck) and this bike is unbelivable at pushing snow. Plow full of snow and it pushes it like nobody's business !!! With stock tires , traction was an issue but with aftermarket tires not any more !!! Other people (and some times me) are amazed at how much it can push!! Not under powered at all !
The other nice thing about the 420 is it's size. It is nice and agile !! Easy to get around things (tight trails) and fun to whip around on the trails. The size is nice for plowin too.You can get into tight places and down sidewalks with ease. The power to weight is just right.
These 420's are good machines. If you aren't a really big guy (I am 190 lbs and under 6 ft) and want some thing reliable, get a HONDA !!

 

[byronkentgraham]

Twisted transmission off ???????? Stock machines ??? Manual shift or Electric shift ??? What kind of riding ??

I upgrade my tires to 26" mud tires with 1 1/4" lugs and haven't had any issues !! Love my 420ES !! Not one complaint, good old reliable honda !!

I'd be interested in hearing how you twisted the transmissions off of 2 machines myself. Never heard of that happening before.

well i guess not "twisted off" but had to total rebuilds.

Totally stock bikes. even stock tires. Electric shift.

Just around the feedlot. Never hauled much usually just for running back and forth. In a year we had them into the mechanics 5 times. It's not like they were being ridden hard, my dad and sister use them for moving cattle.

 

[AkNomad]

That's odd, you must have got a couple of bad ones, I know quite a few folks that run them harder than that, my wife included and they have never had any issues at all with theirs.