Need advice on purchasing a side x side

I am wanting to purchase a new side x side in the near future and was looking for some suggestions. I am leaning toward the Kawasaki pro fxt. I don't need one that drives fast just something dependable and durable. Any advice on what to get and where might be a good place to get a good deal on one?

We bought the Kawasaki Teryx4 because of the riding we like to do. It's not designed for the dunes, which is why it has a much shorter wheelbase than the RZR or CanAm. It best suited for wooded trails, which is where we spend most of our time hunting and riding. The dealer we went to, Louis Powersports in Greenville, didn't have the Mule FXt at the time, and honestly we wouldn't have bought it anyways. JB, the salesman could've easily up sold us to a RZR but instead told us that the Teryx4 was the right choice for our riding style. It will still do 55mph with 4 adults which is plenty fast. And like the Mule, it has a 3 year manufacture warranty

Beretta silver hawk

I thought he was asking for advice on shotguns also. He wants a UTV.

You should look at and measure the beds before you buy. You want he bed 49 inches all the way through the tailgate. I've seen people try to work around the old rangers.

The electric ones are much much more quiet.

Save a BUNCH of money and buy an old army jeep.

I have a Pro Fxt, you will be very happy with this machine. Lots of power and a fantastic smooth ride. I love mine.

How wide is the bed? Can you lay a sheet of plywood in it?

I bet you could, it's wide. It's a 2 seater 6 person machine. I'll measure it the next time I go to the tool shed.

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I need to be able to put my 48 inch dog box in mine.

Here's mine. Back seat folds forward to extend the bed.

Is it worth the extra money for the power steering or not?

Yes sir, like driving a car. Also the back seat sits up higher to see over the folks in the front seat. Kind of a neat feature.

Thanks. I was pretty much dead set on the Kawasaki just wanted to get as much info as possible before taking the plunge

I think that's a good choice. I've had mine for 1 year now and I have 0 complaints. Lots of power, good clearance, fantastic ride, 4x4 good in the mud and water, I love mine.

X2

Absolutely get power steering!

Do yourself a favor and visit the John Deere dealer. See the Gator lineup. I'm very happy with my 825i w/power steering, plenty of power, comparable to a jeep.

Be the first to get one of those new Yamaha YXZ1000R sport SxS.

They are only $20,000.

We recently bought the Mule Pro FXT EPS LE... I absolutely love the machine and would highly recommend them.
We've had mules in the past.. And this thing is a WHOLE NEW DEAL..


By the way, I am selling my OEM plastic roof if anyone is interested in it.
It was only on the Mule for about 2 hours.

rzr xp 1000 eps would surly be a great side x side to get. Lots of power and good seating and great storage compartment just install a 4 wheeler tire and its ready to go any condition of the road.

I've ridden the fxt pro, ranger crew (too long) 800 and 900 , gator 825 ix (or whatever 4 seater) and a few others. Own a 800 crew (noisy) with some mods. They all have good and bad points. The (ugly) fxt pro (with crap seats), (and same great engine as gator 825) would be my choice if they had a locking front diff, without they won't hang with a ranger on rough/slick steep stuff, if they would I would own one. The gator will not cross any water crossing over around 10 inches deep without getting the belt wet and stalling out (and why are the seats a foot narrower than the machine?). The rangers have some weak points but there are aftermarket fixes for most of it. I'm going to wait and see what comes out. I looked at Yamaha 6 seater and it's a good machine with a horrible engine. Too bad there is not a perfect machine considering what these things cost. There may be some newer versions of the machines I have run that fixed some of these issues, not sure.

Look at the Honda pioneer 500. Great machine for 2 and will fit in the bed of a pickup. Picked up one this year and took it to the mountains of Colorado. It performed great and went places I did not want to go. It has plenty of power and handles great. Price is great also. Top speed is around 40 to 42mph and that is fast enough for me. Went above 12K feet elevation and some fairly deep water crossings and had no issues. Its smaller than most side by sides so its a lot more manurverable in tight places.

x2!

Yamaha Viking without a doubt . search the reviews and you will see the difference . Had mine a year and took it to heck and back and runs like a champ . my buddy guides hog hunts out of Polaris rangers but is looking to trade them in for the Viking after driving mine

Is this the one with the paddle shift? This is a perfect size side by side but I was worried how the shifter worked. I have always had an automatic.

I was asking about the Honda Pioneer.

it is the paddle shift. Worked like a champ, no issues at all.

Older model 4x4 pickup. $1000-1500, parts are cheap, and it'll have a heater.

Yeah, that's the ticket, buy you an old junker truck so you can be installing those cheap parts every other trip to the lease instead of hunting out of it. And you don't want to be towing the junker truck back and fourth to the lease so you can leave it there, after all the mice and rats need something to chew on. And for myself if I wanted a nice warm place to sit I would stay home instead of hunting. JMHO

There are two sides two every coin. There are many advantages to having an old truck instead of a SXS. The biggest advantage and the main reason I don't have an ATV of any kind is you lose half of your garage. So IMO if you are even half way a shade tree mechanic the old pickup idea is a good one. I for one would look for a Samuri and repower it.

Not to mention how much more a truck tears up if it's wet. My property owner would [censored] a brick (understandably so) if I run a truck through his field this past Saturday. The Ranger on the other hand didn't do anything but push the wet grass down.

Every property and everyones needs are different

For us a UTV/ATV would be a waste. 90% of our property can be accesed in a 2wd diesel. The more rain the beter except for that 10%...

To me the UTV/ATV cost way to much for what they would offer, we are probably going to end up with a 1/2 ton or smaller 4x4 pickup and run with that as a dedicated ranch vehicle. I believe a lot of people like to get out and play on their buggy and that is fine, just has no appeal to me, I want quiet functional and something I don't care if the paint gets scratched and I can put slime in the tires.

Id buy more vehicle than nicer.. power steering is worthless to me and a lot more things to maintain/fix... That's just me though

Now there are reasons you could need PS im not saying its worthless to everyone... but to me its a waste if your physically capable and trying to get the most vehicle for your money

Smile, I agree with you for once.