[QUOTE]Originally posted by Beancooker:
Well, your options are endless. I have a Polaris Razor S4 900 EPS. Hindsight is always 20/20, but I’ll get to that shortly. Make certain, I mean make absolutely certain it is something you really want. The resale value is truly awful. So buying one and then wanting to sell it, you’ll take a bath on it........ [QUOTE]



Beancooker. Good write up. I too am in the. Arndt for a side by side and was thinking about the Polaris RZR Rock and Trails addition. Your post was very helpful with the width and HP questions I had.

My issue is I enjoy riding my Yamaha Grizzly too much. My wife likes to ride but hurt her back so we sold her atv. That’s where the side by sliced comes into play. That way she can ride with me as the seats are better for her back. Having both would be tough and we just don’t have the room for both.

The seats in my Razor are okay. The heavily modded one I drove had aftermarket seats and they were damn fine. I’m pretty sure they were Dragonfire seats, but not positive. I can text Tanner and find out if you need.

But if the razor seats will do her better, an aftermarket seat will be awesome for her.

Have a 2011 Polaris Ranger 800 Crew and it is bad to the bone. I haven't found anything it won't do except get around in the tight woods. I believe it would climb a wall if I asked it nicely.

My In laws have a Kawakasaki Mule. It is newer but nowhere near as beefy as our Polaris. Probably only the 500cc model, or whatever the equivalent is. It rides a good bit smoother though, so if this is for tooling around the back 40, it would be a solid option.

quote:

Originally posted by Beancooker:
The seats in my Razor are okay. The heavily modded one I drove had aftermarket seats and they were damn fine. I’m pretty sure they were Dragonfire seats, but not positive. I can text Tanner and find out if you need.

But if the razor seats will do her better, an aftermarket seat will be awesome for her.

We got to drive a top of the line Turbo S this summer. The guy camping next to us had it and let us take it out. He upgraded the seats on it and said the same thing that the factory seats were okay but not as nice as the aftermarket seats.

I’m tempted to look at the Honda Talon as well. I like the idea of the drive shaft but need to see what aftermarket parts are available. The Polaris Ride Command looks to be a must.

Holy cow! The Honda Talon has popped up many times on this thread, so I just looked it up (I was unfamiliar with it). I'm blown away by the MSRP...its up there with some of the automobiles. It looks more like a "dune buggy" to me.
It's just like everything else, I'm sure...you can spend as much as you want to on these SxS's.

quote:

Originally posted by DrDan:
Am I the only one that read the thread title and immediately thought, "skip the side-by-side and go with an over/under?"

No. I've never heard "side-by-side" used in any other context.

flashguy

quote:

Originally posted by pawprintsdoc:
Holy cow! The Honda Talon has popped up many times on this thread, so I just looked it up (I was unfamiliar with it). I'm blown away by the MSRP...its up there with some of the automobiles. It looks more like a "dune buggy" to me.
It's just like everything else, I'm sure...you can spend as much as you want to on these SxS's.

The Talon is on the lower side of price point when comparing to a Polaris Razor or CanAm Maverick.

The first decision on a side-by-side is whether it is a working vehicle or a sport utility vehicle. Our choice was a working vehicle.

We have a Polaris Ranger -- the smaller 500cc unit, with one bench seat that fits 3 people. I lose track of time, but we've had it for at least 5 or 6 years. For 6 or 7 months of the year we keep it on our working cattle ranch in the eastern plains of Colorado. We have 400 acres, with a 50/50 split between open grazing pastures and thick ponderosa pine forests. The land is decidedly not flat, as it varies a least 200 feet in elevation between the highest and lowest parts. The soil is generally sandy and we have numerous small and large erosion gullies to deal with. Certain sections of the forested acres are so tight with mature pines that a Ford 3/4 ton truck cannot maneuver well between the trees -- but the smaller Ranger generally can.

What we use the Ranger for:
- Spraying weeds in the pastures. We tow a 60-gallon sprayer unit behind the UTV. We can area spray via a boom, or spot spray by hand.
- Support for digging weeds, when spraying doesn't work -- generally due to weather conditions.
- Hauling 3 people, chainsaws, and gear through the treed areas to fell & buck trees.
- Transport the hydraulic wood splitter to where the cut up wood lies.
- Transport a mid-sized trailer to the split wood, so the wood can be hauled home. The trailer holds about a cord, if the wood is packed in tightly.
- Haul cut pine tree trunks to plug up erosion gullies, for the trunks we don't cut up for firewood. We have towed trunks that probably weigh well over 1,000 pounds. We use a pickup truck for hauling the really big trunks.
- General travel across the land. Fixing fence, checking on the windmills, checking on the cattle.
- Towing a 3-blade gas mower. We frequently mow the native grass around the windmills, salt blocks, and certain pasture areas to control weeds.

We don't drive any faster than about 20 mph, even when we're on the 2 dirt roads on our land. High speed is not important to us. The Ranger climbs and descends some really steep grades. We don't trust it going sideways on steep grades -- I think it could tip sideways relatively easily.

We wish the gear shifter was a little more sophisticated in this Ranger. A separate parking brake would be nice, instead of just a "park" position in the shifter.

All things considered, this Ranger is one of the better investments we've made for the property.

Yamaha Viking series might be worth a look. About 62" wide and seats three. 700cc engine will take it over 50 mph (if you want to go that fast). Typical Yamaha quality heck I think they guarantee the belt for 10 years. Has a nice 4wd system, high/low range, engine breaking, double wishbone suspension F&R, actually very similar size, price, and specs to a Mule Pro MX only it has three seats with seatbelts rather than one bench seat with two seatbelts. https://www.yamahamotorsports....utility-side-by-side

They also have a longer, heavier 6 person version≤.

quote:

Originally posted by ugeesta:

My issue is I enjoy riding my Yamaha Grizzly too much. My wife likes to ride but hurt her back so we sold her atv. That’s where the side by sliced comes into play. That way she can ride with me as the seats are better for her back. Having both would be tough and we just don’t have the room for both.

To be honest with you a side by side is worse on your back than an ATV. With an ATV you can stand when the going gets a little rough and let your legs absorb some of the jolt. They do make suspension seats that help.

Anyhow I have a 2017 Polaris XP-900 and it's a beast. I was going to buy the 570 thinking I'm not going to be ripping around but I saw my neighbor and his wife coming up from the lake in our neighborhood and that thing sounded like it was really struggling.

I can't really give any advice on other SxS's since this is the only one I have ever owned or ridden. We now have 1024 miles on ours in two years and have only changed the oil and filter. In fairness I'm not doing anything too hardcore with it. It is really powerful and has pulled out some stumps and some large logs. Most of our riding is through fields, fire roads and woods riding. No rock climbing or mudding so far. I wanted one with a bed (Ranger) so I could use it to haul off leaves, branches and typical yard stuff out into the woods or I might have bought a Razor instead.

I have the power steering which is nice and depending on if you plan to use it in your yard it's nice to be able to unlock the rear-end. It has a 3 position switch on the dash and in 4wd the thing barely turns on concrete. Then you can unlock the front which is better but with both rear tires locked it will still tear up your yard. One more setting will only allow one rear tire to get power and that's perfect for concrete or if you don't want to tear up your yard.

quote:

Originally posted by Beancooker:
Back to the dust. When moving at 60, there isn’t a ton. But when doing 30 or so, the negative pressure (because of the full windshield, causes a backdraft of dust that is quite annoying. I will be cutting some holes in the windshield to add closeable vents.

. Not sure if you mentioned it or not but if you ride in dusty conditions with a front windshield a rear windshield is a must. It eliminates that weird buffeting sound and really cuts down on the negative back pressure which sucks in the dust.

Hello!

Many great responses and lots of details - thank you all very much!

Our friends said that we need to stay at or below 50” wide.

Yes, we have to register them in Wyoming.

I’m going to drift my own thread here ... should we consider two four wheelers instead?

Jim

quote:

Originally posted by Jim1970:
Hello!

Many great responses and lots of details - thank you all very much!

Our friends said that we need to stay at or below 50” wide.

Yes, we have to register them in Wyoming.

I’m going to drift my own thread here ... should we consider two four wheelers instead?

Jim

I would consider a dirt bike (two wheeler) over a 50” SxS. Seriously, if I had a 50”, I would have rolled it countless times by now. 60” is almost too narrow for my liking. That said we have a fair bit of trails that you have no choice but to battle sideways. If it was less than 60”, it would have been impassable.

It’s a shame that you have to stay with a narrow track. That limits the fun factor IMHO.

The ones you took out last weekend, those were all 50”?

quote:

Originally posted by Jim1970:
Hello!

Many great responses and lots of details - thank you all very much!

Our friends said that we need to stay at or below 50” wide.

Yes, we have to register them in Wyoming.

I’m going to drift my own thread here ... should we consider two four wheelers instead?

Jim

The narrowest side by side I'm aware of is Kawasaki's Mule 610 at 53". They have their limitations but I enjoyed mine for 6 years.

https://www.kawasaki.com/Produ...DETAILS#specs-scroll

*Note that I currently own a Kubota SSV-65 skid steer for personal ranch use from the same dealer and he is awesome.

Let me toss another brand and option in the mix.

I am currently in negotiations for a new 2018 Kubota XG-850 Sidekick. It is considered a "crossover" UTV, or as Kubota calls it and RTV (Rough Terrain Vehicle). Considering what you get from a manufacturer that I beleive to be extremely reliable, the XG-850 at 12,849 MSPR base model price seems a steal to me compared to other brands. With the exception of Honda's shaft drive, I found my comparison of the XG-850 to other work/sport UTVs has the Orange machine head and shoulders above for price to value. Also of note is the motor for the Kubota gas models is made by Subaru, another Japanese Co that is noted for reliability.

My current negotiations is the price for a 2018 machine should be pretty good since it's been on the lot for a while and the dealer admits he cant move them in this area VS the sport machines which are more popular.

Current deals on any "dealer inventory" from Kubota are very attractive. It's just motivating my dealer to move his unit.

I admit that one drawback to the Kubota machines is aftermarket accessories is not nearly as expansive as other machines, but I'm ok with that. I'm buying this as exactly what it is marketed as, sport/utility crossover. I am not in need of all the whizmogoizmos.



Just my $0.02

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Sigolicious,

quote:

Originally posted by ridewv:

quote:

Originally posted by Jim1970:
Hello!

Many great responses and lots of details - thank you all very much!

Our friends said that we need to stay at or below 50” wide.

Yes, we have to register them in Wyoming.

I’m going to drift my own thread here ... should we consider two four wheelers instead?

Jim

The narrowest side by side I'm aware of is Kawasaki's Mule 610 at 53". They have their limitations but I enjoyed mine for 6 years.

https://www.kawasaki.com/Produ...DETAILS#specs-scroll

There are multiple Polaris models that have a 50” width. CanAm and some other manufacturers also have 50” widths.
This is because there are a lot of trails that limit the width of any OHV to 50”.

quote:

Originally posted by DrDan:
Am I the only one that read the thread title and immediately thought, "skip the side-by-side and go with an over/under?"

I say go old school! A classic to put in your new trail ride!



See how I tied it all together?

When finances align, my wife wants side by side. Wants a four seater. Told her I will buy another Jeep first.... until she sent me a picture of the Yamaha wolverine x4 se. This will be my machine. Had my 6'3" son get in the back, he said he wouldn't want to ride in the back all day but it would be finest for a few hours. They are about two inches longer than the two seat Yamaha's. The four seat Polaris's are way too long for me, the Honda's seem too wide. Take a look at the x4 and see what you think.

I have '18 Ranger XP1000 3 seater that I use about like you will, with the exception mine carries a Boss V-plow in the winter. I chose the Polaris over the Can Am Defender solely due to price; I found a leftover 18 orphan the dealer was willing to deal on.

If I had to stay at a 50" width I'd dump the side by side idea and do the two 4 wheelers as you mentioned. Here in Mn. the state trails are not easy to decipher. A trail might be designated for Class II which would be UTV side by sides but all of a sudden you run into a narrow bridge you can't cross or or a patch of trees along side the trail that make the trail too narrow. It only has to be too narrow by a inch or two but too narrow is too narrow. If you're riding with other people it's decision time. Do they turn around with you or do you go back alone.

We stick to a lot of rural county roads and forestry roads and not so much the designated trails for this reason. We gave up snowmobiling years ago because you had to stick to designated trails. Problem there began when the machines got too fast. People would come flying around a blind curve just hoping they would meet no one. Had too many close calls for me. The ATV/UTV trails can be the same way. Alcohol of course is usually involved with these kings of the trail that feel the need to drift around every blind curve at 50mph.

One thing about side by sides the accessories are endless. You will spend a lot of money on aftermarket. 4 wheelers can be the same but not quite as bad. Here's mine with the plow and the ice fishing shelter.







And more accessories. The drag rake was my neighbors up at the lake that I borrowed but the disc plow was made for a ATV/UTV.