Farm UTV's.....Mule or Ranger...or other?

[SirMaxwell]

If you are buying for a working vehicle I feel it's hard to beat the old Kawasaki Mules we have two in use at the farm along with several atv's.
The mules that we have have the bench seat in them so you can slid in and go. A small person can be in the middle if wanted.
Many times if the driver needs to step out for something the passenger can reach over and use the throttle or brake which can be handy.
They are not fast or sporty by any definition but they are work horses, fixing fence, checking on animals, bringing a calve back to the barn, to running parts or a relief operator out to a tractor.
The bench seat and no door in the way makes them easy to get in and out of even for a large slightly older individual.
The last couple of years my father was alive the mule was the only way to get him out to the pastures and fields which he really enjoyed.
The bench seat models tome are the easiest to get into and out of.

Added;
there is no way a jeep or pickup can go where these can and especially not be tearing up the ground.

An old military Jeep will go any where a utv goes and do it for 1/2 the cost or less. Even more so with some minor, off the shelf, upgrades.

 

[lilranch2001]

An old military Jeep will go any where a utv goes and do it for 1/2 the cost or less. Even more so with some minor, off the shelf, upgrades.

then why do you have a Ezgo 4x4?

 

[LouNY]

An old military Jeep will go any where a utv goes and do it for 1/2 the cost or less. Even more so with some minor, off the shelf, upgrades.

I don't believe so, one it's getting hard to find the old MB series in any kind of shape, even the CJ series is getting scarce in the rust country.
And #2 even when I was young and CJ's were new I would not have called them easy to get into, with that tiny foot well opening.
#3 it would take quite the flotation tire to get the flotation to weight, which then is going to be sticking way out past the body and throwing mud and manure all over when slogging thru such.
#4 many of those had a standard transmission, which I like for most applications and times. A utility vehicle is not one of them. A clutch would get totally abused following along behind a cow/calf pair being moved gently at her own pace. And imagine jumping out to get a gate or to turn an animal the correct direction and have anyone available move that vehicle, wife, neighbor, grand kid.
#5 fuel economy the jeep will never match a mule.
#6 physical size, the jeep can't turn with a mule.
#7 the mule will rut soft fields much less.
#8 around here with a SMV hanging off the tailgate or headache rack I can use the road a bit with no issues and no license requirements if a 14 yr old is operating in my presence.
#9 in the same vein no bull crap about annual safety inspections, registration, license plates as it's a farm vehicle.

And thats just a few of my reasons,
you can have your jeep.
I have had jeeps, scouts and even an FJ-40 they had and have there place.

 

[Industrial Toys]

If people posted what they have spent on repairs for all these UTVs, the subject might come into focus differently. I never, ever see that mentioned on here. Just, what's better out of the showroom, A or B? Just the (weird) fuel filter for a Mule Diesel is STUPID expensive.

 

[lilranch2001]

I have been watching this thread since its inception, but have made no comment regarding my selection as of yet.

I have owned a Ranger 570 midsize since the fall of 2013.
I have not put a single penny into it other than grease and oil, and accessories.
I use it almost every day other than rain or arctic blast weather, using it for a tool carrier, the bed is almost always full of multiple chain saws, blowers, fuel, bar oil, chains and straps. I have moved or pulled multiple logs out of the woods so that friends and family can easily come and cut and load firewood from them. Pulled a trailer with it, have gotten my neighbors UTV unstuck once.
I like the narrower size of the midsize, I can maneuver in the woods much easier, it seems like just a few inches in width seems to make a huge difference!
I take it up the hills and through my streams.
As mentioned earlier, no replacement parts have been needed in the last 5.5 years since I have owned it.
The only issue I have had is the tires want to go flat, so every 2-3 months I need to air them up.
Recently as I was getting ready to retire I decided that I was tired of fighting the steering in the woods, which is where I spend most of my time with it so I splurged and bought myself a retirement present and upgraded.
I purchased a 2018 EPS 570 midsize.
Love it, and hope I have as little trouble with it as my old one.

I have heard that the Polaris Rangers have issues with both belt and spindle/axles, for my perspective, it is either idiots who do not know what they are doing, or people abusing them a lot more that I do, and that is hard to do, or people who just like to bad mouth something they do not own or like.

Also I looked at Kaw, and Hondas, If I was going to get a totally stripped down UTV, I would probably get a Mule, they are rugged, and my neighbors Mule looks like it has been through the war, everyone from friends and family beat the H... out of it and is seems to keep on running. They are very inexpensive as well.

I test drove a Mule Pro-FTX EPS LE, and the dealer could not seem to get the miss out of the engine after I test drove it, they took it to the shop 3 times during my visit.
Also it was pricey and it just seems very feminine......

The Honda did nothing for me as well, plus was pricey

As far as I am concerned the Ranger 570 Mid EPS was a perfect fit for me and my woods.

 

[WM75Guy]

Congrats, I am sure you will enjoy it. We bought a 2015 Mule 4010 Trans4X4. It has been a workhorse. I started with the soft top but got tired of it holding water after a rain. I just put on a AudioFormz top and a windshield. Should have done that from the start. It came as a package with the top, sound system, interior light, and front & rear lightbars. It comes prewired and the dealer installed it in no time. We don't ever fold the rear seat up to make a larger bed so the solid top is not an issue for us.

The Leader In Marine And Powersports Audio

Kawasaki Mule 4010 Trans4x4 Stereo Tops | AudioFormz

 

[s219]

I guess I take it for granted how fast the hydraulic dump is on the Kubota RTVs -- I don't think I could tolerate anything that dumped slow like the UTVs with electric+hydraulic. That's painful to watch.

Here's a load of heavy wet white oak I cut today. Was so wet my gloves got soaked from handling the cut ends and I had to pre-split the big pieces before I could pick them up.



And here's the requisite dump video:

 

[Industrial Toys]

Holy crap, that's fast! I was about to say, neither my mule or gator are slow, but compared to that, yes!

 

[SirMaxwell]

then why do you have a Ezgo 4x4?

A good deal came my way about 9 years ago, and it kinda looks like a Jeep.



btw - I also have 2-89 Cherokees, 1-08 Commander, and if I ever need one, I will also get a flat fender

 

[SirMaxwell]

I don't believe so, one it's getting hard to find the old MB series in any kind of shape, even the CJ series is getting scarce in the rust country.
And #2 even when I was young and CJ's were new I would not have called them easy to get into, with that tiny foot well opening.
#3 it would take quite the flotation tire to get the flotation to weight, which then is going to be sticking way out past the body and throwing mud and manure all over when slogging thru such.
#4 many of those had a standard transmission, which I like for most applications and times. A utility vehicle is not one of them. A clutch would get totally abused following along behind a cow/calf pair being moved gently at her own pace. And imagine jumping out to get a gate or to turn an animal the correct direction and have anyone available move that vehicle, wife, neighbor, grand kid.
#5 fuel economy the jeep will never match a mule.
#6 physical size, the jeep can't turn with a mule.
#7 the mule will rut soft fields much less.
#8 around here with a SMV hanging off the tailgate or headache rack I can use the road a bit with no issues and no license requirements if a 14 yr old is operating in my presence.
#9 in the same vein no bull crap about annual safety inspections, registration, license plates as it's a farm vehicle.

And thats just a few of my reasons,
you can have your jeep.
I have had jeeps, scouts and even an FJ-40 they had and have there place.

Louny, I am not going to hijack this thread. Lets just say we agree to disagree. Your experience is appx 180 deg out from mine. In almost all cases, locating, entering when young, yard mud, turning, and on and on.