Quad Bike 4WD vs 2WD

[Laura_Long]

Hi. We are looking at buying a second hand honda quad. We want to tow a small trailer, topper/mower and chain harrow behind it. Will 2WD be powerful enough or does it need to be a 4WD?

It only needs to service 2.5 acres.

 

[Finn farmer]

It comes down to traction, not power. Quad should always be 4wd if you're going to do some work with it. Usually the 4wd ones can be switched to 2wd, but the 2wd's you can't turn to 4wd's.

 

[Tarw Coch]

Will also depend on terrain and ground conditions, if you're only going to be on flat dry ground a 2wd may well suffice. For most farm use of a quad 4wd is almost essential.

 

[dod1e]

If ground will be soft enough that tyres will create ruts, then 4wd big advantage to keep front wheels turning g and pulling through.

Personally I'm not sure the front wheels do much if pulling a trailer up a hill on firm ground as you will get good weight transfer to the rear, but in soft or slippery conditions, or in snow, 4wd makes a big difference.

Track width of our trailer is a good bit wider than that if the bike which doesn't help in a wet muddy gateway.

 

[Hampton]

We only have a 2wd Suzuki ozark. We use it for slug pelleting and feeding the sheep if it's too wet for the Landrover. It is perfectly adequate for our needs.

 

[Mursal]

Usually 2Wd for fun 4Wd for work.
But, 2WD will do a lot of work on the flat and used correctly.
If you have younger users going to use it, definitely 4WD for the weight distribution towards the front, far more stable and as a result less fun.

Consider a cheap secondhand (Honda, Kawasaki etc) quad and a small tractor?
It will work out cheaper in the long run and the tractor will be bored with the workload. As the quad gets older 2.5 acres is quite a chunk of work.

 

[Laura_Long]

Thanks all. The field is sloped but not steeply so and drains well. It won't need to be used in the winter much unless along our track etc. It's really just to top/harrow 1 acre or so at a time while the rest is being grazed. If the whole field needs work we will get our field neighbour in with his tractor. Sounds like 2wd could be Ok for that plus they are cheaper which means we have done money for the mower/harrow etc.

 

[Mursal]

Can you get one for a try, before you decide?
Maybe hire for a week or so ..........

 

[Laura_Long]

Can you get one for a try, before you decide?
Maybe hire for a week or so ..........

That is a good idea.

 

[cotswoldcs]

Hi. We are looking at buying a second hand honda quad. We want to tow a small trailer, topper/mower and chain harrow behind it. Will 2WD be powerful enough or does it need to be a 4WD?

It only needs to service 2.5 acres.

You might need 4WD if you intend to buy that trailed sprayer in time...

 

[Laura_Long]

You might need 4WD if you intend to buy that trailed sprayer in time...

Trailed Sprayer??

 

[cotswoldcs]

Sorry couldn't resist. I remember reading one of your previous threads where you were asking about weed control and a lot of farmers on here kept on suggesting about you spraying. I know you are not wanting to use chemicals so was only joking with you about the sprayer.

 

[TripleSix]

2wd will be fine for you.

Honda 250's are good bikes, Suzuki Ozark 250 are excellent too.

There always seems to be plenty of 2wd Honda 420's around too, usually at favourable prices.

 

[Al R]

Honda 420 2wd on BKT W207 tyres will output a 4wd on standard tyres.

 

[Laura_Long]

Sorry couldn't resist. I remember reading one of your previous threads where you were asking about weed control and a lot of farmers on here kept on suggesting about you spraying. I know you are not wanting to use chemicals so was only joking with you about the sprayer.

Ah ok, I see. Yeah I am weed controlling the hard way. I just love bending over pulling thistles! Good for the hamstrings though

 

[Mursal]

Never mind the thistles, throw up a few pictures of the quads you're thinking of and we''ll weed them out for you.
(see what I did there) .......

Older Honda with manual gear shift or Kawasaki KLF would be our favorites.

 

[Y Fan Wen]

The old Honda 300 with the fat tyres is a much better puller than the newer 420 with narrower tyres.
I never felt the need for 4wd with the 2 300s I've had. Lucky the 420 I have now is 4wd 'cos in 2wd it cannot do anything like its predecessor.

 

[TripleSix]

Bargain!

Buy buy buy!


https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https://www.ebay.co.uk/ulk/itm/282838079857

 

[335d]

The old Honda 300 with the fat tyres is a much better puller than the newer 420 with narrower tyres.
I never felt the need for 4wd with the 2 300s I've had. Lucky the 420 I have now is 4wd 'cos in 2wd it cannot do anything like its predecessor.

You can not compare a 4wd bike in 2wd mode with a 2wd bike. The 4wd bike is much heavier and has the extra drag of the front diff to contend with. You just have to jack the front of both bikes up and you will see a big difference when you try to spin the wheels. Also as you say, the 2wd big red would have had rear wheels about twice the width. A better comparison would be a 250 2wd with an old big red 300 2wd. The 250 should be equivalent if not better due to the more efficient driveline

 

[ollandroverman]

You can not compare a 4wd bike in 2wd mode with a 2wd bike. The 4wd bike is much heavier and has the extra drag of the front diff to contend with. You just have to jack the front of both bikes up and you will see a big difference when you try to spin the wheels. Also as you say, the 2wd big red would have had rear wheels about twice the width. A better comparison would be a 250 2wd with an old big red 300 2wd. The 250 should be equivalent if not better due to the more efficient driveline

plus, a lot of the newer quads are designed as a 4wd, so they carry a lot of weight forwards on the front axle and the back axle is very light. The old Big Reds were front light compared to a modern offering