Bought a Kubota RTV 520

   / Bought a Kubota RTV 520 #1  

RalphVa

Super Member
Joined
Dec 19, 2003
Messages
7,873
Location
Charlottesville, VA, USA
Tractor
JD 2025R, previously Gravely 5650 & JD 4010 & JD 1025R
We've quite a hill behind the house; so, I wanted a unit that would provide some engine braking on hills. The RTV 520 and all Kubota RTVs are perhaps the only ones with hydrostatic transmission that will ****** and even stop the RTV without braking. For those of you driving automatic transmission cars that mostly do not provide any engine braking and used to applying the brakes to stop, you probably wouldn't be bothered by the great majority of RTVs that use CVTs.

Bought an RTV 520 yesterday from the local Beverage Tractor outfit in Stuarts Draft, Va. They're a bit more pricey than CVT units, but for us much safer.
 
   / Bought a Kubota RTV 520 #2  
You must be talking about a Polaris. I have no experience with every belt-driven UTV on the market, but with my Can-am and Yamaha, if in low range I generally have to add a bit of throttle or they will go too slow down a steep hill. Very strong engine braking. The Polaris Rangers we have in our Search and Rescue unit pretty much free wheel down a hill.
 
   / Bought a Kubota RTV 520 #3  
You must be talking about a Polaris. I have no experience with every belt-driven UTV on the market, but with my Can-am and Yamaha, if in low range I generally have to add a bit of throttle or they will go too slow down a steep hill. Very strong engine braking. The Polaris Rangers we have in our Search and Rescue unit pretty much free wheel down a hill.
Must be something wrong with those Polaris's or they are base models without the engine braking clutch. Because I haven't had one yet that doesn't want to throw you out the windshield when you let off the throttle. And no I'm not a Polaris fan boy. I got rid of every one of those junks except for my old 2004.5. It was the only trouble free Polaris I ever owned.

Congrats Ralph. Hope it gives you many years of trouble free service. I know a few people with the 520 and they are very happy with them.
 
   / Bought a Kubota RTV 520 #4  
Must be something wrong with those Polaris's or they are base models without the engine braking clutch. Because I haven't had one yet that doesn't want to throw you out the windshield when you let off the throttle. And no I'm not a Polaris fan boy. I got rid of every one of those junks except for my old 2004.5. It was the only trouble free Polaris I ever owned.

The clutching system on the Polaris Rangers has been a known problem for a long time. I read a lot of test reports on these things in my UTV magazines and they complain about the same thing....having to stab the throttle to increase the rpms so the clutch will grab again and allow engine braking. In our SAR Polaris units you have to do this multiple times going down a long hill. How intuitive is that, having to push on the throttle to get a machine to slow down??
Now, I have seen, when shopping a new Polaris on line, that now they offer an engine braking feature - but it is an option and costs $$$. They call it EBS (Engine Braking System) and there are some dealers that will retrofit the needed parts to some Polaris models.
Here's a good letter from someone trying to cope with this problem...
Polaris engine braking.jpg


The other thing he mention in the letter is also a concern - a Polaris does not have "real" 4wd. Instead, they have all-wheel drive; if the computer detects that the rear wheels are turning faster then it engages the front wheels. Problem is, going down hill, where the front does most of the braking due to weight transfer, because the rear wheels are NOT going faster than the front the computer keeps the unit in 2wd. So when the engine braking does cut in, it locks the rear tires and on a side slope the unit goes out of control. Pushing the "4wd" switch does not engage the front end - only the computer does that if it senses the need.
 
   / Bought a Kubota RTV 520 #5  
Hmmm....hadn't heard that. I haven't encountered that on the ones I drove. Their quality has sure gone downhill.
I got rid of mine after having wheel bearings and shocks and springs failing by 2500 KM and constant check engine lights in the three RZR1000's I have used.

That's what turned me off from Polaris and got me to buy my RTV-X1100C. I wanted something built like a tank and now when I want to go fast I just ride the dirt bikes.
 
   / Bought a Kubota RTV 520 #6  
Congrats on the RTV, my 900 has been great to me for going on 18 years.

Mike
 
   / Bought a Kubota RTV 520 #7  
Congrats on the RTV, my 900 has been great to me for going on 18 years.

Mike
That makes me feel better about mine. I maintain religiously, so if I get anywhere near 18 years I'll be really happy!
 
   / Bought a Kubota RTV 520 #8  
Congrats on the RTV!

Mike
 
 
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