Utility Vehicle???

[Angus In Texas]

I have been looking at utility vehicles lately and wanted to get some opinions from folks that have them. The ones I have considered so far are:

Kawasaki Mule - 3010 Diesel
Kubota RTV900
Polaris Ranger 4x4 700... I believe 700 is the right size
Artic Cat

Any opinions or comments are very much appreciated.

 

[LaneFarms]

Look into the yamaha rhino. I have had mine for a little over 2 years and the only thing I have done is change the oil and put gas in it. It has plenty of power to pull wagons around and enough room in the bed to put a couple bags of feed or a couple bales of hay. The only complaint I have is that the green color fades real bad on the hood and fenders even though mine is always parked under a barn.

 

[dun]

Mule, a real "workhorse". We just replaced 2 mules, one was somehting like 13 years old the other was I think 16.

 

[Brute 23]

What are you going to be doing with it is the key?

I own a Mule and am not a fan of any Polaris but I will try to keep my biases out of it. I have used most of these while hunting and stuff.

IF you are going to be doing alot of trail type driving. High speed, rough terrain, not big loads go with the YAMAHA RHINO or ARCTIC CAT PROWLER. (They call those RUVs, recreational utility vehicle.)

IF you are going to be loading it up and going off road then go with the KAWIE MULE or POLARIS RANGER.

IF you are going to load it up and stay on the roads and flat ground go with the KUBOTA. (With Kubota's tranny you can bog it down where it wont spin the tires, :x , not good. IF I pay $10K is better spin them until I am stuck.)

The KAWIE MULE and POLARIS RANGER are the most versatile of them all. They are work and play good.

From my expereinces the Kawie MULE is the most dependable, versatile, gets the job done on the Farm or Ranch, and can be up to $2K cheaper than the others.

Here is a link to a good forum. Check it out.

http://utilityoffroad.com/forum/default.asp

Here are some pics.

 

[Angus In Texas]

My first choice right now would be the mule then the Kubota but I don't know about the pricing of the Kubota.

 

[Earl Thigpen]

I just bought the Mule 3010Trans. The research I did showed the Mule to be the best all around UTV while the Polaris came in second.

I haven't had it long enough to have any history but so far it's been good.

 

[Brute 23]

My first choice right now would be the mule then the Kubota but I don't know about the pricing of the Kubota.

The Kubota will run you $10K easy,,, you can get Mules for $8K.
I like the Kubota but if you get it in a bind it will bog down and not spin the tires.

 

[MissouriExile]

When we first bought our place it was overgrown with brush and I thought I needed a utility vehicle to work on fencing etc out of. I bought a John Deere Gator 4X4 and used it quite a lot. I am pleased with its performance and it is fun to drive. Now that I have the land cleared and all in grass I find myself leaving the Gator at the house and working out of my pick up.

I suppose if your land is extremely rough and difficult to traverse in a pickup a UTV would be handy. In my case the Gator is in danger of heading to the sale barn. Some of my friends just buy an old jeep or pickup for rough field work.

Jon

 

[Cowboy15]

I really dont like the Gators because they are rough and really loud. We use Kawasaki Mule 3010 and it is not loud very smooth ride. Have not really had much experance with the other brands.
Sam

 

[HAY MAKER]

My choice is the mule..............good luck

 

[TheBullLady]

I've been looking into buying one as well. For farm work, but also for showing ranch property. We have a Ranger at the office now that we use, that has been used HARD, and it's seen it's share of the repair shop, and it hasn't been cheap. I don't think they're made that well.. plastic parts, stuff that seems to fall off easily, but then we may be harder on them then the normal rancher would be. We show a lot of rough property.. mesquite, heavy brush, etc. It's been stuck more than once... but it's pretty good overall.

Have you checked out Normangee Tractor in Nacogdoches? I was there over the weekend and they have the Ranger and the Kubotas, and plenty of them. They have a nifty little 700 special edition in electric blue that I LOVE, but it's a little pricey at $11,100!

 

[Brute 23]

I've been looking into buying one as well. For farm work, but also for showing ranch property. We have a Ranger at the office now that we use, that has been used HARD, and it's seen it's share of the repair shop, and it hasn't been cheap. I don't think they're made that well.. plastic parts, stuff that seems to fall off easily, but then we may be harder on them then the normal rancher would be. We show a lot of rough property.. mesquite, heavy brush, etc. It's been stuck more than once... but it's pretty good overall.

That's every day driving around here. :lol: See the reasoning behind my bias. ;-)

 

[OklaBrangusBreeder]

The Kubota will run you $10K easy,,, you can get Mules for $8K.
I like the Kubota but if you get it in a bind it will bog down and not spin the tires.

My dad just bought a used Jeep Wrangler for $12,000. That seems like a much better investment to me. He uses it to check stock between the farms.

Why in the world would anybody pay $10K for something you can't even take on the road. I just never have understood this whole "product area". Looks like way to much $$$ for far too little usefulness to me.

 

[Brute 23]

The Kubota will run you $10K easy,,, you can get Mules for $8K.
I like the Kubota but if you get it in a bind it will bog down and not spin the tires.

My dad just bought a used Jeep Wrangler for $12,000. That seems like a much better investment to me. He uses it to check stock between the farms.

Why in the world would anybody pay $10K for something you can't even take on the road. I just never have understood this whole "product area". Looks like way to much $$$ for far too little usefulness to me.

Actually,, in Texas for around $200 you can get license plates for your MULE. That makes it totally street legal. You can go get groceries of what ever as long as the city does not have an ordinance against it. (I have the forms and info if any one is interested)

As for riding from place to place all you need is a slow moving vehicle triagle (like on yalls tractors, same idea) and you are legal for agricultural use. ;-)

Its all in what you need or like. Both Jeeps and UTVs have their purpose.
Some pros to the UTV are
-easy to acces in and out
-for $10K you are getting a brand new and not some one elses used mud buggy
-more agile
-cheaper to run

 

[Legacy38464]

The Kubota will run you $10K easy,,, you can get Mules for $8K.
I like the Kubota but if you get it in a bind it will bog down and not spin the tires.

My dad just bought a used Jeep Wrangler for $12,000. That seems like a much better investment to me. He uses it to check stock between the farms.

Why in the world would anybody pay $10K for something you can't even take on the road. I just never have understood this whole "product area". Looks like way to much $$$ for far too little usefulness to me.

I have to agree, I use the tractor or I have an $1800 four wheeler that goes into the woods when needed, I would love to have one of those utility vehichles but my penny penchin ways will not let me....

 

[dun]

I have to agree, I use the tractor or I have an $1800 four wheeler that goes into the woods when needed, I would love to have one of those utility vehichles but my penny penchin ways will not let me....

I use an old truck or a 4wd mule. When you get to the point you can;t swing your leg over that ATV you'll discover the usefullness of a mule. In this part of the country there are too many places that you can;t get with anything much bigger then a mule. I used to think they were a luxury till I got one. Now I don;t understand how some folks can get along without one.

 

[Legacy38464]

I have to agree, I use the tractor or I have an $1800 four wheeler that goes into the woods when needed, I would love to have one of those utility vehichles but my penny penchin ways will not let me....

I use an old truck or a 4wd mule. When you get to the point you can;t swing your leg over that ATV you'll discover the usefullness of a mule. In this part of the country there are too many places that you can;t get with anything much bigger then a mule. I used to think they were a luxury till I got one. Now I don;t understand how some folks can get along without one.

This is true I know several that thats the reason they went to the utility vehichles from 4 wheelers, and there will come a time when I will have to do that also, maybe by then the better half will have conformed me from such a miser....

 

[Calman]

Around here I use a 450 honda forman or a little 4wd 88 dodge dokata.The little dakota is raised 4in big tires and is a short bed to boot. Not much difference than a jeep.Has a 3.9 engine with 197,000 miles on it and ya just turn the switch and it's ready to go.

Cal

 

[Texas Gal]

My first choice right now would be the mule then the Kubota but I don't know about the pricing of the Kubota.

I was talking to the guy who owns the Kubota house in Denton yesterday and I asked ( just for giggles) about the RTV 900 and 1100. The 900 is about $10,000; the 1100, $12,000.
That's a lot of money! The first 3 (or 4 vehicles) I owned didn't cost that much money. His selling point for the 1100 was "it has heat & air". I think we'll just keep the 15 yoa honda 400 and the polaris six-wheeler.

 

[dun]

My first choice right now would be the mule then the Kubota but I don't know about the pricing of the Kubota.

I was talking to the guy who owns the Kubota house in Denton yesterday and I asked ( just for giggles) about the RTV 900 and 1100. The 900 is about $10,000; the 1100, $12,000.
That's a lot of money! The first 3 (or 4 vehicles) I owned didn't cost that much money. His selling point for the 1100 was "it has heat & air". I think we'll just keep the 15 yoa honda 400 and the polaris six-wheeler.

That's almost what I paid for my first house, and it had 3 bedrroms and 2 crappers.