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N.D | thinking about purchasing a new UTV. Advice welcome .Choose between a 900 polaris ranger ,or a Honda Pioneer ,or Artic Cats equivilant. |
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Nw Oregon | Cant comment on the other three brands but we bought a kubota 900 diesel this year and have been very pleased. had the pipe crew running it all summer and its still running strong. one summer with our crew is probably the equivalent of 150,000 miles. |
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North of Iowa | Polaris owns the side by side business for a reason, the rest have been followers. |
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Nebo, Kentucky | I'm in the minority here, but I really like my big red. |
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Southern Illinois | drive them all. base it on ride quality, operator comfort, ease of entry/exit, aftermarket accessories (polaris owns this), needed top speed, cargo box size, seating arrangements (bucket vs bench). I have a CIH scout xl which is a club car xrt 1550. For around the farm it is great, rides good, has good pulling power, bed is large, easy to operate with AWD, maintenance is a breeze. When you get on the road though 22 MPH is not fast enough for me. Also you are pretty limited on cab options as well. A basic vinyl is $500, canvas with latch type doors is $3500, and a solid glass top of the line cab is $3500. The other machines have a canvas option in the 1000-1500 range. They are all decent machines but as 69 said polaris owns the business, especially with the new 900 (if you get a ranger get the 900). I have a two friends with Honda big red's and they really like them and what little I have driven them they are ok. The arctic cats are ok but are kind of jerky in the clutch when you take off. The downside around HERE on the Kubota's is they sink like a rock in mud but all the power steering and hyd bed are appealing. I am not a fan of the diesel models as they are really noisy. these are the same as pickups and tractors, everyone likes something a little different. good luck. |
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Boone, Iowa | I have only been around Polaris Rangers an John Deere Gators. Like the Rangers features a lot better. Went and test drove the 900 Ranger and then the 800 Ranger. Couldn't get off the 800 quick enough. Came home with a 900. |
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West Union, Illinois | I have a 610XC Mule. Other than the top speed (24 MPH) I am very pleased with it. I have a friend who used his Polaris more like a pickup. He puts several thousand miles a year on it working with irrigators and drives several miles between them. I know a couple guys who bought Honda's and wouldn't even consider anything else. I'm telling you all that to tell you this: Ignore everyone's opinion. Spend a little time with each one and think about how you will use it. Is getting in and out easily important? Or is it more important to you to be inside a roll cage? Is road speed an issue or are you probably not going to be going that fast that often? What will you be hauling or using it for?
One display at FPS had UTV's with various setups: fuel or water tanks, tool boxes, etc. Our Fire Dept mutual aid system has several Polaris 6x6's with 50 gallon tanks, pumps, and hoses to use for woodland firefighting. These are extreme examples, but the way you might use it needs to be considered. For instance the 6x6 would be lousy for my day to day use. But if my needs were carrying cargo or equipment to hard to access places it might be just what I need. I'll give an example and add a photo. I had some CRP to reseed. I bolted Dad's old clover seeder in the bed, tarp strapped a battery in to run it, and hose clamped an Outback S-Lite GPS to the roll cage. If I had a plastic cargo box the might have been more difficult. edit: I added some more photos. Yes, the roof is custom built. I'm cheap and don't care if it isn't stylish. The aluminum tubes across the front of the bed let me strap in a 15 gallon sprayer and still carry a toolbox, etc. Or 2 ratchet straps hold a 50 gallon tank (I think off a 494 JD planter originally) so my wife can water her new planted trees in dry weather.
Edited by Mike SE IL 9/7/2013 07:35
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East Central Iowa | We had an arctic cat 700 hdx. Fr some reason they can make a sled that will start at -20 degrees, but couldn't get r side by side to start when it was 30 out. Finally got fed up this spring and got a Polaris 900 Xp and love it. Was hard to swallow when the Polaris showed up since we've always ads cats, but in my mind now they make the best side by side. |
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Dearfield Co. | The only thing that would prevent me from buying the ranger over the rest is the width--------If you absolutely need to be able to go down 30 inch rows the Rhino and possibly the smallest ranger would be your choices
By looking at them the CanAm should be a good one as well but people dont seem to have the best reviews on them |
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Indiana | Guess I will be part of the minority as well. I am a Gator man myself. I have a 2011 855D diesel. It has the high back bucket seats and glass cab. This is my second diesel gator and both have been great machines. First off, the yanmar diesel, is VERY fuel efficient. It has the largest bed in the industry and a lot of cool accessories you can add. I tend to make my own accessories though. It only goes 35mph, but it is plenty fast to go from farm to farm. I will admit that the Polaris does have more leg room, but around here we don't have a Polaris dealer very close. And our JD dealer is great on service. |
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southern mn | Just got a Bobcat 3600 yesterday. It is made by Polaris with an $1100 rebate, hydrostatic drive, straddles 30inch rows 42"inside to inside, diesel engine, 1200lbs payload, 2000lbs towing, no shifting forward to rev top speed 30ish. For bare bones , just over $13,000 I added plastic roof elec dump & front hitch for $900. same as a Polaris Brutus.. Drive one |
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S.E. Iowa | I like a good Jeep wrangler , pick up a good used one for $2500- 5000 dollars does more than your side by sides will ever do |
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Leesburg, Ohio | You won't win any friends on this board if you do anything but slobber all over a Polaris. Even tho I "bleed green" I happen to like my Kubota alot. But I agree with Mike above. Ignore everyone here and make up your own mind after trying some and thinking about your needs. |
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Northeast Nebraska | I wouldn't buy a Polaris four wheeler, but there ranger are the best side by side on the market. Love mine would never go back to four wheel. |
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Lee Co | for work top speed 23 mph a kubota 1140 is our favorite. seats 2 or 4 with a big or small adjustable box. very handy and versatile |
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Nebo, Kentucky | Hard to find a jeep under $8,000 around here anymore.
If you find a good 97 or newer for less than $5,000 let me know, please. |
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Texas | I'm looking also. I've owned two Yamaha Rhino's with "zero" problems. (4500 miles each) They started the side x side market and owned it for years. That being said, the rhino is old technology and is being replaced by the Viking. I like the looks of it, but i'm disappointed they didn't make more changes. I have owned many Polaris 4 wheeler's and said I would never own another Polaris, but the 900XP looks like a nice machine.
I have pretty much made my mind up to get the Honda Pioneer, but I have yet to see one in person. I'm looking for dependability and versatility, which the Pioneer has with the four passenger seating. The Polaris 4 passenger is just to long. I like the Teryx 4 seater, but it has to small a bed. It isn't a big deal to most, but I have to have one with doors, because of the way I use it to work on sprinkler nozzles...without doors the water sprays right in on your legs.
I think you would be happy with any of those three models...I would go drive them and let that be the deciding factor. For me right now the Honda wins because of dependability, price, and features. |
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NE SD | These new 900 Polaris ride and drive great but I can't help but think they will be a maintenance nightmare when they get older. I do not think they are built to be a long lasting machine. A friend of mine has 2 Polaris and they are a few years old and they use them on a construction site. They are constantly giving trouble and horribly unreliable when they get some use and age on them. For the price they get for these things they should be much better built IMO. |
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SOUTHEAST IN | heard the polaris was no holding up well,,,bought a honda big red, love it so far ,has shaft drive and plenty of power only negative its alittle hard getting on and off compared to my mule. |
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Strasburg North Dakota | I am no fan of anything Polaris but when I test drove the 900 Ranger it was no question the machine I wanted . I have 3 Kawasaki Mules that do the heavy work., but I like the ride and speed of the Ranger. I had a 700 Ranger before and boy, what an improvement they made in the 900. With only a $1700 difference between the 800 and the 900, the 900 is a no brainer in my opinion. |
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Southern Alberta Canada | RKF - 9/6/2013 23:14
Cant comment on the other three brands but we bought a kubota 900 diesel this year and have been very pleased. had the pipe crew running it all summer and its still running strong. one summer with our crew is probably the equivalent of 150,000 miles.
LOL Sounds like your pipe crew is related to our ranch crew :) |
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South-central Nebraska | I've had a Polaris 700 and am on my second 800. The 900 is very nice but was over $2000 more than the 800. My old windshield and roof fit the 800 but not the new 900 so I went with another 800. My dealer told me that they consider 4000 miles on an UTV to be equal to that of 100,000 on a pickup. I know mine are hard miles, many of them in mud, cornstalks or loaded up.
I will go with a 900 next time and will start with new accessories. I only keep my Rangers two years/4000 miles. |
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Fairbury, NE (Southeast) | +1 |
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bossier city LA | 1+ |
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| We are happy with our 2012 Kawasaki Teryx, we have 3 in the family no issues, serviceability is a bit of a downer, have to remove a skid plate to change oil in engine.
Other than that though no complaints. |
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| I've noticed that this board is very Polaris friendly. When I decided I was going to buy a side by side, I weighed every option available in this area before purchasing. All of my friends (and I mean everyone that hunts, fishes, or farms) drive Polaris Rangers, (500's to 900's) and after spending quite some time on them the last few years, my mind was made up it would probably be the LAST side by side I would purchase for myself. Here's where the argument begins.. And i'll show you all the hand i'm playing with right out of the gate.. I WORK for a John Deere dealership. But I gave them all a chance before I purchased. If I was going to spend umpteen thousand dollars of MY own money on a big boy toy, I was going to make it worth it. So YES, I did research more than just green and yellow. My experience with the Rangers, they're hot, noisy, have pi$$ poor charging systems that the battery goes dead on if you try to run a winch for an extended period, they can't haul more than a case of beer in their box (good for some people) they're not short guy friendly (did I mention that already) and don't even get me started on that charging system if i'm gonna try and use one to run a blade to plow snow with it at rental properties (which I did for a winter with an 800 browning edition) you've got to stop half way through to recharge the battery (The 825I Gator has a true 75 amp alternator with a real automotive sized battery, noble concept I know) or you'll be dead in your tracks. i'm a short guy, so the seat height was terrible for me on Polaris Rangers, my feet would dangle an inch or two above the floor boards if I sat back in the seat like you're supposed to. but I LOVED the tilt steering column in the Ranger. Power steering is a mute argument at this point because almost every manufacturer anymore is going to it standard. The Arctic Cats, didn't have enough room all around, And personally the Kubotas look like something grandpa would love to have, But they are a heck of a workhorse, can't deny that. The can-am, was just too much in one what felt like tiny package and I didn't like that either, but it did have good power. Wasn't really interested in a Kawasaki, or a Yamaha and we don't have a dealer close by for a Honda. I wanted something that had comfort, something that could haul the mail, and a dog and my 2 brothers and myself and our gear out to a duck blind in the middle of a 2,500 backwater marsh during duck season. I wanted something I could play with in the mud, throw a sprayer in the back at the farm and go control weeds, but still drive around town on a sunday afternoon. When it came down to it, the 825I Gator really was the best choice in my opinion. It's got twice the bed of almost every competitive brand on the market, power dump box as well, I like their camo as well, it's got way more power than I envisioned, and it's pulled it's fair share of Rangers and four wheelers out of tough spots in the last year, WITHOUT a winch and all while my feet were comfortably on the floor board where they belong! My complaint with the Gator, the clutch housing is not exactly water tight like they claim (at least it wasn't on mine) and I got passed by one of my friends in an 800 Ranger as he pushed a wave of water to the headlights while I sat with a soaked belt. Strike one! But thats been my only strike in a year. It is literally unstoppable! Except I still have to hear the joke that "your Gator will literally go through anything, just as long there's no water around!" That issue has since been corrected, it was an assembly issue at the factory where the seal on the mid plate at the bellhousing wasn't installed correctly. And even though I work for the dealership, it was taken care of promptly with a smile, because, those things are supposed to be handled that way. Unlike the NON warm fuzzy feeling I get every time I walk into a Polaris dealership within 50 miles of where I live. Outside of that little water thing, which you can probably tell still burns my ass today (mostly because I got shown up by someone else that day) I don't think a Ranger really is as good as the Gator. After the owner of the farm I work at part time drove my Gator around doing chores for a few days when I had it out there, he made a beeline to the dealership and traded his 800 Ranger "workhorse" in on a new 825I. And he's about as fussy as they get. Needless to say, i've owned mine for a year now, and i'm very satisfied with everything i've put it through and it runs and sounds like the day I brought it home. Wish I would have gotten power steering though, that's my only gripe, but that was my choice. The next one will have it though! I am glad I didn't spend the extra money on the winch my salesman tried to get me to buy along with all the other options I put on it, because in all my travels, I haven't met a spot where I needed it...Yet! |
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Ohio | I agree with you on the polaris charging system. Last I knew the polaris charging system was rated in watts not amps....just goes to show how crappy it really is. |
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EC IL | 825i Gator with power steering & 44 MPH road speed. Hard to beat the awesome suspension on rough terrain. |
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which UTV for farm and ranch work would you recomend ?
