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2015 Rubicon: First Ride

9K views 32 replies 13 participants last post by  WhiteRubi15 
#1 ·
Took the new quad out for it's first ride. It how has a total of 6 hours. It was a good mixture of wide open spaces and tight trails with VERY steep inclines/declines and lots of creek riding and mud. A very nice verity to test the capability of the 2015 Rubicon. My model is the TRX500FA6 which has independent rear suspension, power steering and the dual-clutch transmission (DCT) w/ESP manual option.

A few observations:

1. First, this quad is f**king awesome!

2. I was surprised the places it could go WITHOUT 4WD engaged. I was using it way too often in the beginning until I got to know its capabilities.

3. I didn't get stuck once (maybe I wasn't trying hard enough). There was one instance where I was trying to go up a vertical creek bank and it just wouldn't go. The quad was pretty much sticking almost straight up. Had it in Low and in 4WD, but still couldn't crawl it up and over. I was thinking about using the winch, but I thought I would try the differential locker first. I engaged the locker and BAM! Up and over she went with no problem. It was a really good feeling.

4. I pulled a Yamaha Grizzly out of a hole.

5. I've heard folks state that the DCT can have a hard time finding the correct gear, especially when going up steep hills. I didn't experience that at all. I used the auto DCT the entire trip.

6. Once warmed up, the DCT shifted VERY smoothly. No harsh shifting up or down like some have stated.

7. When going down very steep hills (using the automatic DCT) it crawled down perfectly slow in first gear without me having to touch the brake. The engine braking is amazing.

8. It was about 80 F outside and the coolant bar graph didn't go over 2 out of 5 bars the entire time.

If you have any questions, please let me know. I'm sure I'm missing something.

 
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#16 ·
Yeah, it's amusing and frustrating at the same time for me.

It's frustrating because the 15 Rubi has all the stuff I wanted when I bought my 2012 Foreman back in 2011. Diff lock, IRS, auto mode, EFI and EPS. I couldn't find all of that in one package from Honda at the time, yet all the other brands had it. I had to have a Honda, so I compromised...and was ultimately disappointed, then jumped ship to Can-Am (and am now extremely happy).

It's amusing because look at how happy people are! Capability, comfort, and clearance without the need of huge tires and GR to turn them. Oh, I'm sure the grumpy, defensive "SRA is all I need!", and "all that stuff is just more to break, my 1986 still blah blah blah" folks are still out there, but this praise of the new Rubicon is good to see. It should have come a long time ago.
 
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#4 ·
Loving my DCT Rubicon so far. Everyone who sees it has to ask if its a Honda!!! For me the only place the DCT is a slight disadvantage is in the snow. I find it wants to told the gear too long rather then down shift. I found in snow I just use ESP. I also love the temperature gauge. Even pulling around my double diamond harrow set up at slow speeds it never even went over two bars. Fan only came on when I stopped.

 
#15 ·
my dealer advised me not to run full synthetic until at least 1500 miles. This gives the engine a chance to break in properly. I purchased regular Honda GN4 in 10W-40. I plan to eventually go full synthetic. The manual says you can run 0W-30, but I've never seen it available for wet clutch approved.
 
#12 ·
I'm just running the Honda GN4 10w-40. I don't think its synthetic.
 
#14 ·
The G2 Renegade/Outlander chassis is a nightmare to work on. Like I said this Rubicon is a dream.
 
#17 ·
I hit the mileage before the hours. I have 107 miles at like 13 hours. I'm gonna do oil tomorrow. Service manager told me not to worry about the valves unless I could hear them or had a concern. I did a lot of a small rides followed by long cool downs like other guys have mentioned and haven't really run it hard until this past sunday. Oil on dipstick is grey but if it was my truck I wouldn't pay it any mind. After reading other posts I'm interested to see oil drained into pan.
 
#20 ·
I just checked the factory fill oil according to the instructions were you only insert the dipstick and not threaded in when checking the level. The oil level was way past it's full mark. Would this be the result of the quad sitting cold for a few days and all the oil draining down? Or should I check the level when the engine is warm?
 
#21 ·
Let it warm up, then shut it off and let it sit five minutes. Thats what the the manual says. If you don't do this it looks way over filled. My buddy asked the same thing.
 
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#26 ·
I have a 2015 with foot shift. I came from a 400 rancher automatic and I love the foot shift. I think that shifting into reverse is a lot faster than on the DCT. That will come in handy for plowing snow. My only complaint is that it takes a bit more foot pressure up shifting than I would like. I'm used to a motor cycle that up shifts pretty easy. Maybe it just needs to wear in a little or maybe it's an adjustment. Does anybody know if there is an adjustment to make up shifting easier?
 
#27 ·
Have you changed the break in oil yet? I know I thought about adjusting mine but waited till I put 10w40 in and it loosened up big time. I have the Honda service manual and there us a seemingly easy procedure to adjust it.
 
#29 ·
Why 0w40?


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#30 ·
You sure you meant 10w40 not 0w40? As far as the shift lever. You should be able to loosen the bolt on the shifter and turn it. I believe it's splined like all the others. When I rode mine today with my sneakers on it seemed to high. But then I wore my work boots, it was fine.
 
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