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ATV recommendation

S

sandel

Member
In the market for a gator style side-by-side machine. Looking for something durable, economical,fairly simple and good
hauling/pulling capacity. Curious about personal experiences(good and bad) and what you recommend. Thanks.
 
Neighbor has a on older Kawasaki 'Mule'. It's been a good reliable machine. He uses it every day. No telling how many hours/miles it has.
 
My dad was a service manager at a local power sports store up until 1yr ago. I asked him this question. They sold polaris, yamaha,honda, and can am. Did not sell Kawasaki. Had no optinion on Kawasaki. He said by reliability and parts availability he's go polaris first, honda distant second followed by Yamaha then cam am a distant last. Didn't have much good to say about can am. This was for utvs. I asked about gators and he didn't have much experience with those either.
 
Not on the economical side but have two Kubota rtv 900s here on the farm with over 2000 hrs on each , tough machines , built for work. Will not be the cheapest for sure.
 
I had a 625 gator and sold it and bought a Polaris 2018 900 Ranger and I wish I had the gator back it was a 2012 and we had zero trouble with it went where no utv should go I have no complaints. Polaris is a lot faster on the road but just doesn't feel right out in the ruff ground. Randy
 

Most reliable and long lasting, kawasaki diesel mules. have 3 of them with over 3000 hours on some. Have a fourth that is a gas engine, and have to run the carb dry before storing, or it will clog up. Dang tires keep wearing out though. You can expect to wear out many sets of tires. Impossible to get stuck. It will keep going after all the tractors are buried. Ride is a bit harsh so it best to keep it under 12 mph. Radiators require cleaning every other year or so.

Nicest is the kubota diesel's.. power stg, a/c and smooth ride, quiet in cab. Good smooth ride wide open at 23 mph??. Hydraulic dump bead. Very very heavy, and will bottom out in quick sand. so not the best for mud. Radiator screen requires cleaning every two months to keep the chaff out of or it will run hot. Emergency brake pokes you in the butt everything you get in or out.
 
It's hard to beat the Kubota RTVX series. Expensive but top of the line.

Work machines, not hot rods.

Dean
 
I don't know ? Some say the oldest ATV are still the BEST ! The good ole fashioned Horse !
 
SOTX Checkout the new X Model 900 , guess what they listened and moved the emergency brake lever.. and dang they also repositioned the radiator.. Both of your worries solved.. LOL BUT there are million standard 900s out there doing a good job ever day.
 
I've heard a lot of good things about Kawasaki Mules. Most impressed by one of them a few years ago at a "mud a thon". Everybody and their dog got stuck going through the pit with everything from 4 wheelers to trucks with 35" wheels and a few 4X4 tractors. Then two girls wearing shorts and bikini tops drove across the pit in a Kawasaki Mule like it wasn't that big of deal - they didn't even get splashed.
 
I have the Yammie 660. It's a big single engine Noisy over 20 mph. Dump bed is handy. Has diff lock and 4wd selector. Not FI but starts before you can let go of the key. Two range hydro tranny a 2007 model I want to get something newer but this one just keeps on tickin. Also does good job of moving snow with the 5 foot Moose plow.
a267122.jpg
 
(quoted from post at 06:19:43 05/07/18) In the market for a gator style side-by-side machine. Looking for something durable, economical,fairly simple and good
hauling/pulling capacity. Curious about personal experiences(good and bad) and what you recommend. Thanks.
Click to expand...

I have a Kubota RTV900 2006 model still runs and works fine. Brother and friend both bought the Bennche Bighorn 500 couple years back. We have taken both on 70+ mile rides in the Ozarks all off road. as well as use them on the farms.

Kubota will out work the Bennche if you are looking for a workhorse. Bennche is better off road and is a pretty decent work machine.

Bennche will save some green on purchase for certain. If you go Bennche spring for the power steering upgrade. Also Bennche has manual dump bed. will be easy to turn into electric hydraulic dump system. We are looking to do this on one of the Bennche units.
 

One other thing on the Bennche if still available get the metal roof of put in extra clamps to hold the plastic roof on. We lost a roof hauling it on a trailer at 70mph.

16169.jpg


One of the Bennche units when we were playing on the Ozarks one day.
 
Get a Kawasaki mule, I have had a Gator, sold it bought a Polaris, mule would go anywhere and do more with less fuel. The Gator was great on open land like fields or pasture but just didn't have the suspension or low end grunt to tackle hills and ruts. The Polaris will do anything the Mule will do but has a larger engine, uses alot more fuel just to do the same work.
 
I bought a used '06 Kubota RTX900 off ebay, 1800 hours, was very misrepresented in the auction, cooling system was not complete. Got it shipped from AZ to Texas, then got it where it would hold and Pump coolant. Diesel engine is very nice after how much abuse of very little coolant??? Also air cleaner missing, No problems since and have nothing to compare it with. Local dealer would not combine parts orders with his regular orders. Maybe cause I did not buy it from him.
 
I have an 07 Polaris ranger that was purchased used and I like the durability and handling. It's getting a little rough around the edges but I use it daily It's fuel injected 500cc and starts right up. Had to put a fuel pump in the tank because it was low on pressure but still ran somewhat but not too good uphill with a load. It has 1,2 and 4wd at the push of a button.
 
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