Ability to climb and descend steep grades.

[ovrszd]

Amen to that, I wanted to buy the Kubota RTV because I like the utility of it and rear diff. lock, but when I saw it had limited slip front diff. with no lock option, forget it. If buy 4 wheels, I want all 4 wheel traction, so I went the Rhino because a lot of people said they have the best belt drive and most important to me is that the Rhino isn't ten ft. wide, fits through my cellar door.
Now Yamaha doesn't make that anymore, so to fit through my cellar door, I'd have to buy a Chinese version Rhino and cross my fingers, carry a rabbits foot, four leave clover, ware a cross and say three hail Marry's.

Yeah, I tell people all the time, my Rhino in 2wd will go where my RTV in 4wd won't.

Yamaha uses a wet clutch to engage the belt drive system. So at an idle the drive belt sheave stops turning. On a Polaris for example, at idle, the sheave is turning and the belt is slipping because of slack. Mash on the gas of a Rhino and the belt drive is engaged by the wet clutch with minimal slippage. Mash the gas on a Polaris and the belt has to tighten, and slip, before movement is felt. Not picking on Polaris, almost everyone else is like that too.

Put some aggressive tires on a Rhino, remove the rear swaybar, add some wheel spacers and hang on. Totally amazing where it will go.

Only drawback to a Rhino is big bore single cylinder engine. That's so 20th Century.

 

[Oldpath05]

A few can actually climb vertical.

https://youtu.be/U7bQKb7OplE


Edit: My Honda Pioneer 1000 crawls up steep hills very well. You can lock all 4 in on it.

https://youtu.be/aduq6FOZGbY

The first video show's people with a lot disposable income, and a lot courage, no way would I dare try that.
When I was in the market for a UTV, I looked at the Honda, but is just a little to wide for my need. When you have a chance, you should film that Honda going up that same hill with the camera off to the side on ground so it will give a better illustration of how steep that really is.

 

[ovrszd]

The first video show's people with a lot disposable income, and a lot courage, no way would I dare try that.
When I was in the market for a UTV, I looked at the Honda, but is just a little to wide for my need. When you have a chance, you should film that Honda going up that same hill with the camera off to the side on ground so it will give a better illustration of how steep that really is.

Yeah, I've used vehicle mounted cameras a lot. Unless you know what to look for you can't tell how steep the climbs are.

Those Iceland guys "drifting" across gigantic quarry bluffs is awesome too.

There's a bunch of American Rednecks down in the Carolinas that are doing some pretty amazing stuff as well!!!!

 

[blackdog2086]

I was in the market for the Kubota RTV-X 1120 until just very recently. After test driving one I was somewhat underwhelmed, and switching gears and ranges on the trans was tough due to the shift lever sticking. Maybe it's something that gets better after it breaks in, but numerous sites have been complaining about the same issue. I really wanted to like it more as it could be a real workhorse with the diesel engine and hydraulic dump bed.

I ended up getting a Honda Pioneer 1000 for several reasons, but mainly because of Honda reliability and because it doesn't have a CVT transmission. I'm not a speed demon by any means, but when test driving the Kubota, I could barely break 20 mph. The Honda seats 3 across the front and has 2 fold down seats in the rear if I decide I want to take the grand kids for a ride. I've only had it for a few months, but so far I'm fairly impressed with it. It's taken me through some pretty deep snow as well as climbed some long steep (don't know the exact grade) hills without any problem whatsoever. I've also hauled numerous loads of heavy hardwood firewood and the self leveling rear suspension makes it feel like you're driving it empty. Another plus is it has 2WD, 2WD turf mode (unlocked rear to save the lawn) 4WD, and 4WD diff lock.

Don't know if it's even close to what you're looking for. Just another option

 

[s219]

There are a couple tricks to the Kubota shifter. First, you need to depress the brake pedal far enough to trigger a pressure relief on the transmission that lets you shift out of gear with no binding/pressure on the gears. It just takes load off the gears, and is especially important on hills. Many people don't know about this, though it is very clearly covered in the owner's manual.

The shifter does smooth out quite a bit with use. If you encounter resistance going into gear, just blip the throttle/hst pedal and try again. Same trick needed sometimes on Kubota HST tractors when changing gear ranges. It's rare though. I only need to do it maybe 1 out of 20 shifts.

My RTV-X1120D will hit 28-29mph which is normal. Not sure why you couldn't break 20mph -- doesn't sound right to me.

My neighbor just got a Honda Pioneer 500, and it's real nice, and much more capable off road. Faster too -- up into the 40s. He works it pretty hard and it does fine, but it's very dainty compared to the RTV. Very different purposes.

 

[ovrszd]

I was in the market for the Kubota RTV-X 1120 until just very recently. After test driving one I was somewhat underwhelmed, and switching gears and ranges on the trans was tough due to the shift lever sticking. Maybe it's something that gets better after it breaks in, but numerous sites have been complaining about the same issue. I really wanted to like it more as it could be a real workhorse with the diesel engine and hydraulic dump bed.

I ended up getting a Honda Pioneer 1000 for several reasons, but mainly because of Honda reliability and because it doesn't have a CVT transmission. I'm not a speed demon by any means, but when test driving the Kubota, I could barely break 20 mph. The Honda seats 3 across the front and has 2 fold down seats in the rear if I decide I want to take the grand kids for a ride. I've only had it for a few months, but so far I'm fairly impressed with it. It's taken me through some pretty deep snow as well as climbed some long steep (don't know the exact grade) hills without any problem whatsoever. I've also hauled numerous loads of heavy hardwood firewood and the self leveling rear suspension makes it feel like you're driving it empty.View attachment 459133 Another plus is it has 2WD, 2WD turf mode (unlocked rear to save the lawn) 4WD, and 4WD diff lock.

Don't know if it's even close to what you're looking for. Just another option

I've heard a lot of good things about the Hondas. I've researched them but don't know anyone locally that owns one to visit with. Sounds like it's a great fit for you which is what's most important.

I bought my Kubota RTV900 used. I've put 50 hours on it. I'm almost used to it now. The shifting is the hardest to get used to. I think repetitive work like pushing snow would frustrate me tremendously. To get a smooth shift you have to wait. Maybe as much as 3 or 4 seconds. That would drive me crazy if changing directions a lot.

The speed of the Kubota doesn't bother me because I never road it. It's life is doing farm related off road work. I like it's truck like durability for that reason.

Off topic a bit, but, Honda was the innovator 40 years ago with off road, affordable dirt bikes, then 3-wheelers, then 4-wheelers (ATVs). Then for some reason they quit evolving and went stale. Their reputation for durability was the only thing that kept them in the market at all. In the UTV world they made no attempt to keep up. Finally after a couple decades of this attitude they are finally trying to get back in. I think the Pioneer line meets the standard we all expect from Honda. Now we'll see if they continue to evolve and perfect the design.

 

[ultrarunner]

I was in the market for the Kubota RTV-X 1120 until just very recently. After test driving one I was somewhat underwhelmed, and switching gears and ranges on the trans was tough due to the shift lever sticking. Maybe it's something that gets better after it breaks in, but numerous sites have been complaining about the same issue. I really wanted to like it more as it could be a real workhorse with the diesel engine and hydraulic dump bed.

I ended up getting a Honda Pioneer 1000 for several reasons, but mainly because of Honda reliability and because it doesn't have a CVT transmission. I'm not a speed demon by any means, but when test driving the Kubota, I could barely break 20 mph. The Honda seats 3 across the front and has 2 fold down seats in the rear if I decide I want to take the grand kids for a ride. I've only had it for a few months, but so far I'm fairly impressed with it. It's taken me through some pretty deep snow as well as climbed some long steep (don't know the exact grade) hills without any problem whatsoever. I've also hauled numerous loads of heavy hardwood firewood and the self leveling rear suspension makes it feel like you're driving it empty.View attachment 459133 Another plus is it has 2WD, 2WD turf mode (unlocked rear to save the lawn) 4WD, and 4WD diff lock.

Don't know if it's even close to what you're looking for. Just another option

Any issues with the Dual Cone geared "Automatic"?

The reason I ask is the Ford Fiesta has a Dual Cone Auto and has been plagued by failures... it is a technology I know little about.

Seems a brand new Toyota Corolla or Honda Civic is about the same price point or cheaper than some of the ATV and RTV

I've been watching CRAIGS for a couple of years and simply not much ever comes up here in the SF Bay Area...

I paid a $1000 for my Samurai with a noisy transmission... less than $50 for the bearing and gasket set to repair...

 

[nybirdman]

Lack of a "low" range hurts the Honda Products.I have watched videos where they stopped in the middle of a steep hill and the Hondas couldn't get going again.I used to be a huge Honda fan and still thing they make the best small motors but they have fallen behind in the ATV and SxS world.

 

[ovrszd]

I paid a $1000 for my Samurai with a noisy transmission... less than $50 for the bearing and gasket set to repair...

I've said this many times before,,,, the cheapest and most dependable UTV available is a Samurai.

 

[ultrarunner]

What mods have you made?

Mine also makes a good tow vehicle...

In all seriousness... I probably use it the most to two my log splitter where it needs to be.

More aggressive tires would also improve climbing...

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/...846-would-you-accept-new-38-bantam-suzuki-jpg