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2015 Rubicon review

69K views 165 replies 35 participants last post by  Wordty 
#1 ·
Just bought a 2015 honda Rubicon TRX500FA7. It's a nice bike.

1. At first glance it's basically a foreman with a fancy transmission and IRS. But after a closer examination they're almost completely different. Everything about the Rubicon is bigger. Racks, capacities, suspension and much more.
2. First ride; our trek began in 8" of melting snow. I was in low range and powering right thru it. I noticed my 2014 foreman having a hard time keeping up. I asked Rich (rich450es) what great he was in and he said 2nd to 3rd. I was going between 4th and 5th. The tires have amazing traction and so far the suspension was superb. The new seat is even more comfortable than the foremans.
Did allot of snow riding today. The ground clearance and diff lock are great. The bike is very agile and seems to stay planted well over rough terrain. The auto transmission has a different feel when it comes to shifting. It did get better as I rode and The harsh shifting seemed to not be so bad once I began to get used to it.
I used ESP mode a couple times but preferred the auto mode more. The machine has incredible engine braking in auto mode. I was going down very step hills in low and never went above 3mph where as the 2014 foreman would do 6 to 7mph.
Overall, I can't find anything about it that I'd change or that isn't better than my 2014 foremans
 
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#2 ·
peckerwood update your signiture .....
this new 2015 rubi is a home run for honda (and a long time coming too) and as chris said there isnt anything to complain about that we saw in the first ride .
 
#4 ·
Just bought a 2015 honda Rubicon TRX500FA7. It's a nice bike.

1. At first glance it's basically a foreman with a fancy transmission and IRS. But after a closer examination they're almost completely different. Everything about the Rubicon is bigger. Racks, capacities, suspension and much more.
2. First ride; our trek began in 8" of melting snow. I was in low range and powering right thru it. I noticed my 2014 foreman having a hard time keeping up. I asked Rich (rich450es) what great he was in and he said 2nd to 3rd. I was going between 4th and 5th. The tires have amazing traction and so far the suspension was superb. The new seat is even more comfortable than the foremans.
Did allot of snow riding today. The ground clearance and diff lock are great. The bike is very agile and seems to stay planted well over rough terrain. The auto transmission has a different feel when it comes to shifting. It did get better as I rode and The harsh shifting seemed to not be so bad once I began to get used to it.
I used ESP mode a couple times but preferred the auto mode more. The machine has incredible engine braking in auto mode. I was going down very step hills in low and never went above 3mph where as the 2014 foreman would do 6 to 7mph.
Overall, I can't find anything about it that I'd change or that isn't better than my 2014 foremans
I'm thinking of another ATV for mostly trailing riding and recreation . I have a 06 Rubicon right now and even though it is a good ATV with reliability second to non, it is not as capable has a Grizzly or King Quad. I believe the SRA isn't helping me in some moderate to extreme trail riding or the fact that I don't have a locker isn't helping me either. It seems Honda have addressed this issues in the new Rubicon. However, I'm not so sure they have my support with the transmission. The Hondamatic transmission was a great transmission with great engine breaking, quiet, bullet proof, seem less shifting and always in the right gear ratio. The DCT for the 2015 model, I have heard in many reviews, sounds inferior to the previous model. I have heard of hard shifting and in auto under demanding situations, there are complaints of always being in the wrong gear from some of the reviews I have read.

Now that you have one, what is your thoughts on the new unit?
 
#6 ·
I've only rode in snowy conditions with it. Only once did I think it was in the wrong gear. I was powering up a switchback that was also snow drifted. It stayed in 2nd longer than I wanted it to but as soon as you hit 1st in a drift you're just spinning so in retrospect it was better to lug it than to down shift
 
#7 ·
We weren't able to drag race but I can tell you that it will out run a foreman 500
 
#8 ·
So did Rich just inherit a 2014? LOL.
 
#9 ·
the 14's are business machines. The 15 is business too... ;)
 
#10 ·
LOL. Sure they are!
 
#11 ·
so another ride today. It was great. We did a drag race against the 2015 rubicon and the 2014 foreman. When in drive and auto, the foreman won. when in drive and ESP they were neck and neck until the foreman hit 5th and with the lower gearing it pulled a little until the rubicon hit the mid end of 5th but then we ran out of room.
When racing in Low, The rubicon takes the foreman until about 40 when it runs out of gear.

Right now there is a speedo discrepancy on the Rubicon. the foreman would read 55ish while at the same time, the rubicon never got over 40. I will be talking to the dealer about this. That shouldn't be happening. TooDeep, You ever seen that?
 
#12 ·
Returned the PM before I seen this.

The race seems to be about the way I thought it would turn out. They are very similar machines when it comes down to the bottom line. Both gear to gear transmissions and the same cc so they should be close. I know for me I will take the manual shift Foreman for the forward to reverse race. lol That's been one complaint I have had with my AT Rancher, switching from drive to neutral to reverse. You get use to it but I try to shift to quickly so it takes a few pushes of the button.
 
#13 ·
I agree. I read the owners manual and it's limited more than the foreman. It can't shift to neutral or reverse unless under 1mph or @ 2400rpm or less. However it can do about 11 in reverse over the foremans 6 or so. Lol
 
#14 ·
the Rubicon losing the hydrostatic trans would keep me from ever buying another Honda unless they come out with something better - my '01 was never "in the wrong gear".

I have only used the front locker in my BF out of curiosity - nothing beats HP in deep snow :D
 
#15 ·
I owned a 2003 Rubicon and have rode several since. I liked the Hondamatic, but I'll take the gears any day over the hydrostatic.
 
#16 ·
I've ridden Basfnb's 06 Rubicon and his brother's 420AT, which should have the same transmission as the new Rubis.

I liked the old transmission a LOT better as far as performance, but the fact that the Hondamatic isn't serviceable and is $1K for a new one has always made me scared to buy one. At least the new DCT is something that can be fixed without dropping 25% of the purchase price for the whole wheeler.
 
#18 ·
While I loved the Hondamatic performance, if I were to buy one or the other, all else being equal, I would probably get the DCT for one reason only.

I keep my stuff. I will rebuild and rebuild my stuff over and over again, and I don't trade and get a new one every few years.

The Hondamatic is not only not servicable, but it's expensive as ****, and in 10 years, will replacement Hondamatics be available? The only thing they were used in was the Rubicon, so not like there will be a huge demand for them in the future. I'm guessing the supply will dry up at some point, and then when your hondamatic goes you scrap the bike.
 
#19 ·
after owning both the Hydrostatic and the DCT, I can safely say I'll never own another hydrostatic.
 
#20 · (Edited)
The DCT transmission has been in every review as been the downfall of the 420 AT. Being in the wrong gear when climbing can be a very annoying thing and that seem to be the general complaint of all reviewers. And time after time I hear the the fix is switch to manual mode. Well to me that is not a true automatic. It's an auto tranny except in extreme situations. The Hondamatic is always in the right gear ratio in every situation and I never have to think about it. Now with regards to they are not serviceable, will everyone I see don't need any servicing. The older ones were questionable ( however my brother has an older one and he has 11000 brutal miles on his with no problems). And mind has 2000 miles on mind without issue. what you guys have to keep in mind, Honda built that tranny for ATV's for over 13 years. They don't have something like that in their machines for that long if it is giving customers problems. And from a functional perspective, it is the best tranny ever in any atv. I suspect to keep cost down was their consideration to go with a different tranny. Now that being said, I do believe it is a great ATV, with all the extra features, but for the price you can get a 700 Grizzly or 750 king quad and that in my belief is a better bang for your buck.
 
#22 ·
Now that being said, I do believe it is a great ATV, with all the extra features, but for the price you can get a 700 Grizzly or 750 king quad and that in my belief is a better bang for your buck.
maybe but the honda is still a bang for your buck 5,10,15 and even 20 years later!, if you look anywhere for used atvs you can notice there is no older poolaris, or suzukis or yamahas and that says ALOT about honda imo....just my 2 cents

my foreman is always in the right gear and it only requires my foot!!! :lol:
 
#21 ·
If you don't like my review and you think I'm uneducated in my review that's fine. I'll enjoy my Rubicon.
 
#23 · (Edited)
If you don't like my review and you think I'm uneducated in my review that's fine. I'll enjoy my Rubicon.
Not sure where you think I think you are uneducated. I do believe you have 3 very well built ATV'S there that will give you years of work and enjoyment. I'm just stating my opinion about the tranny compared to the old model. I'm not saying I'm right. Maybe in 6 months I'll be on here saying how pissed off I am because the tranny is gone out on mind, but for now I just see how the Hondamatic have served me to this point and it is the reason that I wouldn't invest in the newer model.
 
#25 ·
Hello !

So I have a 2015 Rubicon FA6 .. Dealers were out of the FA7 model.

I have only 6 hours and 20 miles on mine today. I rode the ATV at my dealers test track behind there business. It was cold, but I wanted to make sure it at least felt right before leaving. The first time I noticed was the strange shifting in AUTO mode. I hit ESP just to check gear changes and it still was lurching forward on shift. 15 minutes was enough for me. Ready to load and finish paper work. I told my sales guy the transmission felt very strange compared to my 2012 Rincon and my 2011 Rubicon. He just gave the typical break in speech.

At about 3 hours in AUTO mode the trans was still hard shifting. I called the GM of sales at the dealer to let him at least know. He said break it in if it breaks, they will fix it. If it actually broke, they are going to replace it I can assure them of that.

There is this one hill not far from my place that is about 60 foot with a nice step up with a large bump in the middle of that. In auto mode, this DCT wanted to shift right at that bump putting me up the next part at speed and needing to shift right about the 60 foot crest. The issue I seen consistently was the downshift to 1 was hesitating, and slight feel of over rev of the engine. Now it made the downshift and pulled very well. I am a programmer of automotive ECU's and TCU's and have enough experience to tell this is a programming issue with the ECU. I used ESP and had zero issue with the upshift at the step up bump area and then the downshift half way up the 2nd near vertical side. The power is awesome. At this point of 4-5 hours on the clock.. more breakin and change the oil and filter on the to do list.

The downhill engine braking is so enjoyable. Put that thing in AUTO mode 4WD and it really holds so good to traction and decent speed.

The diff lock really sets those front tires to pull very even and you need to adjust for steering radius for sure.

So hour 6 hit yesterday. I put MTC Moto 26" x 12 tires on some nice Aluminum wheels. Changed the oil and filter.

The breakin oil was the typical green tint with a nice shiny reflection of metal floating around in it. I have changed the oil on enough brand new stuff to know this is typical of oil if you run it very brief on breakin so you can see the stuff that is accumulated from the build process. No issues here, just a new engine and trans as it should wear in process.

So I rode only a short distance with the new oil and tires. Immediate change in its behavior. In AUTO mode it shifted so smooth from 1>2 it was very nice. One of the real issues I have felt was the downshift in AUTO mode from 3>1 when you pin the throttle. There was always this lag and the engine felling like an rev up happen before the shift was complete. What limited I tested with the new oil, it felt alot better. It was up to temp, but I did not get to go but about 15 minutes. Today I will go to the hill and test there.

All and all. Excellent. I have had 01 Recon, 07 Rancher, 11 Rubicon, 12 Rincon.. now the 15 Rubicon. Miss my 680cc engine, but just did not like the no power steering and platform feel of that Rincon just felt big over all in size.
 
#28 ·
Hello !

So I have a 2015 Rubicon FA6 .. Dealers were out of the FA7 model.

I have only 6 hours and 20 miles on mine today. I rode the ATV at my dealers test track behind there business. It was cold, but I wanted to make sure it at least felt right before leaving. The first time I noticed was the strange shifting in AUTO mode. I hit ESP just to check gear changes and it still was lurching forward on shift. 15 minutes was enough for me. Ready to load and finish paper work. I told my sales guy the transmission felt very strange compared to my 2012 Rincon and my 2011 Rubicon. He just gave the typical break in speech.

At about 3 hours in AUTO mode the trans was still hard shifting. I called the GM of sales at the dealer to let him at least know. He said break it in if it breaks, they will fix it. If it actually broke, they are going to replace it I can assure them of that.

There is this one hill not far from my place that is about 60 foot with a nice step up with a large bump in the middle of that. In auto mode, this DCT wanted to shift right at that bump putting me up the next part at speed and needing to shift right about the 60 foot crest. The issue I seen consistently was the downshift to 1 was hesitating, and slight feel of over rev of the engine. Now it made the downshift and pulled very well. I am a programmer of automotive ECU's and TCU's and have enough experience to tell this is a programming issue with the ECU. I used ESP and had zero issue with the upshift at the step up bump area and then the downshift half way up the 2nd near vertical side. The power is awesome. At this point of 4-5 hours on the clock.. more breakin and change the oil and filter on the to do list.

The downhill engine braking is so enjoyable. Put that thing in AUTO mode 4WD and it really holds so good to traction and decent speed.

The diff lock really sets those front tires to pull very even and you need to adjust for steering radius for sure.

So hour 6 hit yesterday. I put MTC Moto 26" x 12 tires on some nice Aluminum wheels. Changed the oil and filter.

The breakin oil was the typical green tint with a nice shiny reflection of metal floating around in it. I have changed the oil on enough brand new stuff to know this is typical of oil if you run it very brief on breakin so you can see the stuff that is accumulated from the build process. No issues here, just a new engine and trans as it should wear in process.

So I rode only a short distance with the new oil and tires. Immediate change in its behavior. In AUTO mode it shifted so smooth from 1>2 it was very nice. One of the real issues I have felt was the downshift in AUTO mode from 3>1 when you pin the throttle. There was always this lag and the engine felling like an rev up happen before the shift was complete. What limited I tested with the new oil, it felt alot better. It was up to temp, but I did not get to go but about 15 minutes. Today I will go to the hill and test there.

All and all. Excellent. I have had 01 Recon, 07 Rancher, 11 Rubicon, 12 Rincon.. now the 15 Rubicon. Miss my 680cc engine, but just did not like the no power steering and platform feel of that Rincon just felt big over all in size.
very good review! So is the '15 Rubicon tranny better than the '11? So you don't feel now that the bike is in the wrong anymore? You seem to like the transmission, but would you prefer the transmission In the '11? How about the power on the '15, would you think the '11 has more power?
 
#26 ·
 
#30 ·
It's only money Mac... hahaha. Just did the first oil change on mine. I was told that after the first oil change the shifting is even better.
 
#31 ·
i hear ya mac, im in the same boat, figuring out if i want this or the rincon is keeping me up at night, lol, but about the price you gotta think of it like this, theres still bikes from the 80's on the trail, so if you spend the money once theres a good chance you wont need to spend any again for a long time, OR hondas have a awesome resale value so if you buy and then sell in a year or 2, you will get a nice chunk of your money back.

Really nice pics SS.
 
#34 ·
I've ridden the new 500 Foreman's quite a bit and they are definitely a fair bit faster and more fun than the old 450's. But the Rincon's are just as much faster and more fun over the new 500's...but why buy a new Rincon when you can buy one 10 years old that's the same thing, and for less than $5k Cnd? You'd be giving up low range and diff lock either way, Rincon's are acutually cheaper brand new then a 500 DCT DLX Rubi, which is kind of odd.

ORRRRR.... You could always buy a 500L DPS Outlander with 46hp of fun for less money then a Rubi....5 year warranty....
 
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