maintenance on a 400ex

[deathcorefan2]

ok so as most of you already know this is my first 4 stroke, and i want to know how often i should change my oil, oil filter, spark plug, and other stuff i should keep up on.

[buck440]

just change your oil and filter after like 4 or so rides and after every ride check if your rear hubs are loose and if so tighten them and if not ride red :)

[stcblack450r]

when i had my 400ex i changed my oil and filter every 7-10 hours and used honda GN-4 motor oil everytime. make sure to adjust your valves, this should be done about once a year just to make sure they're on spec.

[rob_990]

i change my oil every 10-15 hours.i usually replace my oil filter every oil change or every other oil change. i only had to change my plug twice all year youll know when you have to cause it will get hard to start. dont forget to clean your air filter.
you might also want to take your swingarm bolt out and grease it if its not already siezed. and grease your a arms and shock linkage when it starts to squeak.

[midwest honda]

Do yourself a favor in the long run and check and change everything before most people say it should be done. Some people might say this is a wasteful idea but i say its good cheap insurance.

[kilgoja]

you guys are nuts...you don't have to change the oil that often...read you owner's manual...lol...first oil change at 20hrs and after that every 100hrs....yes that's right...every 100hrs...no matter what conditions or how or where u ride.....say it with me class....100hrs....lol...100hrs or 600miles

[buck440]

well in front of my face in the clymer book for the honda 400ex 99-09 it says change it after 20 hours so idk where you got 100 hours so now class.......say....20 hours.....20 HOURRRRSSSS!!!!!!! lol:D but to get off subject, does anyone know if foxhondarider got banned cause of his thread? you all should check it out

[deathcorefan2]

well if i ride regularly...ill change the oil everyyy...hmm..1 month or every 2 months.

i dont ride THAT often.

[Wheelie]

I change the oil and oil filter (genuine Honda filter and synthetic blend oil) every 15-25 hours, depending on the riding conditions. More often for dunes, less often for woods/play.


I adjust the valves once a year, every spring before the season starts, the spark plug gets changed once a year as well--at the same time the valves are done.

[gpd005]

oil changes depend on the riding style. I race XC and change my oil after every national race or every other local race. 2 hours of beating on your motor deserves an oil chane and a new filter. I check my valves every couple rides. Keep the battery fully charged and keep your pivot bolt greased up as well. A clean air filter is number one on my list! I clean it before every ride.

[kilgoja]

Originally posted by buck440
well in front of my face in the clymer book for the honda 400ex 99-09 it says change it after 20 hours so idk where you got 100 hours so now class.......say....20 hours.....20 HOURRRRSSSS!!!!!!! lol:D but to get off subject, does anyone know if foxhondarider got banned cause of his thread? you all should check it out


um...are you stupid?...maybe looka at the honda owner's manual...it's 20hrs the first oil change only.....then each oil change after that is 100hrs.....dduuuuhhhhh....wwa wa wa watter booyyy...dduuuhhhh...i gotta wooden spoon...duhhhh...lmao

[buck440]

are you stuh...stuh...stuh....stuh...stuh...stuh...stupid boy, it aint no biggie you can just say for example: buck440, i was wrong and you were right and im sorry, it as simple as that. :D

[BossHogg420]

it might say 100 hours in the manual but that's just a general guideline. conditions differ. yes the motor would prob survive having it changed every 100 hours if someone was easy on the quad...aka...riding around in the neighborhood. for any one that races or rides extremely hard, I wouldn't recommend waiting 100hours to change the oil and filter. for me, the majority of my riding is xc races and practice. waiting 100 hours to change would mean racing 50 2 hr xc races. i know after one 2 hr xc race my filter and oil is finished. in theory if Honda has their manuals say every 100 hours..it might mean more engines breaking which in turn might give their stealer ships more business...just a thought

[buck440]

if that one boy can take a picture of the book where it says 100 hrs ide love to see it cause mine says 20 hrs not arguing just odd with the big difference in hrs:confused:

for both oil and filter:
my owners manual says initial after 20 hrs...on the maint. schedule on pg 78
then regular maint. interval replace both at (hours) 100, 200; (km) 1000,2000; (miles) 600,1200

i prefer to do it a little more than that depending on the conditions i was riding in, and how hard i was riding.

[Mustangous]

Originally posted by buck440
if that one boy can take a picture of the book where it says 100 hrs ide love to see it cause mine says 20 hrs not arguing just odd with the big difference in hrs:confused:
I sure dont agree with it but here it is...

[scuzz]

I'm pretty sure that those numbers are dependent on riding conditions.

Also the way that I think about it is that oil and filter are so cheap...why not.

It's cheaper than a rebuild.

[AZ440ex]

Originally posted by deathcorefan2
ok so as most of you already know this is my first 4 stroke, and i want to know how often i should change my oil, oil filter, spark plug, and other stuff i should keep up on.

Kids, Kids ,Kids the guy just asked a simple question. Do you need to fight about every post on here?

Oil change intevals are personal choice, I go no longer than 6-8hrs but I race MX and desert with my 440, it probably could go longer but I am not taking the chance. A stock machine rode recreational I would not be scared about every 20 hrs.

Change the oil filter with the oil! Clean oil and a nasty filter does not work.

Clean your air filter after ever ride! Dirt eats valves.

Buy an hour meter "35 bucks" It is a cheap and accurate way to track hours for whatever maintenace schedual you choose.

Far as spark plugs, I change them when I Re-Jet (for whatever reason- mods altitude etc..) and when I do a top end or new rings.

If it's new check the valves after break in then follow the manual. It is easy and pretty quick to do.

Pull the swing-arm bolt and grease it once in a while. I do mine once a year but live in the desert where moisture isn't a issue. Grease the rear linkage at the same time.

[kilgoja]

seriously i change mine about once a year in the springtime...i prolly only ride my quad maybe 50-75 hrs a year anyways...we don't go riding very often....i don't ride it everyday like i did on my other toys when i was a kid...lol...i have a job and stuff now and it sucks...haha...anyways u see what honda recommends in the pic above....it's the same way on cars...a honda car says change the oil like every 10k miles in normal conditions.....but prolly noone waits that long....most people change it like 3k - 5k miles...but honda knows their engines so it's not like following the schedule would be bad for your engine....now if you race that's a different story....the schedules in your owner's manual are for a completely stock (unmodified) quad....i'm not saying i would wait 100hrs...but i would at least wait 50hrs before i changed it....anything more really isn't doing anything to help your quad or prevent damage etc.....using more oil must makes gas prices go up and depletes the world's supply of oil...just think about it:ermm:

[brian76708]

Originally posted by kilgoja
seriously i change mine about once a year in the springtime...i prolly only ride my quad maybe 50-75 hrs a year anyways...we don't go riding very often....i don't ride it everyday like i did on my other toys when i was a kid...lol...i have a job and stuff now and it sucks...haha...anyways u see what honda recommends in the pic above....it's the same way on cars...a honda car says change the oil like every 10k miles in normal conditions.....but prolly noone waits that long....most people change it like 3k - 5k miles...but honda knows their engines so it's not like following the schedule would be bad for your engine....now if you race that's a different story....the schedules in your owner's manual are for a completely stock (unmodified) quad....i'm not saying i would wait 100hrs...but i would at least wait 50hrs before i changed it....anything more really isn't doing anything to help your quad or prevent damage etc.....using more oil must makes gas prices go up and depletes the world's supply of oil...just think about it:ermm:

tree hugging hippie

[kilgoja]

lol...hippie?...i wasn't born until 1975...lmao...got nothing to do with trees... just oil and gas prices

[buck440]

im not a hippie like that guy cause i change my oil like every month but iguess it depends how hard you ride

[brian76708]

Originally posted by kilgoja
lol...hippie?...i wasn't born until 1975...lmao...got nothing to do with trees... just oil and gas prices

haha i was just kidding but honestly 2 quarts of oil is nothing compared to what they dump into the ocean each year. i personally always thought it was every 24 hours you were supposed to change your oil and i usually did it before that point and looking at how black the oil is then i cant imagine running it 100 hrs but i guess it all depends the conditions/ how hard you ride your machine. id rather change the oil early and not damage the motor its a good cheap insurance.

[kilgoja]

i hear ya...but it's not just 2 qts if you think about all the people in the world that own atvs, motorcycles, etc....lol...not trying to be hateful about it...we all need to get better at not being wasteful...just imagine how much would be saved if every atv owner changed their oil at 50hrs instead of 25 or less...it would cut it in half