Work UTV ... narrow down some choices please

[mkr7734]

My neighbor loves his Gator CX... uses it all the time and has 1500 hours on it.

Tried it on my property and the lack of 4 wheel braking was a problem as I was sliding down my gravel drive down to the creek...

Your drive must be steep. I did opt for the locking Dif and oil filter, I have slid down some mud trails but never the driveway. Would think if I can't stop the Gator would have one heck of a time with our car and truck.......

 

[ultrarunner]

The drive is steep out back... the gator has little trouble going up... guess it is the center of gravity shift to the rear.

Going down is different in that the center of gravity shifts to the front... so the rear tires kind of skid...

Now, if there is weight like two people in back if makes the brakes work much better.

He loves that Gator for work and play...

Only issues have been flat tires...

 

[Poopdeck Pappy]

I'm just bumping this thread back to the top for two reasons. First, I wonder if Ultrarunner bought a UTV yet. Secondly, I'm starting the process of researching a UTV purchase and found a lot of good information in this thread.

 

[ultrarunner]

Thanks for asking... yee did...

Picked up a used one owner Kubota RTV900 with 430 hours... guy used it around his property... had to go about 300 miles roundtrip to get it.

So far so good... did order the hand throttle kit which should help with it's only shortcoming...

We have some very steep hills and from factory the only way to get the throttle up is to step on the pedal which with hydro can take away power.

So the hand throttle is supposed to let you increase engine speed irrespective of pedal position... the way my Kubota tractors work with a hand throttle.

Been on the road this week and Oregon and Washington dealers have great inventories on the lot... both Kubota and Deere and even Cabelas has their version.

Wish it would be the same in the SF Bay Area... who wants to order one new from a catalog sight unseen?

 

[sdef]

Due to TBN and other Internet posts, I narrowed my choices down to a Polaris Ranger and a Kawasaki Mule Pro-FX EPS LE. After driving both I bought a Polaris Ranger 900XP EPS mainly for the performance. Awesome. However, if my usage was more work related and I did not have all of the trees I have to maneuver around, the Mule would be a better choice as the Polaris is primarily plastic where the Mule had a lot of metal, more cab and bed space and is designed as a working vehicle. Not to mention a far better warranty of three years vs. the Polaris' six months. For me, put the Polaris running gear in a Kawasaki Mule and I would have the perfect vehicle.

 

[Hermio]

I have had my Intimidator Crew for 1.5 years now. Very heavy duty machine, but with enough suspension travel that it can go at a decent speed over rough ground. Though its top speed of 33 mph is slow for those who want a sports model, we would never approach such a speed in the woods anyway. Intimidator does have a new model that can reach 60 mph. My only complaint so far is that it is almost impossible to service the transmissions and front axle oil changes without a lift. So, I drive it up to a mechanic shop that has one.

 

[Redneck in training]

We have Kawa Mule with three cylinder engine. It is new with approaching only 20 hours ready for first oil change. We like it a lot. It has selectable all wheel drive, locking differentials, power steering and winch. It is not the fastest thing though. It looks like it is governed just above 30 mph. Otherwise it can climb pretty steep slopes even without locked differentials. But here is the problem. We bought our place to keep us mean and lean in retirement but now we drive to places where we used to walk to like veggie garden, to mail box, to back 40ty, to the shed, to mulberry tree etc.

 

[ultrarunner]

^^^Exactly...

I was discussing this with my brother as we were walking all over his hilly 65 acres... when heavy items needed to be moved we used the L3800.

Now everything goes by Kubota RTV900.

I is very handy and convenient and does add to productivity... but the walking has fallen off a lot... and walking with the wheelbarrow is now just about a thing of the past.

 

[s219]

When I am doing long term projects, like when I put an addition on my barn, the RTV became my mobile workshop. Holds a bunch of tools, and the rear gate flips down to make a good mini workbench. Great for fetching materials and ferrying them around. Has cut down on a lot of manual "go-fer" work, when I used to do laps around the property between house, workshop, scrap pile, etc. Now I can zip around and save a lot of time and wear on my boots. I normally like to get as much exercise as I can, but when doing projects, the constant laps back and forth take a lot of time, so I am happy to have the RTV for that. On other days when I am not trying to get work done, I spend more time walking around.

 

[Hermio]

We have Kawa Mule with three cylinder engine. It is new with approaching only 20 hours ready for first oil change. We like it a lot. It has selectable all wheel drive, locking differentials, power steering and winch. It is not the fastest thing though. It looks like it is governed just above 30 mph. Otherwise it can climb pretty steep slopes even without locked differentials. But here is the problem. We bought our place to keep us mean and lean in retirement but now we drive to places where we used to walk to like veggie garden, to mail box, to back 40ty, to the shed, to mulberry tree etc.

Well, even if you can't do the lean part, you can still be mean! :laughing: