I'm Looking for a UTV

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I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by brett1868 » 02 Jan 2016, 11:17 pm

I've been looking around for a UTV for a while now and starting to get serious about forking over the cash to buy one. For those who are not familiar with UTV's they are essentially a small 4 wheel buggy similar to the picture below.
Image
There are several manufacturers and numerous models on the market ranging in price from $5k all the way up to $38k though I'm looking to spend no more then $10-$15k max. Preferably much less but there's not a lot available on the second hand market so I may have to buy new. The current favourite is the Yamaha Wolverine R-Spec which is right at the pointy end of my budget though still cheaper than similar spec'd machines from Can-Am or Polaris. I've ruled out Kawasaki due to their poor reviews relating to performance. Atomik AGMAX 600 is another contender at around $11k but availability is an issue and I've heard that service / support can be difficult. Also they are made in China which can be hit and miss quality wise.

Does anyone here have experience with UTV's? What do you have, strengths / Weaknesses along with what made you choose that UTV.

My criteria is covered fairly well by most of the models on the market and I've listed it below.
1. 2 x 4, 4x4 High & Low range along with diff locks.
2. Winch
3. >600cc
4. Power Steering
5. Prefer walk through cockpit so I can exit either side without climbing over a console.
6. Roof
7. Towbar
8. Rear tray capable of supporting 150kg min.
9. Camo colour option or desert tan.
10. >12" ground clearance.
11. Most important of all...at least 2 cupholders :sarcasm:

Primary use will be for hunting and general transport around the block I have so it doesn't need huge power, crawling or river crossing ability.

Any advice much appreciated as always :)
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by Gwion » 03 Jan 2016, 8:13 am

Only ever used the John Deer Gaitor on the dairy farm. Works just fine in some sticky situations. Cost effective and option able with you req.. Left hand drive sort of bugs me. Saw some awesome jobbies at the big field days down here... Will try to dig up the brochures. Fold down windscreen for a shooting rest was a big plus on one I saw. Also, it was fully enclosed for cold wet Tas conditions; I thought that another plus for my woossy arse.
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by sbd3927 » 03 Jan 2016, 11:40 am

I can recommend you steer clear of Polaris. Apparently they had an old name for quality, but that hasn't been true for a long while. A good read through USA forums is a good idea for any brand you consider, and a good summary for Polaris is it will be in for repair, while your mates are out riding.
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by sandgroperbill » 03 Jan 2016, 11:41 am

He doesn't wand a windscreen. One pull of the trigger on one of his big boys and its gone, fold down or not :) :) :)
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by Gwion » 03 Jan 2016, 12:04 pm

sandgroperbill wrote:He doesn't wand a windscreen. One pull of the trigger on one of his big boys and its gone, fold down or not :) :) :)


Good point I guess!
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by Seik » 11 Jan 2016, 8:23 am

sandgroperbill wrote:He doesn't wand a windscreen. One pull of the trigger on one of his big boys and its gone, fold down or not :) :) :)


Point understood but someone must do a flexi plastic sort of screen that would hold up to.
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by brett1868 » 11 Jan 2016, 10:21 am

I'm favouring the Yamaha Wolverine at this stage given the performance, reliability and difficulty finding anything bad about them online. They have the option of a fold down windscreen which I'll get along with the winch and towbar. First mod will be a seat and shooting rest in the back tray capable of supporting the heavy hitters. I've made an offer on some land which has goat's, pigs and deer which I hope to hear back from the agent this week if the offer has been accepted. The land is fairly hilly and black basalt soil so if accepted I'll definitely go ahead with the Wolverine. If I don't buy any guns for 6 months that'll cover the cost of the Wolverine :)
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by sandgroperbill » 11 Jan 2016, 11:59 am

sooo... envious.... right.... now....

I was going to put an offer on a 440,000ha station up north to use as my private hunting grounds. Camels, goats, donkeys, etc.

Unfortunately I selected the wrong lotto ticket.

On a more serious not, nice stuff Brett. And you don't seem to hear much bad about Yamaha, they seem pretty reliable
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by Xerox » 14 Jan 2016, 1:11 pm

Who pays 40k for a UTV :wtf:
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by brett1868 » 14 Jan 2016, 2:51 pm

Xerox wrote:Who pays 40k for a UTV :wtf:


Not me, no chance...I'm having a hard time justifying to myself paying $18k for the Wolverine. Problem with SXS is there are very few on the 2nd hand market and not much choice in buying new that isn't a Chinese POS. I might use it 5-6 times a year so I've put this idea on the backburner for a month or 2, need to see how / if the market bounces back after this weeks losses.
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by Baronvonrort » 14 Jan 2016, 6:00 pm

I wonder if a modified Badlands buggy could be adapted to the purpose.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=TnFObBPSEnU
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by sbd3927 » 14 Jan 2016, 9:13 pm

A lot of money for occasional use.

A few years ago I saw a modified Suzuki (Sierra? Vitara?) at an offroad specialist in Vic. The base car was quite cheap secondhand, and had been tricked out for serious offroad work. I think the total cost still came under 15k, and depending on how extreme you went, could still be roadworthy, which would extend it's usability.
There's a few Suzuki mod discussions in offroad forums, with a consensus for being quite capable.
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by brett1868 » 14 Jan 2016, 9:28 pm

Baronvonrort wrote:I wonder if a modified Badlands buggy could be adapted to the purpose.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TnFObBPSEnU


No 4WD unfortunately....toying with the idea of buying a Daihatsu Terios and attacking it with the gas axe to rid it of unwanted weight then welding a cage in.
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by sandgroperbill » 15 Jan 2016, 12:07 am

You can still find daihatsu feroza soft tops. I bought one myself a little while back. Unfortunately, have to take it in to the mechanics for a diagnosis in the near future as it's suffering a power loss and I can't quite put my finger on it, Putting this aside, though, I've found it very very capable
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by Gwion » 15 Jan 2016, 5:22 am

A UTV is going to get you into (and out of) spots with ease that a chopped down mini 4wd will struggle with!
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by Old Fart » 18 Jan 2016, 2:45 pm

Gwion wrote:A UTV is going to get you into (and out of) spots with ease that a chopped down mini 4wd will struggle with!


UTV feel a bit 'golf buggy' to me :lol:

I know it's apples and oranges but I'll stick to my 4x4
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by sbd3927 » 18 Jan 2016, 8:51 pm

"UTV feel a bit 'golf buggy' to me :lol:"
Ditto, better something that isn't designed for major service every 50 hours, with enough metal to have a chance to survive being offroad.
Further note, if the garbage Polaris ATP I had is an indication, they can burn more fuel than a v6/v8. medium revs was 12L/100km, my 2004 commodore V6 got <10L/100km
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by Gwion » 19 Jan 2016, 7:22 am

My Hilux gets 14lt/100km and it's only a 4 cylinder.

ATVs are generally for relatively short trips between A&B, not pulling Darwin - Adelaide.

I have glided across bogs that would have needed the tractor to drag my Hilux out of. I have flown up steep paddocks that the Hilux would have spun out on halfway up; and taken turns mid slope that would have rolled the Hilux, tumbly, tumbly all the way home.

They are certainly useful in some circumstances and i'd rather cruise and shoot from one than the cab of a 4wd in many instances.
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by MalleeFarmer » 19 Jan 2016, 7:31 am

Agree with Gwion. A UTV is a short haul highly capable recreation/farm/utility vehicle that will go anywhere an ATV will. with the ability to carry equipment passengers and small payloads. It can even be added with many accessories like a 4x4 winches diff locks suspension upgrades etc. It will never be suitable for touring or traveling large distances. But will go almost anywhere you point it making n awesome hunting vehicle.
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by Norton » 21 Jan 2016, 8:57 am

It's like anything else, if you can justify the spend then do it.

If not a UTV isn't for you.
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by Bent Arrow » 14 Mar 2019, 1:20 pm

OK, so I'm looking for an update on this. I'm sticking a toe in the market for a side x side for hunting and work. I'll be looking at second hand, there's a few starting to get on the market now....

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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by Oldbloke » 14 Mar 2019, 5:46 pm

Brett. Be careful they have a habit of rolling. Wear seat belt and a helmet. Kill a lot of farmers. Good to see the style your looking at has ROP.
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by Sergeant Hartman » 14 Mar 2019, 6:32 pm

Oldbloke you thinking about the good old quad bike, the side by side are quite stable and have full roll over protection
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by TassieTiger » 14 Mar 2019, 7:10 pm

A mate has one of these - very very good forcthe price. He made a silly offer and seller accepted - brand new.
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by Bent Arrow » 14 Mar 2019, 7:29 pm

TassieTiger wrote:A mate has one of these - very very good forcthe price. He made a silly offer and seller accepted - brand new.
https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Crossfire-4 ... SwE29a4lp5


Yeah there's a few of those chinese/non established name brands around. Probably worth a damn good look, I'm just a bit shy of buying something that there might be no/little backup for when something inevitably breaks.....
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by Oldbloke » 14 Mar 2019, 7:37 pm

Ziad wrote:Oldbloke you thinking about the good old quad bike, the side by side are quite stable and have full roll over protection


Correct.
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by TassieTiger » 14 Mar 2019, 8:15 pm

Bent Arrow wrote:
TassieTiger wrote:A mate has one of these - very very good forcthe price. He made a silly offer and seller accepted - brand new.
https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Crossfire-4 ... SwE29a4lp5


Yeah there's a few of those chinese/non established name brands around. Probably worth a damn good look, I'm just a bit shy of buying something that there might be no/little backup for when something inevitably breaks.....


Absolutely understandable...but they are getting better with quality and parts are insanely cheap. BUT - resale is chinese value regardless.
My mate has had zero issues with his and he pulls wheel stands in it...but...it's not a honda by any stretch.
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by Bruiser64 » 16 Mar 2019, 12:40 am

The CF Moto SXS looks pretty reasonable as well. A mate of mine has a Canam and it is very good as well.
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by Gamerancher » 16 Mar 2019, 1:09 pm

If you want to carry any weight in the tray, you can't go past the JD 4 x 4 Gators, up to 450 odd kg tray capacity. When looking for one for the farm I looked at the Yamaha, Kawasaki, Can-am, and Polaris. Didn't want a petrol motor so that ruled most out, then when looking at the payloads, one as low as 215kg, the Gator just come out way in front. I can load it up, hook on a trailer and go out for a days fencing no worries.The diesel is a bit slow ( 50km/h ) if you are after a tear-ass get up and go buggy, but the petrol ( 825i ?) version is supposed to get up and go with a 71 km/h top speed.
Low range and a diff-lock, not that I've ever needed it, should get you anywhere you can sensibly go, never been able to stop mine due to terrain.
The ride quality is great, trust me, my f*cked back says so, but a bit lacking in leg room though. Economy of the diesel is awesome, I've got a 400 Yamaha Quad that drinks petrol like a V8 car on steroids, also why the 650 engine in the Yamaha put me off. Also,I run JD tractors here, so I'm a bit biased. ;)
Have a look on Gumtree, I've seen them 2nd hand down to $7k. Personally you couldn't give me one of the Chinese P.O.S, no thanks.
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Re: I'm Looking for a UTV

Post by Bent Arrow » 16 Mar 2019, 4:18 pm

Thanks GR. I'm not after a rocket, a strong diesel would suit me well.
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