Looking at getting a UTV.....

[20 20]

Polaris makes a fine machine. Owned a 350 2 wheel drive for 14yrs. I used it for hauling a pop up camper into the middle of nowhere, snowplowing, working in the woods etc... I also road every weekend for years, hard running and abusive, never had one problem. I did change the belt and the rubber carb boot at 12years{was not needed, just did it}. Maybe Polaris has changed for the worse since I owned mine but I doubt it. I own a yamaha rhino now{the price was incredible}, but will never put down Polaris.

 

[ovrszd]

This is a great thread and keeps bringing out good information, i.e. Kent's post, full of technical information that would have taken hours of research to gather. I also liked how I still don't know which brand he prefers. He just stated opinions/experiences/knowledge.

The Polaris defenders are a staunch bunch aren't they!!! Nothing wrong with Brand Loyalty!!!

Maybe the Ranger doesn't use the same 4wd system as the Sportsman??? No one has talked about that. Can one of the Polaris owners/defenders please detail to everyone how the 4wd system on the Ranger engages/disengages?? Maybe I need educated.

 

[KentT]

Maybe the Ranger doesn't use the same 4wd system as the Sportsman??? No one has talked about that. Can one of the Polaris owners/defenders please detail to everyone how the 4wd system on the Ranger engages/disengages?? Maybe I need educated.

Can't speak for the Ranger 800 or 400, but I ride with two different ATV clubs with Polaris RZRs in each club. People in both clubs have had problems with some kind of plastic cage in the front drive that holds the bearings or something, and several have had to weld on reinforcements to the 2" receiver hitch on the rear after bending them...

However, I've heard less complaints about Polaris warranty coverage than Yamaha's YES warranty program -- but I don't know how much the local dealer is influencing either one... Haven't heard much either positive or negative about Kawasaki or Arctic Cat warranty coverage -- I personally know only one Prowler owner.

Given the cost of extended warranties, I chose to buy the factory manuals and do my own service.

You do raise an interesting point, though. The Rhino and Teryx have true, locking front differentials, while the Polaris Ranger and RZR do not. (Don't know about the Prowler.) The flipside is that the Ranger also has an open, lockable rear diff -- i.e. it has a turf mode that will cause less damage to your lawn. The Teryx and Rhino have the equivalent of a locked rear diff...

 

[jcummins]

Good information here. Two years ago I went through this process, Honda's Big Red wasn't on the market so I can't comment on it. I choose the Teryx as the compromise between utility and sport. The Teryx has some issues I don't like, plastic that breaks, and it is not thrifty on fuel. If you want JUST utility or sport, you probably will make a different choice. I think the Teryx falls more on the sport side than utility, but I have used more as a utility than sport UTV. It's done all the hauling etc I needed it to do on 126 acres, with 20-30 cows.

I'm not a fan of Polaris, but orginally I actually thought I was going to buy that, considerring it size, speed, etc. What was the deciding factor for me? The way you get in/out of the UTV was big for me....that is a constant process on how I use a UTV. The way it sat when you drove it, the Polaris feels like a bus. Leg room (none of them have enough). How it handled, secure stable to me.

If I had to buy again right now....I'd review everyone on the market and DRIVE each one. Things change, and I would not be loyal to any single brand.

 

[ovrszd]

Can't speak for the Ranger 800 or 400, but I ride with two different ATV clubs with Polaris RZRs in each club. People in both clubs have had problems with some kind of plastic cage in the front drive that holds the bearings or something, and several have had to weld on reinforcements to the 2" receiver hitch on the rear after bending them...

However, I've heard less complaints about Polaris warranty coverage than Yamaha's YES warranty program -- but I don't know how much the local dealer is influencing either one... Haven't heard much either positive or negative about Kawasaki or Arctic Cat warranty coverage -- I personally know only one Prowler owner.

Given the cost of extended warranties, I chose to buy the factory manuals and do my own service.

You do raise an interesting point, though. The Rhino and Teryx have true, locking front differentials, while the Polaris Ranger and RZR do not. (Don't know about the Prowler.) The flipside is that the Ranger also has an open, lockable rear diff -- i.e. it has a turf mode that will cause less damage to your lawn. The Teryx and Rhino have the equivalent of a locked rear diff...

I'll not use the proper technical terms but the breakage you are talking about is similar to the cage in each wheel that holds the steel balls in place that engage that wheel on the ATVs. I'm not sure if the UTVs use that in each wheel or if they have one on the driveshaft assembly. It's activated by an electromagnet which moves the cage and causes the balls to come out of their little pockets and wad up between the driven axle and the undriven wheel hub. This wadding action creates 4wd. A similar system is used in a lot of different applications other than UTVs. Very troublesome design. In the case of the ATV it requires two electromagnets and two wiring circuits, one going to each front wheel. The design also has a mind of it's own and WILL engage with a sizeable difference in wheel speed between the front and rear wheels, i.e., doing 2wd donuts. That's when it gets ugly.

I know a guy that has a Prowler that he uses as a Utility vehicle. He's very abusive. His only complaint is axles, he's busted three. Otherwise it's holding up real well. I'd say that's a testiment to the durability since as I said, he's very abusive.

I read a small article about the open rear diff in the Ranger. I liked that. Especially when moving around on hard surfaces. I think it would prevent a lot of rear tire wear and stress on the axle shafts when carrying a load.

I miss my Kawasaki 650 Prairie ATV. It was a rock and I thought it was fast until they came out with the bigger bore versions. My Brother In Law bought a 700 (or maybe 750) Brute Force. Sitting still, butt flat on the seat, mash the throttle and it will do a wheely and you'll be scrambling to get forward over the bars. Made my 650 look like a pooch.

 

[jcmseven]

The biggest advantage I have seen to the Ranger I have is its engine performance. 55 mph is pretty fast in one of these machines, and my Ranger will do every bit of that. Polaris has done a lot to refine the Ranger. I looked at one before getting my XUV and thought they had a cheapish operator station and poor ergonomics. They have improved on both of those. I personally really wanted a bench seat as we frequently pile into the Ranger to ride our property. I think with the factory Power Steering, these machines are competitive as the best driving out there. That said, if you were to ask me to keep just one, it would be my XUV, mainly because what I do with it. It is a mule. It can pull about anything safe (or otherwise) in low range 4WD and has monster torque. It is just slow compared to the Ranger. Again, if this makes sense, I enjoy using my Ranger more day to day, but choosing just one, I would keep the XUV (diesel only though--the current gas models are weakish). Given that I have both in the garage right now, it is easy for me to make a direct comparison of at least those two machines. I have used/operated most of the others out there, but not to the hour extent of these.

John M