05 or 06 450R???

[trx450Rdude]

Newby here. Looking to purchase either an 05 or 06 TRX450R and wanted to get some input from people who know a little more than I. I have been riding for years, but have never owned my own bike & have no real knowledge of engines. I ride mainly the deserts of S. Cali. Don't realy care wether or not the bike has estart. Have been down to my local dealer and with the 06 models coming in they are making some pretty good deals on the 05's. Is the 06 worth the xtra cost or should I take the deal on the 05 and use the difference in upgrades? Your input is greatly appreciated.

[MXRACER86]

2006 ALL THE WAY! You can't go wrong!

[hasbeenttduner]

Pay for the 06!

[jonnycoke@yahoo]

I would save your pennies and buy an '05. I just bought mine a month ago and am estatic with it. I like all the upgrades that Honda put into the '06 but I don't see it making a huge difference to the "average" rider. I am not even sad I have an 'old' R.
Take a test ride on each and see if you can tell the difference.

get the 06 man and know you have the fastest and most reliable quad out there!!!!

[450robot]

your retarded if you get the 05 instead of the 06

for the extra $100 you will pay, you get a new frontend and lrear linkage, redesigned shocks, redesigned motor, with estart, redesigned ergonomics, etc.

[fastrider450r]

Originally posted by 450robot
your retarded if you get the 05 instead of the 06

for the extra $100 you will pay, you get a new frontend and lrear linkage, redesigned shocks, redesigned motor, with estart, redesigned ergonomics, etc.
^^^^go with it.

[400exrider0004]

definately 06, like he said for only 100 bucks you get tons of upgrades, and you get the fastest and most reliable bike out there

[Yota_Fan]

Along with all of the upgrades that you get (for a measly $200 freakin' bucks!), you get the piece of mind of knowing that Honda will have fixed the crank bearing problem on the '06 models.. That alone is easily worth the extra 200 smackers!! :)

[Ex'r Marlin]

Cool... Welcome to ATVriders.com!:cool:

I will most likely do a lot of "dune" riding, and I am patient enough to wait for the '06.

Like others said, the changes made, in our opinions, are worth the extra money for the '06 than a new '05.

I am one that likes to do it right in the first time, so I too recommend an '06, even in your position.:)

Added note: Glad to hear you are going to get a HONDA!:macho

Good luck!

[kazpr]

Ya 06 all the way.
If you are going to heavily mod it then that is a different story.

[KAZAL]

funny I just debated the same exact thing .. I went with an 05 because of the killer deals .. u are saving WAYYYYYYYYYY more then 200.00 try like 1000.00 ..... atleast 800.00 tho... I saved myself a lil over a g after i got the trc and 3 year ext warranty ... to me is was a no brainer i opted for the 05

[KAZAL]

By the way if you thought like most of the posts , you would never be able to buy a machine a quad a car a computer a phone etc etc etc cause every single year they will upgrade something or something will change so why would u get an 06 when u could just wait for an 07??????surely the 07 will have "redesigned egronomics better susp. better braking and a better clutch"????:rolleyes:

Originally posted by KAZAL
surely the 07 will have "redesigned egronomics better susp. better braking and a better clutch"????:rolleyes: you keep thinking that ;)

[KAZAL]

ummm im being sarcastic ..lol

[pinky93]

I found an 04 R that I am going to go with, I think. Owned by a friend, less than 10 hours for under 5K. And, I can pick it up now!!

I am not sure....but hopeful that I don't regret it.:rolleyes:

[Out_Sider]

i wouldn't get an 04 or 05. mine is having SO many transmission problems its not even funny, this honda reliability is enough to piss me off

[jeepnrocks]

2006 !!!

[pilotpete]

i just ordered myself a black 05...... got so much money off i couldn't say no....and unless you are a top pro you won't know the difference.........and i would have to waited 6 months to get the 06 model here in the UK.....

[KAZAL]

i just ordered myself a black 05...... got so much money off i couldn't say no....and unless you are a top pro you won't know the difference.........and i would have to waited 6 months to get the 06 model here in the UK.....

EXACTLY!!!!!!!!!!

[Transplant2]

It would cost me way more to add the changes I want to the '05 vs just buying an '06. E-start, lower transmission ratios, and 1" longer wheelbase. I am not a pro but I will notice those changes. I may not notice the motor changes but we can only assume they are ugrades in some way. I will probly pay full msrp...but I have been waiting all summer for this beast. Finally I will be riding red again. I miss the days when I didn't have to fix something before each ride. :D

[pilotpete]

It would cost me way more to add the changes I want to the '05 vs just buying an '06. E-start, lower transmission ratios, and 1" longer wheelbase. I am not a pro but I will notice those changes.


well ok ...e-start who cares!!! lower transmission ratios just change the sprockets.....the longer swinger just wait for racing guys to part out there 06's swingers on ebay....give it a month and there be $50!!!! i say about $100 to do it.... i got a discount of more than a $1000 on a 05!!!!:D

[Transplant2]

Originally posted by pilotpete
...e-start who cares!!!
I care...that's why I mentioned it. I ride with four different R's and they have from 12 to 14 tooth front spockets...and larger rears. Still doing all the climbs in 1st gear...and I hate power shifting thru neutral. Honda changed the internal gearing...something you could never fix with sprockets. The yzf has 1.928:1 ratio for 2nd gear...while the '05 R has 2.0 something for 1st gear! What's up with that? It may be perfect for everyone else but it didn't fit MY riding style. The a-arms changed too so I am not sure the full inch wheelbase comes just from the swingarm.

Replacing the tranny and adding e-start would be $1000 in itself. Those are two changes I could not live without...otherwise it was yfz time. And the best price I have seen around here on '05's is $550 of msrp.

I am glad you are happy with your '05...but I would not be. This new R is what I have been waiting for Honda to come out with since I bought my banshee 12 years ago. It won't be as fast as the shee but sure will be more comfortable and reliable. :cool:

[kazpr]

Originally posted by Transplant2
It won't be as fast as the shee but sure will be more comfortable and reliable. :cool:
Unless the shee is pretty modded, the 450r will be faster with just the HRC kit.
I blow banshees away all the time actually.
I think you will be pleasnatly surprised.
Welcome to RED!! :)

[Transplant2]

Originally posted by kazpr
Welcome to RED!! :)


Thanks...I started on red and am glad to be coming back home.

I mostly ride sand and there hasn't been anything to compete with the shee for a long time. Yes...I am pleasantly surprised at what they can do..but I still smoke them even with the hrc kits. And I have seen the hrc'd R's beat piped banshees all day long too...that is a beautiful site! I will always keep the shee because of all I have put into it over the years. It's just time to be back on a Honda...a lot less maintanance.

[prepracing]

Originally posted by pinky93
I found an 04 R that I am going to go with, I think. Owned by a friend, less than 10 hours for under 5K. And, I can pick it up now!!

I am not sure....but hopeful that I don't regret it.:rolleyes:


I would shop around, dealerships in my area are pushing new 05' models out the door for $4300 ( thats tax and all ) to get room for the 06' 450's

[KAZAL]

e start is for kidsssssssss we dont need no stinking batteries

[spincr4hire]

I'm trying to unload my 05 right now, going to be hard to do now. Had a couple of buyers but after the 06 came out they changed their minds, should have had it up for sale sooner.

[Ex'r Marlin]

Originally posted by spincr4hire
I'm trying to unload my 05 right now, going to be hard to do now.

I can not believe you still have that beauty! Some members on here stated that opt to save the money on an '05 left over... They must not have seen your '05 450R for sale add in ATV's FOR SALE section! Your machine is a "steal" for what it has, and how it looks! I am shocked!

[Shawn H]

Originally posted by prepracing
I would shop around, dealerships in my area are pushing new 05' models out the door for $4300 ( thats tax and all ) to get room for the 06' 450's


I call B.S 4300 for an 05:rolleyes:

[KAZAL]

I call B.S 4300 for an 05

I second that considering im really good friends with a honda manager in my area ..B>S!!!

[rotz66801]

One thing you might think about is finding a 05 dirt cheap! I just bought my o5 for a weee bit over 4k with a full set of paddle tiers and yes that was with a transferable warranty. So the 2500 I saved is going into new axle, shocks ,and other mods. Just my 2 cents.

[rotz66801]

You can get a 05 for 4999.00 in miss at a powersports dealer. pro cycle they are all over ebay

[rotz66801]

In a very short amount of time there will be a ton of 05's for sale I think just because of the e-start. And I think that is going to be a mistake on hondas part. As now you will see an influx of kids way toooo small to be riding those machines out on the dunes like you see the yfz's. A 15 yr old made a bad judgement and it cost him his life over the weekend at the dunes.

[spincr4hire]

Thats those kids parents' responsibility, not Honda's or Yamaha's.

[Blown 331]

I plan on selling my 2004 for an 06. I'm hoping to get no less than $4000 for it. It looks totally stock, nice shape, as a yosh full syst, HRC kit and sparks filter along with a PRM grab bar. I'm not sure if I'm gonna keep my pipe yet or what. I have the 4 year warranty too. The trade in value on a 2004 is only $2800 to $3000! I gotta have $4000. Too bad I owe more than that on it, so that means I will have to pay it off some more just so I can sell it!