Does your part of West Texas not have lots of dust like my part of West Texas? Fine dust and grit is the most death stuff for any of my equipment out there. As they say… it gets into everything constantly. Maintenance schedules on our tractors, skid steers, ATV,s etc. in west Texas is half the time as our equipment at the Ozark ranch.

I have spent a lot of time in UTV's. All brands and sizes. IMHO, Kawasaki is the best both in price and reliability.
That's not to say that I wouldn't buy others, especially depending on price.

Interestingly enough, most John Deere Gators run Kawasaki engines

BIL owns a small equipment and commercial landscaping supply. Sells Skaggs, Ferris, and other high end equipment. Has been doing it for years. We were together at Christmas and talking shop. Marine business versus his business. Our subject changed to engines. He remarked that he has been really concerned over the last two years in the durability and service on larger Kawasaki engines. 25-40 HP. He said his engine failures have almost doubled. Many problems with crankshafts, crankshafts bearings, piston rods and bearings.
So much so that he is ordering his equipment with alternate engines. Said he attended a service school before the holidays and other shops that attended said they were experiencing the same.
He said he had been a Kawasaki engine guy for years but that something had definitely changed in the last year or so.
Wonder if anyone else with any input on that can comment?
I was getting ready to order a new Ferris zero turn and per my BIL he said not to get a Kawa engine on it right now.
Comments?

You BIL's advice is probably better and more current than any you'll get on this forum. It's interesting to me, because when I bought a new zero turn a few years ago, the shop suggested the Kawasaki option over the Kohler or Briggs options. Good to know that's no longer good advice.

Interesting. I bought a Scag in 2018 with a Kawa motor and it was damn good. Sold it to my sister in 2021 and it is still going strong. Something must have changed like you said.

Gunny456 said:

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Does your part of West Texas not have lots of dust like my part of West Texas? Fine dust and grit is the most death stuff for any of my equipment out there. As they say… it gets into everything constantly. Maintenance schedules on our tractors, skid steers, ATV,s etc. in west Texas is half the time as our equipment at the Ozark ranch.

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Oh most definitely! It's just constant mud caking up on everything is even worse. Dust is easy to spray off with a garden hose. Mud clings to everything and accelerates wear.

Thaddeus Beauregard said:

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duddleysdraw88 said:

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The Mule has not held up well in his riverbottoms enviroment. Suspension and tie rod issues.

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The "river bottoms environment" is the issue there. All that mud and gritty silt constantly against rotating and sliding components like u-joints, CV joints, bushings, bearings, brake disks, and wears them out pretty quickly. No brand us immune to that. It's like pouring abrasive lapping compound over moving parts. It eats up seals and grinds down mating parts that slide or rotate against one another.

I have 2 hunting leases - one in the Sabine River bottom and the other in west TX. All the guys on the Sabine lease have to do a lot of maintenance and repairs on their UTV drive train, suspension and brakes, and the guys on my west TX lease where the ground is always dry and hard Ned much less maintenance. Hell, 2 of the guys on the west TX lease get around on electric golf carts. Out there the big issue is tires getting punctured.

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We have 5 Mules on our lease - 4 PRO FXT and one 4010. Used to have 7, but 2 of the guys got off last year.

The only one that has had drivetrain issues is me, and I had to replace a rear wheel bearing last year. Looked like the inner seal of the bearing failed at some point and the rest was history. One of those fluke things I think.

Outside of that, a couple of CV boots here and there, but those are from sticks when we have to go through the woods or 12" deep water and can't see all that well what is on the bottom. One of the guys had serious issues - but that was because he hit a culvert going way too fast and damn near tore the front A-arms on his passenger side off the frame. But that was 100% operator error, and we still give him hell about it.

I have a yamaha viking. It has more room. It has more leg room adn more comfortable to drive.

But does not have the pay load that teh others do.

Kawasaki has several series of small engines:
FX
FT
FS
FR
FJ/FJ Kai
FH Kai
FD

For example..... those different series are from economy, box store, value, home owner, commercial, HD indistrial etc. Check what series is offered in the machines.

Had almost exact opposite experience as Gunny. 2 vikings that couldnt stay out of shop and cheap plastic cracks everywhere. 3 polaris that ran like hell and never once had a problem. Kubotas plain jane worker. Kawasaki very comfortable suspension but slow, whiny, and you eat a chit ton of dust with any kind of window.
HOWEVER....we arrived at same as Gunny. Last 3 we have bought have been Canam and they are without a doubt our favorite. We still keep 2 Polaris single bench for the short wheel base we need by the river.

TLDR...green jacket, gold jacket who gives a shhhh....buy a CanAm

We have two Can Am Defenders in the family. Zero issues.

Didn't you have an issue with Canam or another one surging or idling really badly? I seem to remember you posting that but maybe I am wrong or maybe it was the Kawasaki?

If I am buying a UTV today - it is a CanAm, assuming cost is not an option.

This is from a Ranger XP Crew owner that has had zero issues with their Ranger.

Can Am with long bed works for me. I've had a couple others brands and will buy another can am as of now.

Yes. The very first one I had I bought from one of my dealers. It would surge between 2100-2500 rpm. They worked on it twice…..and were kinda dumbfounded over it. Then the Can Am rep told them just give me another new one. Totally no charge to me.
Have had two more since with no issues.
I was super impressed with how they handled the issue.

I have 3 rangers

2012 800 Crew
2015 570 Full Size
2017 900 Crew

Zero issues and ride way better than other SxS I have been on. Also feel like they have more room.

I feel Polaris gets a bad name because it was the choice for off roading for a long time. Can Am is catching up. The problem is the machine is fine stock but guys start putting lifts and much larger tires on it which works the drive train a lot more. Not to mention going 35 mph over crazy terrain etc.

I bought our Ranger 1000 after riding in our realtors while looking for property. I was amazed how smooth it was going over pretty rough ground. He said he used his everyday for the last 5 years without an issue. We've had ours for two years and it's been great.

Hoffpauir in Goldthwaite let us test drive Polaris models versus Can Am models on a small piece of land behind the store. That was the deciding factor for us on Can Am. We drove the Polaris first and knew it would be hard to beat. We doubted anything could be better. But the Can Am Defender was a better machine in our opinion, although it is hard to explain why. Can Am just felt more refined with better ergonomics and suspension geometry.

For the prices of these things, the Jeep Gladiator can be had for about $10,000 more. Jeep is giving the things away due to low sales volumes.

Honda Pioneer - Mine just goes. I have a 700 They are great.

And has air conditioning, protection from the elements, is street legal, etc. does weigh a lot more though, and has a wider track.

On the flip side, my horse can get almost anywhere a human can short of climbing a rock face. Maintenance can be costly and it only has 1 horsepower, so towing is very limited.

But yeah, the cost of these things new is jaw dropping, considering the alternatives. They are useful though, considering how popular they are. Road vehicle manufacturers don't make cheap light 4x4's that can be bought used and rebuilt into affordable ranch vehicles anymore, so the niche has been filled with purpose built vehicles.

EMY92 said:

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For the prices of these things, the Jeep Gladiator can be had for about $10,000 more. Jeep is giving the things away due to low sales volumes.

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A jeep won't touch most of the places that a buggy can go though, and the few that can tear up the ground 10x worse than a buggy will.

schmellba99 said:

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EMY92 said:

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For the prices of these things, the Jeep Gladiator can be had for about $10,000 more. Jeep is giving the things away due to low sales volumes.

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A jeep won't touch most of the places that a buggy can go though, and the few that can tear up the ground 10x worse than a buggy will.

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Correct. I had the same question regarding Jeep VS UTV before we bought our Ranger. So glad I went with the Ranger. If your goal is to cruise the neighborhood and beach then I would go with a Jeep for sure. Just this past weekend we got a really good rain and a Jeep would have absolutely tore up every road we went on but the Ranger just left its tire marks in the mud.

schmellba99 said:

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EMY92 said:

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For the prices of these things, the Jeep Gladiator can be had for about $10,000 more. Jeep is giving the things away due to low sales volumes.

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A jeep won't touch most of the places that a buggy can go though, and the few that can tear up the ground 10x worse than a buggy will.

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Truth! A lot of landowners prefer side by sides for exactly that, especially on my deer lease. I also duck hunt on a place that you cannot use a truck - it is ATV/UTV only for exactly this reason.

my grandpa always used to say if you ever had to log any a$$ time in a tractor where someone has been driving around while it was wet you would never do it again.

It's a ground pressure issue and it can be mitigated with a proper build, but you can't get around footprint. The jeep, properly built, will easily outclimb a utv simply due to accommodated tire diameter and longer potential suspension travel range, but it is heavier and wider, and requires a wider track. The bigger vehicles will tear up more ground if you have to drive them like that to get places. And you have to add a lot of mods and upgrades to get them there, whereas a UTV is very capable right off the dealer lot.

The reality is though that there are now many types of UTV and the upper end offroad specialty UTV types are essentially merging with the bottom end of the built jeep/buggy category with ever bigger tires, sturdier drive trains, and more horsepower, and they're lighter because they don't have all the crap required to pass crash testing and be street legal by default. The day of the modified SUV/jeep is probably mostly passed now, and the future probably is purpose built UTV. At some point, the Feds will attempt to force them all to be electric due to emissions, but electric UTV might not be all that bad provided you have a means to charge them where you use them.

As I stated we had started off on the ranch years ago with a Yamaha Rhino. I did that cause of our connection in the marine business. Great little machines that got used pretty hard every day. I got one every two years per our employees purchase program which were substantially less than the going sales price. So I had 4 and never ever had a single problem with them…… except they were so damn loud.
Then I moved up when Yamaha built the Viking and got one. Great machine but room in the back seat sucked and again it was loud.
While owning the Viking I bought a Kawasaki Mule. The dealer owed me a favor so he made a good deal. Nice machine but I had constant drive train issues and just annoying engine issues over and over. Plus it was almost as noisy as my Rhinos….and was slow. So I sold it.
Decided to go the big time and shop for a new Ranger … I mean all my ranch buddies raved over Polaris so I wanted one. Got the itch bad so bought one.
One of my business partners who captures and sells exotics ran an entire fleet of Polaris's and they use them harder than anybody else can imagine. They use them capturing animals and run them over rocks, logs, whatever to get those animals.
While I was hanging with him day we started talking Polaris….as he buys 8-10 every year or two. Figured if anybody would tell me the truth he would.
He said the Polaris's were good machines when he started but expensive for him to run and maintain… but they were the only machine out there that would do the job he needed. However he said that Polaris's reliability and workmanship just declined and declined. He said customer service had became a joke and parts cost him a fortune every year.
His reasoning was that Polaris owned the market and started just resting on their laurels and did not give a crap as they sold all they could build.
It was then that he told me that Can Am had supplied him two machines for testing and he, so far, was super impressed. He let me drive one for a weekend at the ranch and one of his Polaris1000's for comparison.
For me it was hands down Can Am over anything else including the Polaris. I WANTED the Polaris, plus I could get one below dealer cost at one of my marine dealers who was also an off road dealer.
The Can AM was going to be substantially more money….
The things that sold me on the Can Am:

1. The Rotax engine. They build ultra light engines as well and are noted for reliability.
2. The ride in rough terrain… eclipsed the Polaris, Mule, Viking by far.
3. Engine quietness…. I used a decibel meter and measured each brand and Can-Am was the most quiet.
4. Workmanship of the frame, seats, drive train, … no squeaky constant noise like the Polaris and the frame had no twisting or flexing as the other brands in rough terrain.
5. Can Am is owned by Bombardier which is very respected in the marine business for quality and service.
6. Overall superiority of true fit and finish as compared to all other brands…..Kubota was the only equal.
So I bought my first Can Am Defender LoneStar HX10.
Had an issue with surging between 2100-2500RPM. After two attempts to fix it they gave a brand new one… no questions asked.
I now have had two more since. All my ranching Polaris buddies now want Can Ams.

schmellba99 said:

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EMY92 said:

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For the prices of these things, the Jeep Gladiator can be had for about $10,000 more. Jeep is giving the things away due to low sales volumes.

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A jeep won't touch most of the places that a buggy can go though, and the few that can tear up the ground 10x worse than a buggy will.

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yea, that UTV has been amazing except all of those photos you sent us every time its stuck in the mud.

I bought a Polaris EV in 2019 for hog huntin and naturally because it was so quiet. Have been exceedingly happy with it. It is our daily driver on the ranch. Goes anywhere my gas UTV's go…. And sometimes better due to the precise electric control you have in extreme rough terrain.
Charge it in the garage once a week. Have not had one single maintenance issues with it other than replaced the wet cell batteries with AGM's this year…. So I did not have to mess with the water.
I put a larger tire on it as I had worn the original tires almost slick. So I have more ground clearance and a more aggressive tread pattern.
I have never had the damn little thing think about getting stuck.
Really like it. Same drive train, transmission, suspension etc of it's gas model.

What's everyone favorite UTV tire sealant? I have a couple of slow leaks on my Ranger.

These posts are sounding very Barnes-esque.

You've owned every UTV at all of your many ranches, and one moment the Can Am is the best one ever, until you're reminded about your Polaris EV that you also have and it's really better in every way.

Furlock Bones said:

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schmellba99 said:

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EMY92 said:

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For the prices of these things, the Jeep Gladiator can be had for about $10,000 more. Jeep is giving the things away due to low sales volumes.

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A jeep won't touch most of the places that a buggy can go though, and the few that can tear up the ground 10x worse than a buggy will.

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yea, that UTV has been amazing except all of those photos you sent us every time its stuck in the mud.

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I fail to understand your point here.

Everything gets stuck when you spend enough time off road in garbage conditions. It happens. Another plus for the buggies is that they are way, way, way easier to get un-stuck than a jeep or truck. Significantly easier.

TxAg20 said:

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What's everyone favorite UTV tire sealant? I have a couple of slow leaks on my Ranger.

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Gempler's Ultra Seal

Not it's not sir. I've said what I owned. I wanted an electric for hog hunting and quiet. As far vas I know, unless you have some knowledge I don't…,very possible, last I checked…Kawasaki, Yamaha, Kubota, Can Am, John Deere don't build an EV do they? Enlighten me if they do.
My comments were that I like my Polaris EV and what it does for my use and it's been, so far trouble free.
If Can Am built an EV as good as the Defender I would own one.