Side by side UTV's

[ovrszd]

I have a buddy who has a 20k polaris.

Why not just buy a beater old Toyota

ultrarunner has it going on. Sami's are the best investment for a 2 seater 4x4.

 

[ultrarunner]

There should be a law against calling a Patriot a Jeep. They are a total piece of crap, cheap butt, tin can car.

Alamo and others here are flooded with Patriots in the rental fleet...

My cousin picked one up two weeks ago and will have 2400 miles on it by tomorrow... SF, Vegas, Death Valley, Grand Canyon, San Diego, LA, Santa Barbara and even took it for a spin on Pismo Beach...

I do like my Sami a lot and have been asked many times to sell... nope!

 

[Piston]

I would purchase the Honda right now if I was ready to buy. I've sat in a lot of them and liked the pioneer 1000-5 the best as far as ergonomics and features. I didn't want to take it for a ride in fear of actually buying it when I wasn't ready

With two little boys I think the flip up seats would be fantastic. They loved climbing around it.

I think Honda nailed it with that 1000.

 

[2ndhalf]

I would purchase the Honda right now if I was ready to buy. I've sat in a lot of them and liked the pioneer 1000-5 the best as far as ergonomics and features. I didn't want to take it for a ride in fear of actually buying it when I wasn't ready

With two little boys I think the flip up seats would be fantastic. They loved climbing around it.

I think Honda nailed it with that 1000.

You should certainly buy that for those little BOYS :thumbsup:

 

[airbiscuit]

The Arctic Cat trail is a 50" wide machine and thus will be allowed on all park trails and state areas since it's no wider than most full size 4 wheels.

It has a lower center of gravity and drives great. It's sporty and faster than most all side by sides.

Not really a work machine but a winch can be added and the small bed on the back is plenty for a days worth or gear and being a little smaller it fits on any 5x10 trailer or a long bed pickup with gate down.

If you want utility AC makes a great prowler as well.

I love my AC Trail and it's super easy to drive and is rocket fast and has great suspension and won't beat you up.

The dash had a nice digital display with lots of info available. View attachment 483714

It also fits inside my van!
View attachment 483715

I have an Arctic Cat Prowler 650 XT. It has been horrible. They have weak transmissions. I had to replace the whole engine/transmission unit. I asked my motorcycle who makes the best UTVs. He said any of the Japanese or the new Polaris.
I

 

[westcliffe01]

I have been pretty happy with my Kubota RTV 500. It is underpowered and does not have a lot of ground clearance and given the fact that the gas pedal only controls the HST, it has some quirks for getting up hills. The design seemed to have been rushed. It has a huge hood and the way the hood is hinged it interferes with a rigid windshield. That is why the factory glass winshield has a vinyl "skirt" at the bottom... The only reason the hood moves is to access the brake cylinder, they could have done all that much better given the fact that they have had diesel powered UTV's forever which have proper cabs. There used to be a full cab with "real" doors for it, but it was recalled due to fumes from the engine compartment getting into the cab through a myriad of leak points, not least being the tilt up bench seat base. Engine access is very poor due to the mid engine layout.

Having said all that, the transmission is perfect for steep and rocky property. Speed was never an issue for me as it was never going to be a toy. The fuel economy is staggering. I have driven it from 9am through 4pm at 10 000ft in the rockies going up and down mountains and then it would take 2 gal of gas to top off the tank back at base. It is regularly used for pulling a hay rake during hay season, one just has to keep the radiator guard clean and not allow too much chaff to build up on top of the engine. With front and rear hitch and winch it serves to park loaded hay wagons in the barn using the front hitch, far more intuitive that trying to back a trailer in with a tractor. Everyone has driven it, including kids although it usually stays in low range for them....

I am planning on getting tracks for it to solve wintertime snow limitations. If there is more than 6-8" of snow on the ground it will build up under the engine subframe until you no longer have any traction. Tracks are a $4000-5000 investment, but I would get a lot more use out of them than a snowmobile. And I need doors. Not the cloth zipper type doors but something that one can open and close like the original doors before they were recalled.

The number of UTV's have proliferated dramatically, but in my opinion, except for people living on flat ground, most of the new ones are toys for teenagers at new car prices. Few are really suited to doing any real work or for steep and rocky terrain. I would not like to do a long steep gravel descent in one of the belt driven models where one is 100% relying on the brakes every step of the way....

 

[ArlyA]

Our Can-am has real doors and a cab. Its CVT drive is just like a manual transmission and will not cost free while operating it down hill. It cost us much, much, more than 10K but you couldn't trade us for a Geo tracker, Patriot Jeep or a Suzuki Samurai. Its 1000cc V twin does have towing torque and HP.

Its review can be had here. http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/atvs-utility-vehicles/355357-can-am-2016-defender-hd10.html

I have been pretty happy with my Kubota RTV 500. It is underpowered and does not have a lot of ground clearance and given the fact that the gas pedal only controls the HST, it has some quirks for getting up hills. The design seemed to have been rushed. It has a huge hood and the way the hood is hinged it interferes with a rigid windshield. That is why the factory glass winshield has a vinyl "skirt" at the bottom... The only reason the hood moves is to access the brake cylinder, they could have done all that much better given the fact that they have had diesel powered UTV's forever which have proper cabs. There used to be a full cab with "real" doors for it, but it was recalled due to fumes from the engine compartment getting into the cab through a myriad of leak points, not least being the tilt up bench seat base. Engine access is very poor due to the mid engine layout.

Having said all that, the transmission is perfect for steep and rocky property. Speed was never an issue for me as it was never going to be a toy. The fuel economy is staggering. I have driven it from 9am through 4pm at 10 000ft in the rockies going up and down mountains and then it would take 2 gal of gas to top off the tank back at base. It is regularly used for pulling a hay rake during hay season, one just has to keep the radiator guard clean and not allow too much chaff to build up on top of the engine. With front and rear hitch and winch it serves to park loaded hay wagons in the barn using the front hitch, far more intuitive that trying to back a trailer in with a tractor. Everyone has driven it, including kids although it usually stays in low range for them....

I am planning on getting tracks for it to solve wintertime snow limitations. If there is more than 6-8" of snow on the ground it will build up under the engine subframe until you no longer have any traction. Tracks are a $4000-5000 investment, but I would get a lot more use out of them than a snowmobile. And I need doors. Not the cloth zipper type doors but something that one can open and close like the original doors before they were recalled.

The number of UTV's have proliferated dramatically, but in my opinion, except for people living on flat ground, most of the new ones are toys for teenagers at new car prices. Few are really suited to doing any real work or for steep and rocky terrain. I would not like to do a long steep gravel descent in one of the belt driven models where one is 100% relying on the brakes every step of the way....

 

[EddieWalker]

I would purchase the Honda right now if I was ready to buy. I've sat in a lot of them and liked the pioneer 1000-5 the best as far as ergonomics and features. I didn't want to take it for a ride in fear of actually buying it when I wasn't ready

With two little boys I think the flip up seats would be fantastic. They loved climbing around it.

I think Honda nailed it with that 1000.

I haven't actually been in a Honda, but the biggest issue I had with it was that the back seats are where the bed is. You either have back seats, or a bed, not both at the same time. For me, that's a huge deal breaker. Usually I have my Mule set up with the back seats folded up and the bed as big as possible. A bigger bed would be even better!!! But when we have friends over, the back seats are down and there is always something in the bed that we are hauling around.

 

[nybirdman]

I have been pretty happy with my Kubota RTV 500. It is underpowered and does not have a lot of ground clearance and given the fact that the gas pedal only controls the HST, it has some quirks for getting up hills. The design seemed to have been rushed. It has a huge hood and the way the hood is hinged it interferes with a rigid windshield. That is why the factory glass winshield has a vinyl "skirt" at the bottom... The only reason the hood moves is to access the brake cylinder, they could have done all that much better given the fact that they have had diesel powered UTV's forever which have proper cabs. There used to be a full cab with "real" doors for it, but it was recalled due to fumes from the engine compartment getting into the cab through a myriad of leak points, not least being the tilt up bench seat base. Engine access is very poor due to the mid engine layout.

Having said all that, the transmission is perfect for steep and rocky property. Speed was never an issue for me as it was never going to be a toy. The fuel economy is staggering. I have driven it from 9am through 4pm at 10 000ft in the rockies going up and down mountains and then it would take 2 gal of gas to top off the tank back at base. It is regularly used for pulling a hay rake during hay season, one just has to keep the radiator guard clean and not allow too much chaff to build up on top of the engine. With front and rear hitch and winch it serves to park loaded hay wagons in the barn using the front hitch, far more intuitive that trying to back a trailer in with a tractor. Everyone has driven it, including kids although it usually stays in low range for them....

I am planning on getting tracks for it to solve wintertime snow limitations. If there is more than 6-8" of snow on the ground it will build up under the engine subframe until you no longer have any traction. Tracks are a $4000-5000 investment, but I would get a lot more use out of them than a snowmobile. And I need doors. Not the cloth zipper type doors but something that one can open and close like the original doors before they were recalled.

The number of UTV's have proliferated dramatically, but in my opinion, except for people living on flat ground, most of the new ones are toys for teenagers at new car prices. Few are really suited to doing any real work or for steep and rocky terrain. I would not like to do a long steep gravel descent in one of the belt driven models where one is 100% relying on the brakes every step of the way....

The Yamaha's are belt driven and the best engine breaking feature made.Polaris ruined everyone thinking on belt driven UTV's.

 

[westcliffe01]

Well, those doors are certainly nice. It does not look like Kubota will be re-visiting the door issue, I will probably have to make my own.

Regarding the shed in your review. If you had fitted some 3/8" x 4" steel flat bar skids to the floor skids it would actually glide over gravel. The other thing is that the tow coupling needs to be as short as possible and try to get 12" of rise to the attachment point on the UTV. That way when you pull, it lifts the front side of the structure, this helps prevent digging in.

Of course when all else fails there is still the regular tractor...

I paid $6500 for my Kubota with 90 hours on it. Those CanAm UTV's are pricey as heck.

Our Can-am has real doors and a cab. Its CVT drive is just like a manual transmission and will not cost free while operating it down hill. It cost us much, much, more than 10K but you couldn't trade us for a Geo tracker, Patriot Jeep or a Suzuki Samurai. Its 1000cc V twin does have towing torque and HP.

Its review can be had here. http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/atvs-utility-vehicles/355357-can-am-2016-defender-hd10.html