I currently have the RTV 1100 but owned a 900 before that. I also have a Ranger Crew that is two years old. Other than the fact they both have 4 wheels they are as different as night and day. Obviously the crew can carry up to 6 passengers where you are limited to 3 in the RTV, and at that I wouldn't want to plan an all day trip in the RTV with 3 adults. The RTV is a much better built machine and is designed for work. If your desire is primarily work related you can't go wrong. The RTV is a workhorse that will take a lot of weight and abuse and just keep going. If a tilt bed is on your list of must haves the RTV excels with the power tilt. The Polaris has a plastic bed and the tilt is manual and not easy if you have much weight. We've already broken the tailgate on Ranger. Pluses for the Ranger, it will go just about anywhere you point it. If you have very steep terrain or sloppy muddy trails the Ranger will go places the RTV won't begin to. The Ranger rides much better than an RTV and will get you there a lot faster. If you have long distances to travel the Ranger will get you there faster. The RTV will spend most of it's life in Medium gear unless you live in very flat country and aren't hauling much.
Both machines have their good and bad points. You just have to decide what you want and what you just can't live with. We almost exclusively use the RTV in the winter and bad weather because of the cab and whenever we hare hauling dirt, rock, feed, posts etc. If I think there is a chance of getting stuck or we are chasing cattle the Ranger is the ride. In my opinion the Ranger is more fun to drive, higher top speed, better suspension and faster acceleration.
In summery if you have a lot of work and a little bit of play the RTV gets the nod. If you have a lot of play and a little work I would go with the Ranger.
