UTV - Trying to Decide

[Poncho]

Do you have a link to specs, or can you tell me the max payload and max towed load?

click on "specs", but 1k bed payload, 1,450 vehicle payload and 2500 towing: https://intimidatorutv.com/gc1k-stage-1/

 

[Number15]

Late to the party but I wanted to add some info about the JDM trucks.
First off I love mine, I use it a lot. Street legal in my state, AC, heat, radio, air bags etc.
Has a dump bed that works great. I wouldn't change it for a utv/rtv for anything.
BUT
If you think it's going to work well with tracks/pods you're crazy.
If you think it's going to zip around your property like mad max you're going to be dissapointed.
If you think it's going to conquer the tough trails make sure you bring a shovel and a winch.

I use mine on my cleared land and the 4x4 works great, but I know it's limits, I got it high sided once
They are lowish on power and don't have a lot of speed off road but they will get the job done.
On pavement it will do 60mph easily but that is about as fast as you want to go.
It will move a full bed of wood, not sure how much that weighs but it does it easily.
It hauls my 105 gallon diesel tank full with no problems.
They are full frame construction, so I think they are tough but you have to remember they were mostly designed for on road activities.
They get fantastic fuel mileage. I can get the maintenance parts at walmart. However if I need anything else it needs to come from Japan. Parts are plentiful there but everything will need to be shipped.

They are cheaper than utv's but harder to find. Mine is a 2020 Daihatsu, owned by Toyota. 3cyl 660cc 54hp high revving little monster.
You will need to change the tires if you want to go off road.

Got these geolanders from Japan for 85$ a piece shipped

 

[jigs_n_fixtures]

I have a JDM truck, a 94 Daihatsu Hijet, which I have raised a couple of inches.

I bought it to carry a snow plow in the winter. A vehicle with a real enclosed cab, windows, wipers and a heater is much more enjoyable than any ATV/UTV for plowing snow.

I put a bit of a lift, and heavier springs on the front, after the first time I trial fitted the plow, and the front springs bottomed out. I added a leaf to the rear when I weighed both axles with the plow mounted and figured out that I needed to add about 400 to 500-lbs, to the back to get the weight distribution back to 50-50, and to bring the rear even with the front.

As said, they are quite capable at low speeds off road, but are not anything you can run at speed and go jumping over bumps, and catching big air in. I out grew that in my thirties. So, not an issue with me.

Mine has a scissors dump bed, so it can raise vertically, as well as dump. The highway legal load in Japan is 350kg, (800-lbs). However Daihatsu imported them, as utility vehicles in the eighties, and early nineties, and they said they could carry 1500-lbs, at speeds below 15-mph.

For around the place, and putting around town on city and county roads, I much prefer it to any of the ATVs I have driven. We have a Razor at work we use to cruise old timber sale roads, when we are figuring out what it will take to open them up for new timber sales, or use as fire breaks/roads. I am certain the tiny truck is fully capable of doing 90% of that work. But it wouldn’t do it as fast.

When I built the bumper to mount the snow plow, I put 2-inch reciever on the miidle, and both ends. I have a polarized lead to power the plow, and set up a 4500-lb winch to mount in the receivers, and hook to the same power feed. I made the rear bumpers the same, and ran a power feed to the rear bumper. I can mount the winch on all four corners and the middle at both ends. So, I can get a good angle to pull on most things. Add an electric chain saw, hilift and tire patch kit and I’m ready to, go play in the woods.

 

[Number15]

I have a JDM truck, a 94 Daihatsu Hijet, which I have raised a couple of inches.

I bought it to carry a snow plow in the winter. A vehicle with a real enclosed cab, windows, wipers and a heater is much more enjoyable than any ATV/UTV for plowing snow.

I put a bit of a lift, and heavier springs on the front, after the first time I trial fitted the plow, and the front springs bottomed out. I added a leaf to the rear when I weighed both axles with the plow mounted and figured out that I needed to add about 400 to 500-lbs, to the back to get the weight distribution back to 50-50, and to bring the rear even with the front.

As said, they are quite capable at low speeds off road, but are not anything you can run at speed and go jumping over bumps, and catching big air in. I out grew that in my thirties. So, not an issue with me.

Mine has a scissors dump bed, so it can raise vertically, as well as dump. The highway legal load in Japan is 350kg, (800-lbs). However Daihatsu imported them, as utility vehicles in the eighties, and early nineties, and they said they could carry 1500-lbs, at speeds below 15-mph.

For around the place, and putting around town on city and county roads, I much prefer it to any of the ATVs I have driven. We have a Razor at work we use to cruise old timber sale roads, when we are figuring out what it will take to open them up for new timber sales, or use as fire breaks/roads. I am certain the tiny truck is fully capable of doing 90% of that work. But it wouldn’t do it as fast.

When I built the bumper to mount the snow plow, I put 2-inch reciever on the miidle, and both ends. I have a polarized lead to power the plow, and set up a 4500-lb winch to mount in the receivers, and hook to the same power feed. I made the rear bumpers the same, and ran a power feed to the rear bumper. I can mount the winch on all four corners and the middle at both ends. So, I can get a good angle to pull on most things. Add an electric chain saw, hilift and tire patch kit and I’m ready to, go play in the woods.
View attachment 745965View attachment 745966

Love that scissor lift, wish mine had that

 

[jigs_n_fixtures]

It has come in really handy when pruning fruit trees, cleaning the gutters in the garage, getting new roofing onto the roof, stacking hay bales, or carrying Smokey in the Parade of Lights, the Friday after Thanksgiving. Smokey moved to California, so I need to round up a new Smokey.

It was a fun way to do Thanksgiving. We would work on decorating the truck while the girls finished up fixing dinner, have dinner watch a game or two. And then finish off the truck the next day. We had a lot of fun doing it. The fire education gal at the Forest Service would round up the Smokey costume, and give us a couple of boxes of “frisbees“ to toss to the kids. One year his grandsons were in town, and I rounded up a couple of xxs, Fire shirts for them. They had a blast helping us decorate the truck, and throwing candy and frisbees to the kids.

 

[ROUSTABOUT]

I bought a 74 f150 4x4 for 500 in 1992. Sold the winch for 500 and the truck still runs good. 300 six and 4 speed.

 

[LouNY]

For what a pickup or jeep can do a UTV is no match,
for what and were a UTV can do and go the pickup, mini-truck, or jeep can't do.
Things I do and have done with my UTV you could not do with a pickup.
My pickups are much more comfortable, nicer and have much more capabilities then my UTV.
They both have there place and I wouldn't want to give either up.

 

[WilliamBos]

My 63 Cj5 is same size as neighbor’s prior rtv
rtv is about 2” shorter but 6” wider. I got to compare side to side and on trails when I had to pull him out.


The flatfenders are even smaller

Thanks for posting these. Miss my Jk, looking at getting a JL in the near future. And yes, it will see trails.

 

[plastikosmd]

My first drivable car was an 84 cj7
The cj5 is around 6”? Shorter

I remember that it was expensive for me as an 17y/o to insure the 7 and they would not do a 5.

I would not take this one on the highway, but trails, woods, lawn, chores, store etc it is my ideal sxs

 

[Straightgrain3016]

I can only think of adding one thing to the already posted replys; esp. the advice of getting a jeep (my next UTV).


Look closely at the D.O.M. Looking back when I bought my 2008 model year in 2010. I didn't know any better; thought I was getting the current year's production, not something that was sitting on the lot for 2 years...my feelings towards that company are still sticking in my craw.

 

[Torvy]

Does your Jeep have a dump bed? No? Then just stop comparing them to a UTV.

Different tools for different jobs. Sorry, to be short but it gets pretty annoying going to threads to get thoughts on UTVs and every one of them has a jeep or mini truck fan trying to suggest they are the same. Start a thread on jeeps or mini trucks. They have roles, but being a UTV is not one of them for most applications.

 

[ArlyA]

I drove my toy truck down the same trails I've ran our atv down. Guess which machine we run down them today? They ARE NOT the same. No little SUV on our shopping list.

 

[jyoutz]

i had a Ranger 850 with Cab. I had tracks on it one winter and sold them. Your speed is cut in half with them on and you drive around with the engine screaming away. I also had a RZR 570 and it was fun but useless.

My buddy bought a 570 and sold it after one year. It has transmission issues and was loud.

You will spend a lot of money for what you are looking for so test drive as many as you can and realize you will need to compromise.

Last year, we got the "cheap" Kawasaki Mule SX. Less than $7000 on sale. It is slow (25 mph) but has been very handy. We cruise a lot of old logging trails where speed is too dangerous anyway, visit neighbors, yard work, and run up and down the 200 yard range. We have been happy with it. Kawasaki is the only company to offer a three year warranty.

Your plan to get a RZR 170 for the kids to tag along with may be not work out well. If they are following you, they will be eating dust depending on the type of roads/trails you are running.

BTW, we have snowmobiles for fun riding in the winter. UTV's are not good in the snow and like I said, the tracks suck and add another $4500...get a good winch.

One last thought. If your trails permit, look at a used Jeep Wrangler. It will seat four (cramped in the back but good for kids), and will outlast any UTV. We had one for a couple of years and it handled our trails very well.

I will second the Kawasaki Mule suggestion. We have been happy with ours.

 

[deserteagle71]

Does your Jeep have a dump bed? No? Then just stop comparing them to a UTV.

Different tools for different jobs. Sorry, to be short but it gets pretty annoying going to threads to get thoughts on UTVs and every one of them has a jeep or mini truck fan trying to suggest they are the same. Start a thread on jeeps or mini trucks. They have roles, but being a UTV is not one of them for most applications.

I will repeat what I've said before. It all depends on how you want to use your UTV.

The below roads can easily be driven in a Jeep. But you'll drive them at crawling speeds, bouncing and tossing around, and after a few miles you'll feel like you've been beat with a stick. A UTV, with its 4-wheel independent soft suspension and tires that are inflated to only 10 psi, will cover these roads at a faster pace and the ride will be very smooth and comfortable.

I've been a Jeep owner for most of my life - and I'll be 80 soon. My current Jeep is a 2006 Wrangler Rubicon. I've been a UTV owner (Can-am Defender) for only a couple years but the difference in ride on rough roads between Jeep and Defender is still startling.

 

[plastikosmd]

I never got the “dump bed” thing

Had a gator, neighbor has an RTV1100

A POS rolled 18ga sheet metal or molded plastic “dump bed” functioning mostly as storage is not what a utv makes, for me

Loaded the neighbor’s rtv bed up once with boulders-rocks

1)definitely would never “machine” drop load it
2) bent the living crap out of it, despite being under capacity
3) seemed fine for mulch/sand/firewood or your saws

(And that was a “good” bed.)

I would only consider toolcat or greater (own a tracked dumper for real work)

Too much$ for a wheelbarrow vs a trailer. There is plenty of room to stuff all your tools in many similar vehicles. Imho the “dump bed” is about as valuable as my 3pt tool carrier and not a selling point.

 

[ArlyA]

We use the dump bed on our machine all the time. Its plastic and we like that to.

 

[plastikosmd]

No doubt it is a handy space to throw crap into

Just not the machine selling point or what defines the machine for me.

When I want/need a dump bed, it isn’t for mulch or a chainsaw


(More specifically, the “dump” feature in a very light duty bed/system is not a “selling point” (To me)and do agree that the utv should have some means to at least carry equipment)

 

[John_Mc]

No doubt it is a handy space to throw crap into

Just not the machine selling point or what defines the machine for me.

When I want/need a dump bed, it isn’t for mulch or a chainsaw


(More specifically, the “dump” feature in a very light duty bed/system is not a “selling point” and do agree that the utv should have some means to at least carry equipment)

Believe me, I understand the need for a dump trailer. I have one ATV sized one, and an other for use behind my tractor or pick up truck.

I often need to haul gear for a mile or more over twisting trails. I really appreciate the option of not being forced to bring a trailer along.

 

[plastikosmd]

No doubt, being able to carry is key whether that be a utv/jeep/atv w a box/mini truck or variant

 

[ovrszd]

I will repeat what I've said before. It all depends on how you want to use your UTV.

The below roads can easily be driven in a Jeep. But you'll drive them at crawling speeds, bouncing and tossing around, and after a few miles you'll feel like you've been beat with a stick. A UTV, with its 4-wheel independent soft suspension and tires that are inflated to only 10 psi, will cover these roads at a faster pace and the ride will be very smooth and comfortable.
View attachment 772856

View attachment 772857

I've been a Jeep owner for most of my life - and I'll be 80 soon. My current Jeep is a 2006 Wrangler Rubicon. I've been a UTV owner (Can-am Defender) for only a couple years but the difference in ride on rough roads between Jeep and Defender is still startling.

A Defender is on my want list for sure!!!! It think they are the Cadillac of UTVs.