Hey SF welcome. I can't answer all questions about the Rubi, but I do own a Foreman 500. So far I really enjoy it for what I do, which is quite similar to your type of use. To and from hunting spots, hauling game and hauling firewood off our 360 acre lot, and some occasional riding in ungroomed trails. I don't use it for hardcore mudding or crawling, it's really a utility machine for me and serves me well. I own the footshift, which is what I've always had and to me appears to be the most reasonable choice, taking cost and reliability into account. Most of the Electric Shift guys haven't had any trouble, but I've seen more posts on here about ES problems than manual shift ones. The "coasting" feature you talk about is not really a feature, it's more of a technique that slips your tranny in between gears, almost like a neutral, but I can't see it being good for the tranny in the long run.
As for engines, the Rubi sports a 499cc liquid cooled, and the Foreman is a 475cc air cooled with two oil coolers for protection. Again, I can't speak about the Rubi, but air cooled is what I've always had, and anyone will tell you that an air cooled Honda engine is virtually trouble free. Noise is minimal, but I'm tempted to say that if it wasn't for the frequent hard hauling that I do, a 400 or even 350 would be plenty machine for me. My family have run Big Reds both 200 and 250ccs, Foreman 400s and 450s, TRX 250 fourtrax, basically the gamut of Honda machines built in the past 25 years, and never, ever has any one of them let us down. Proper maintenance and reasonable driving will allow you to keep your machine for decades, if you so desire. Happy riding, and GO HONDA!
As for engines, the Rubi sports a 499cc liquid cooled, and the Foreman is a 475cc air cooled with two oil coolers for protection. Again, I can't speak about the Rubi, but air cooled is what I've always had, and anyone will tell you that an air cooled Honda engine is virtually trouble free. Noise is minimal, but I'm tempted to say that if it wasn't for the frequent hard hauling that I do, a 400 or even 350 would be plenty machine for me. My family have run Big Reds both 200 and 250ccs, Foreman 400s and 450s, TRX 250 fourtrax, basically the gamut of Honda machines built in the past 25 years, and never, ever has any one of them let us down. Proper maintenance and reasonable driving will allow you to keep your machine for decades, if you so desire. Happy riding, and GO HONDA!