Name your favorite, your experience with it, and what you would do different.
Name your favorite, your experience with it, and what you would do different.
#RESIST
Are we talking shotguns here?
Ken
BBI: ...”you better not forget the safe word because shit's about to get weird”...
revchuck38: ...”mo' ammo is mo' betta' unless you're swimming or on fire.”
Purchased a Polaris Ranger 500 back in 2019 and have been pleased with it so far. Had a lot of experience with Polaris before that because of a family member who owned them for many many years and I would ride with him.
For doing chores on our little piece of property it's perfect. However if you're looking at riding for a longer period of time, operating on a bigger piece of land than one of the bigger models with power steering may come in more handy.
Going to be interesting however. The person who got me into polaris, the family member I mentioned above, has decided he's done with Polaris and is bought a Honda just a few weeks ago. Hasn't actually taken delivery of it yet. Can't wait to see how well it works in comparison.
I worked at an off road dealer for awhile. I fork lifted them out of trucks, helped assemble them, test drove them, washed them, photo'd them and marketed them online. Dealer for Polaris and Honda. We took all kinds of stuff in on trade though. I also test drove repaired vehicles for the service department.
Polaris is faster. Honestly, they'd be my preference if I was buying. Regardless if it was a Ranger for utility work or a RZR for fun. Although sport SxS aren't really my thing, the RZR Turbo S is insane. I hit 70MPH on a trail with one in nothing flat. Really don't care for the Dynamix suspension. It feels less consistent and it's harder to tell how close you are to a roll over if turning with counter steering at speed. I put a RXR Turbo on two wheels at around 35MPH and put it back down with no issue. I watched an inexperienced salesman roll over a RZR Turbo too. The RZR Turbo will burn to the ground if you leave it running in any kind of roll over. While I worked at the dealer for 2.5 years we had 3 come in. Polaris reps show up, keep it hush hush, and then take it home to study. The owner gets a new ride under warranty. If you're a mudblogger the belt drive can slip off and be a pain in the ass. Bogging was never really my thing either, seemed like asking to ruin expensive stuff. Regardless any brand with a huge lift kit and oversized tires will have a turn radius that becomes nearly unusable.
Honestly, if I was buying today I would only buy a Polaris. Not from the place I worked, but a Polaris none the less.
Honda is driveshaft and more water resistant. Their utility oriented stuff shifts like shit. It will go do what you want, but generally speaking they shift odd and there isn't a fix I'm aware of. The sport stuff isn't as fast as the Polaris, but handles smooth and feels consistent. I distinctly remember the first Honda Talon I forklifted out of a trailer and helped assemble. They are awesome machines, and while not as fast as the RZR they are competing against, they are honestly great machines. It's odd that the Talons can shift so well when the Honda Pioneers are so shitty. No idea. There was some talk about people trying to turbo charge the Talon, but the Honda Red Level Mechanic we had told me he thought that was stupid. It could be done, but he didn't think the machines would handle it well. Overall, he scared the absolute shit out of me showing me what the Launch mode Talon could do.
Other brands I drove were used, and most really were not as nice as the Polaris and Honda stuff. Even when they were brand new trades. Can-am sucks in particular. They came in for repair all the time. Yamaha stuff came in too, but not as often. They were never up to the Polaris quality in my mind.
If I had land, a Polaris Ranger 1000 would be my pick.
We've got a Kubota diesel UTV for our center maintenance guys. Not the fastest thing, but it works.
"You win 100% of the fights you avoid. If you're not there when it happens, you don't lose." - William Aprill
"I've owned a guitar for 31 years and that sure hasn't made me a musician, let alone an expert. It's made me a guy who owns a guitar."- BBI
Nope. If we were I'd be all over that. As it is, I'll hide and watch.Originally Posted by HeavyDuty
Last edited by Borderland; 02-12-2024 at 10:14 PM.
In the P-F basket of deplorables.
I know very little on them but needed one for utility work. Bought an Intimidator from a local place to me. 2023 close out model. Basic. Put a plow on it this winter. Tossed on a light bar. Now a gun rack (see new post). Dog likes it. Wife can drive it. That’s about my extent of knowledge base. Around here there’s all kinds...Honda’s, Yamahas, diesel Kubotas (pricey) CanAms (I’ve seen his on a trailer a few times). I tried doing research over the years and it read like a “Ford/Chevy/Dodge debate”. I just ended up rolling the dice with a local dealer who promised and has given good support.
Interested in what everyone has to say and keeping my fingers crossed...lol
Working diligently to enlarge my group size.
Polaris Ranger for work/utility/. Polaris RZR for fun/adventure.
Yamaha makes good stuff and so does Kawasaki. Honda used to be leading edge but today impresses me as grandpa's rig (and I'm 76 years old).
Yamaha wolverine X4 XTR in 850cc. Have had it since 2021. I bought it because of the reputation for being the quietest UTV on the market and the short wheelbase, and the Yamaha quality reputation.
Even being known as quiet you have to understand that UTVs are inherently loud machines at higher speeds/rpms because the motor sits right by you or under you only separated by plastic.
The machine fits in the garage or on my 12 foot trailer with room to spare and also can carry 4 full size adults on trails where only ATVs typically fit. I understand they are good for eastern states with tighter wooded trails even though I'm a Utah high desert dweller.
Have had zero issues taking it everywhere I dare to go with the exception of extreme rock crawling or super steep long sand dune climbs as it's no turbo rzr. But for a family trail truckster it has been fantastic.
If there is one hated item I have it is the short maintenance interval for the ultramatic CVT transmission. You have to dig in and clean, grease and inspect the clutch sheaves every 1600 miles or bad things will happen if neglected. Otherwise pretty solid engineering.
That's how I buy stuff that costs more than a mortgage payment. It's really nice if the guy you bought it from goes to the same church that you do.
In the P-F basket of deplorables.
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