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Honda TRX700XX: Unique is Only the Beginning
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Part of the lackluster engine performance
undoubtedly stems from the machine’s incredible
heft. Weighing in at a whopping 505 pounds
dry, it’s really no wonder the 700's wheels tend
to stay firmly planted to the ground. This isn’t
to insinuate that wheelies are impossible, but
believe us when we say that never do you start
to forget how much this beast weighs out on the
trail. The weight combined with the motor’s
linear means of building speed (rather than
simply exploding with power) results in a quad
that likes to flow along the trails. Riders who
go into corners hot and hard only to slam the
brakes at the last second before hammering on
the gas again are going to be in for quite a
surprise on the 700XX; as in off the trail. The
machine demands a patient rider who doesn’t mind
going with the flow. Any attempts to fight the
machine result in immediate fatigue.
The suspension, which is certainly unique in
this application, was the source of much debate
among our testers. The problem, surprisingly
enough, wasn’t what we expected. The IRS works
and works pretty darn well. There is very little
flex in the rear and off cambers, regardless of
how steep, could not get our test quad to tip.
Instead each of the four wheels finds its flow
regardless of the tilt of the ground below.
Additionally, rear end squat during acceleration
is all but eliminated. For tough, technical
trails, the benefits of IRS are plenty welcomed.
However, the suspension package as a whole is
far from perfect. That rear-end stiffness we
mentioned a moment ago is great when plugging
through the gears; but once you begin pounding
through the rough stuff, the front end starts
bottoming out while the rear pogos through. In
other words, the rear end of the quad overpowers
the limitations of the front which means expect
to bounce out of your intended line nine out of
ten times when the trail turns to chop.
Unfortunately, this imbalance works against the
quad in slow speed scenarios as well. On more
than one occasion we found ourselves unable to
turn the quad around on even the widest of
trails. Thanks to the stiff rear-end coupled
with slow driving torque, it was all but
impossible to flick the back tires around to
pull a 180. Instead, we found that the quad
simply pushed the turned front wheels right off
the trail. Reverse was there to clean up the
mess, but it can be a frustrating experience.
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Normally such complaints can be alleviated
with some tweaking and trial and error, but for
whatever reason Honda decided against
compression and rebound adjusters on the
TRX700XX. The factory settings are going
to have to suffice for riders of all size and
skill levels. This is especially disappointing
considering that the chassis isn’t well balanced
to begin with.
Odds & Ends
Clearly Honda was aiming for comfort when
laying out the TRX700XX as the ergonomics are
spot on for riders of nearly any size. The reach
to the bars is very natural, and the seat
provides ample room for sliding around. The 10.2
inches of ground clearance is wonderful in
situations of hidden rocks or especially swampy
double-track where your wheels happen to fall
into someone else’s ruts. The engine performance
could be a plus or minus depending on the type
of trails you ride. For technical, low speed
work we found the motor to be torquey and
smooth, but wide open hard pack is going to find
the 700 trailing the Raptor 700 and KFX700.
Braking is typical Honda magic; well modulated
and effective in even the sloppiest mess, but
don’t expect the big 700 to stop on a dime
either. It takes a little planning ahead
and careful application for this big boy to fall
in line. We found our test riders with the best
finesse were able to make the most out of the
TRX700XX on the trails.
Over all this machine is exactly what Honda
claims it is--a weekend warrior’s delight. With
some tweaking of both the motor and suspension,
it is possible to extract some race potential
out of the big 700, but we think to do so would
be missing the point. The quad is comfortable,
quiet, reliable, and versatile. If these are the
traits you happen to seek out when purchasing
your next ATV, Honda has created this one
specifically for you.
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