Opinions on UTV's

[ehenry]

Now that I've got the youngun educated and out on his own with a job, I've decided to upgrade from an atv/4-wheeler to a UTV/side-by-side. I've looked at whats available locally which is John Deere Gator, Honda, Polaris, Kawasaki and Yamaha. I've pretty much ruled the Yamaha Rhino out due to bed size and its not a full bench seat. I REALLY REALLY like the full size Polaris Ranger 800 XP. Several friends have Polaris UTV's and they have been really pleased with them. I've been around the Kawasaki Mule's and they're a good machine just a little cost prohibitive but really not much more than the Ranger. I can't speak for the JD Gator or Honda since I dont know anybody that has one and can offer an opinion on them.

Any of yall have any wisdom you would care to impart on any of the machines I mentioned above?

 

[sccatfish]

Re: Opinions on UTV's

I've never owned one but I've looked before, and always decided on the Polaris Ranger, but I just can't justify the cost for no more than I'll use it considering the ground I can cover with the pickup (plus the pickup is quieter) and we also have tractors doing what the pickup can't.

If you're just mainly using it for transportation and not too much hauling or work, I'd look at the Bad Boy Buggies. They have one that's gas on one axle and electric on the other. Not sure how much I like that but it gives you the power and distance of gas and you can be quiet with the electric and use both for 4WD if needed.

I do know a guy that's had several and he likes the ranger the best.

 

[matt167]

Re: Opinions on UTV's

Kubota RTV's are pretty nice also. Most of the models are Diesel so they are very easy on fuel. I used an older Kubota a couple years back my employer had rented it. Had a cab, turn signals heater/defroster. I think it could have been road legal but I'm not sure. Great workhorse. IIRC the bed was hydraulic dump also.

 

[Fleetwin]

Re: Opinions on UTV's

I thought about buying one but decided:

1. Way to expensive.
2. You need a trailer to get it anywhere.
3. Storage issues, with above.

I bought an old Jeep CJ-5. It will go anywhere a "Ute" will go-almost. Width might be an issue. 1/4 the price.

Plus, no trailer needed. If I'm going a long way, I tow it with a bumper mounted hitch. Throw the transfer case into nuetral, unlock the hubs, and get on down the highway. No loading, no storage issues. Easy.

Parts are cheap and it is easy to work on for anyone that has any automotive repair capability.

 

[babbot]

Re: Opinions on UTV's

We have a diesel gator about 2 years old now. It rides great and very economical on fuel. Its a bit pricey in my opinion. Its a "no frills" machine. It would be nice to at least have light in the cab or the dash light up... it has headlights but no dash lights. go figure.
I would look hard at the polaris and Kabota but the JD is a solid running machine. Also depends how your using it. big difference in price and performance with gas and diesel. If speed is your thing the gas was something like 15-20 mph faster than the diesel. They have some new models that look sportier maybe not great for work.

 

[ehenry]

Re: Opinions on UTV's

I will be using the machine to primarily as a hunting machine. I'm not sure how many of you are familiar with the Mississippi delta and the gumbo mud in the delta. There are times that gumbo isnt that bad then there are times when its pure hell to deal with. My hunting camp is in the delta and is a lease from Anderson-Tully Timber Co. When the roads are wet we are required to park our trucks on a parking lot and use wheelers and UTV's to get to and from the camp which is an 8 mile ride one way. When its cold, dark, wet and raining its a miserable ride on a wheeler.

A couple guys had the Kubota machines over at the camp. Kubotas are fine machines but were not designed for use in MS delta gumbo. They are designed for hard ground. I've spent an entire day helping a guy with a Kubota get from our camp back to the parking lot because the gumbo got tacky and balled up on his machine and stopped it. We had no shovels of any kind and had to use sticks to dig the mud off the machine so it would roll. Had the Kubota been able to spin the tires up to fling the mud off he might not have had as bad a problem.

What I've seen with the Polaris is they have the best ride, good size cargo box, a full bench seat to haul 3 folks if need be, and the power to spin the tires up if need be. Speed is not what I'm looking for just the power to be there if I need to call on it. They seem to be holding up at well mechanically. One of our members in known for being rough on his equipment and a Ranger has held up under him for 5 years and hasn't had to have any major repairs.

 

[babbot]

Re: Opinions on UTV's

Whatever machine you decide on. Make sure you get the proper tires for your environment. That will make all the difference. I the tires on our JD are not very good for off road. The work okay but not great for mud.

 

[nwcove]

Re: Opinions on UTV's

a good friend of mine lost all his toys in a garage fire...he was running a diesel gator. insurance money finally came through and he replaced the gator with a high end can-am side by side. the thing is a beast! it has three different keys, one to limit power/speed for newbies, one to use if you are using it as a workhorse....and one that lets you use it as a toy. big power, great handling but only two seats ( the seats are comparable to most performance car buckets tho). big bucks, but it does have tons of bells and whistles.

 

[BlkY2k]

Re: Opinions on UTV's

101hp, 14" of travel, Plus it just looks mean. Can-Am Maverick
Exclusive Look At Can-Am Maverick Features - YouTube

 

[sean mathews]

Re: Opinions on UTV's

i would just buy an old jeep or suzuki samaruai less money street legal and the got heaters.

 

[ehenry]

Re: Opinions on UTV's

Believe me, if I could use a truck druing the season I would but ATCO, the folks that own the property, wont allow trucks on their roads when they are wet. I have an 86 toyota 4x4 that will go basically anywhere but when its wet on the lease it has to stay in the parking lot.

We dont have a Can-Am dealer down here that I'm aware of and I've never seen one used over where we are so I'll have to pass on one of those.....not saying there is anything wrong with them but just haven't seen one in action or have a dealership close by.

 

[nwcove]

Re: Opinions on UTV's

heres another option....if yer more into versatility rather than speed. ( bad for rolling tires off rims tho...skid steer). these things are used by our local electric utility to get to remote lines, and by search and rescue teams. with the tracks they are next to unstoppable , and they do have a spot to mount a small ob motor for fishing. comparable price, maybe cheaper, to most side by sides.

argo compaired to four wheeler and huv - YouTube

 

[BlkY2k]

Re: Opinions on UTV's

Believe me, if I could use a truck druing the season I would but ATCO, the folks that own the property, wont allow trucks on their roads when they are wet. I have an 86 toyota 4x4 that will go basically anywhere but when its wet on the lease it has to stay in the parking lot.

We dont have a Can-Am dealer down here that I'm aware of and I've never seen one used over where we are so I'll have to pass on one of those.....not saying there is anything wrong with them but just haven't seen one in action or have a dealership close by.

Got a Arctic Cat dealer? Arctic Cat 2013 Wildcat 1000

 

[ehenry]

Re: Opinions on UTV's

I'm not interested in a machine like the Arctic Cat Wildcat. Its along the lines of the Polaris Razor and its designed for speed and play. Besides, we had a camp memeber that had an Arctic Cat 4-wheeler and he had quite a few problems with it over the years he had it.

 

[MTboatguy]

Re: Opinions on UTV's

They will let side by sides on the road when wet, but not a Jeep? Thats weird, you can tear up a hell of allot of real estate with a ATV type vehicle, I know the local timber company land that I hunt has banned the UTV/ATV crowd because they were tearing things up so bad!

 

[dockwrecker]

Re: Opinions on UTV's

Do whatever you have to do to get a Can Am. Really. Most durable beast out there.
I had a diesel Gator and it was so-so. Wouldn't go there again. I guess if you must pick from the others probably the Polaris.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Opinions on UTV's

I had a great time today driving the Kawi Teryx 750 FI today. I was impressed with the way it handled and how easy it was to drive as compared to my 700 King Quad (Highly modified )

It was nimble enough, quick enough and powerful to get the job done.

 

[glenn property of pam]

Re: Opinions on UTV's

we have the slow jd's at work and im not impressed as they are always having problems and there not that old. like all toys if you play hard it wont take long to break something so consider the cost of parts before decieding

 

[matt167]

Re: Opinions on UTV's

Had an old 6x4 gator at my old job. It was from when the Gator first came out and before the "UTV" was popular. Basically a 6x4 golf cart with flotation tires. Not bad. Slow but did lots of work and took a ton of abuse from people who didn't give a crap. Eventually so much abuse had taken it's toll on the trans and it would no longer move forward, so it got put in the junk pile. It was only 5-6 years old when that happened.

 

[ehenry]

Re: Opinions on UTV's

Well, I pulled the trigger on a Polaris 800 HO Firday. Got it home that afternoon. I shopped several Polaris dealers all within 50 miles of the house and the dealer closest to me, 15 miles away, beat the cheapest price I got by $200. They were initially $300 higher than the lowest price I'd been quoted. I told them I would buy from them if the would beat the other price I'd been quoted and they did.

I almost went to the camp with it this weekend but I wanted to ride it arond the place here to put a mile or 3 on it to check for leaks and such. Opening weekend is this coming Saturday. Better to find it here rather than 15 miles in the swamp. So far everything is dry.