2008 Honda TRX700XX - First Ride

Fit, Finish And Braking
From a fit-and-finish standpoint, Honda's usual quality and craftsmanship have been polished into this machine. Ergonomically, we felt extremely comfortable sitting on this ATV and were impressed with its user-friendliness. Especially for larger riders, this quad could be a perfect fit for a long day of riding. It allowed us to stretch out our legs without the usual cramped feeling of the smaller, sportier machines. Also, we could tell that Honda engineers paid special attention to creating the lines of the TRX700XX, as there were no harsh angles and places that could dig into our knees. The handlebar grips were classic Honda good, while the clutch pull was very nice. Although the handlebar was a little cheesy,we really dug the footpegs, as they aggressively held our boots into position. For us, we thought the brakes worked well and brought the 505-pound quad to a fairly easy stop, but they did seem a little soft compared to some of the other braking systems on the market today. Maybe the added weight played a factor in this.

Conclusion
Overall, we weren't blown away with red's first effort with an IRS sport machine. Independent rear suspension systems on sport quads may need their own classification in the sport quad market. They do in fact squeeze a bit of the sportiness that we've all come to know and love out of the quad that Honda injected into the 250R, which carried into the 300EX, 400EX, 450R and since copied by most other performance sports quads on the market today. The missing ingredient is the ability to steer the quad with the throttle and fl oat the front end off of the corners. We certainly found some positive characteristics with the 700XX and agree that it would be a fun machine to hit the trails on each weekend, but we hope cures for power and solutions for the suspension will come sooner than later. As we said earlier, we just need more time aboard this new machine, so you'll be seeing a more in-depth story soon.

2008 Honda TRX700XX