ATV

| ATV Genuine Accessories available for the Kawasaki Utility Range

The Kawasaki 2021 range comprises of four MULE utlity vehicles and the Brute Force 750 4x4i EPS ATV: the MULE PRO-DXT, MULE PRO-DX, MULE PRO-MX and MULE SX. The range is designed for use over various terrain found on arable and pastoral farms, providing the ability to easily transport equipment and animal feed. A range of Kawasaki Genuine Accessories are available across the utility range to provide additional comfort and ease with everyday tasks. The MULE SX 4x4 is equipped with a 401cc four-stroke, OHV, air-cooled engine, sporting a 16-litre fuel tank, delivering power reliably and economically, with a restricted top speed of 25mph. The tubular steel chassis provides the best balance of rigidity, strength and ride comfort with off-road pursuits. The MULE SX can be fitted with either a Canvas Cabin or Hard Cabin, which includes wiper and washer, to provide protection against the elements for use all year round. Also available as an additional accessory is a Cargo Bed Liner or thick Cargo Bed Mat, to reduce damage to the original bed surface from heavy loads. The easy-toload tilting cargo bed can carry up to 181kg of tools and materials, and an extra 500kg can be towed behind by fitting a tow ball to the ever-eager MULE. The MULE PRO-MX offers the ideal balance between compact and full size UTVs, fitted with a single-cylinder 700cc petrol powered engine, the MX is perfectly positioned between the MULE SX and MULE PRO-DX, giving customers even greater choice to find the perfect vehicle for their needs. The MULE PRO-MX can be fitted with a Hard Cabin made of high grade steel with a quality black finish. The flip-up style tinted safety glass windscreen features rubber seals and locks to ensure you stay dry and warm when tackling the most difficult tasks. Heavy Duty Springs are available to firm up the suspension and improve the handling of the vehicle whilst transporting heavy cargo or when fitted with a cabin. With conveniently small dimensions (2,795 mm long x

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1,525 mm wide x 2,005 mm wheelbase with a turning circle of just 4.2m), the carrying and towing capacity does not suffer at 317kg and 680kg respectively. A Bed Extender is available for the MULE PRO-MX to further increase usable cargo space for extra-large loads. At the top of the MULE range is the MULE PRO-DX and MULE PRO-DXT, offering a class-leading 453kg carrying capacity of the long and low tipping cargo bed and impressive 907kg towing potential. The 993cc liquid-cooled, 4stroke Diesel engine provides ample power to navigate over tough terrain and working environments. Dirt, terrain and weather won’t stop the ultra-rugged MULE PRO-DX and PRO-DXT, with all essential systems designed to resist water, dust and debris. The MULE PRODX and MULE PRO-DXT are available to purchase with a Hard Cabin, featuring doors equipped with hydraulic stoppers, automotive style locks and sliding safety glass side windows. The DXT Hard Cabin also includes a clear sliding window partition between the front and rear seats to allow complete cab enclosure whether in 2 or 4 passenger mode. Additional accessories include a bed extender, cargo dividers and under seat storage bin to provide additional easy-to-access space, which stays outof-sight. The Kawasaki 2021 ATV offering is the Brute Force 750 4x4i EPS, available in either Camo or Super Black colour options. This high-performance allterrain vehicle is equipped with a 749cc liquid cooled, 4-stroke V-twin engine, providing all-day working performance. Industry leading features including speed variable Electronic Power Steering and greater chassis control providing all-day working performance. The Brute Force 750 4x4i EPS can be installed with a front or rear case to create extra storage when on the move. The full Kawasaki utility range and Genuine Accessories are available on the Kawasaki website or through your local Kawasaki utility dealer. To find out more visit www.kawasaki.co.uk

| ATV Ranger Stories: A helping hand at a UK smallholding

Hardest working. Smoothest riding. The Polaris Ranger is one of the bestselling utility side-by-sides across the globe, and has earned its reputation as the ultimate utility vehicle with over one million vehicles built and counting. To showcase the versatility of the Ranger, Polaris has embarked on a journey across Europe, Middle East and Africa to discover and film how customers are using the Polaris Ranger in their day-to-day lives. The initiative, called Ranger Stories, is set to demonstrate the many ways in which the Ranger line-up is servicing customer lives worldwide.

Episode 7 – UK

The Clements family have always wanted to own and manage a smallholding in the UK, so when the opportunity came up in 2018, Jane Clements,

along with her family and her horses, moved to Corbetts Hill Farm to make the dream a reality. Situated northwest of London in Bedfordshire, Corbetts Hill Farm is a 10acre smallholding surrounded by the beautiful English countryside. Peaceful and picturesque, what might not be obvious at first glance is how much manual labour and time is required to maintain and manage a smallholding of this size. To give a helping hand, the Clements family bought a Polaris Ranger 570 last year and haven’t looked back since.

Jane Clements said, “Being able to keep the horses on our own land is amazing, but it is hard work. We bought our Ranger about a year ago, and what a difference it’s made. I can’t actually remember how we managed before.” For the seventh episode of Ranger Stories, Polaris follows a day in the life of Jane to see exactly what goes into the management of Corbetts Hill Farm, from sunrise to sunset. With its large cargo bed with 227kg capacity, the Ranger 570 makes light work of transporting materials like horse feed and water, and with the addition of the Polaris Engineered CargoMax system, they can move even more in one load. The Clements’ also have a Polaris Pro Heavy-Duty winch fitted to the Ranger to help with fallen trees around the land.

Homologated for road use in the UK, Jane can use the Ranger 570 can visit her local equestrian supplier as well as the local allotment, and thanks to being small in size, the Ranger 570 can easily travel around the farm; in and around barns and sheds, between gates, and through woodland – all the areas that a 4×4 wouldn’t be able to travel. With its 25.4cm ground clearance and all-wheel drive capabilities, any difficult tracks or muddy fields are no match for the Ranger. Whilst there are no days off and an endless list of jobs to do whilst living on a smallholding, the Ranger 570 allows the Clements family to work smarter, not harder, in order to get the job done.

Polaris Reveals Plan for All-New Full-Size Electric RANGER

Polaris Inc. (NYSE: PII) unveiled plans to debut an all-new 2022 electric RANGER utility side-byside in late December 2021, advancing the Company’s strategic rEV’d up electrification strategy. This fullsize RANGER is the first electric vehicle Polaris developed through its powersports industry-exclusive partnership with Zero Motorcycles®, which the two companies announced last September. The Company expects the new electric RANGER to start arriving in dealerships in early 2022. “Our rEV’d up strategy positions Polaris to help define yet another chapter in powersports innovation,” said Mike Speetzen, interim CEO, Polaris Inc. “With the rising interest in electric vehicles, we are investing in electrification in order to meet the needs of current customers as well as appeal to tomorrow’s riders. The all-new electric RANGER is our latest effort aimed at leading the industry forward in this area.” As part of the Polaris rEV’d up strategy, the all-new full-size electric RANGER spearheads the company’s long-term plan to accelerate its leadership in powersports electrification. Design and development efforts for the all-new electric RANGER are currently underway in North America. “The strength of our partnership with Zero Motorcycles and our own investments in electrification R&D enable us to leverage advancements in electric powertrains and performance to drive the off-road industry into the future,” said Mike Donoughe, senior vice president and chief technical officer, Polaris Inc. “This will be one of the most technically advanced off-road vehicles on the market and reinforces Polaris’ position as the innovation leader in powersports.”

“As our top-selling off-road vehicle brand, RANGER has continually set the benchmark as the hardest working, smoothest riding UTV, leading the market in rider-inspired innovation,” said Steve Menneto, president of Polaris Off Road. “The new electric powertrain will elevate the RANGER platform to a whole new level of capability, durability and performance.”

“We’ve actively engaged our RANGER customers, and without a doubt, there is significant demand for even higher levels of performance and capability,” added Menneto. “They’ve expressed some very specific unmet needs, and our new electric full-size RANGER will effectively address them, unlocking a truly enhanced off-road experience.”

After relying on Honda ATVs for more than 30 years to carry out transport duties around a Suffolk shoot, an experienced gamekeeper selected a Honda Pioneer 700 UTV as a replacement and is delighted with his decision. David Burder is the gamekeeper for Tendring Hall Shoot which is run by Tendring Hall Estate, close to the Essex-Suffolk border. The shoot is across 800ha of rolling countryside including woodland, grass and cropped land, and ATVs have been used there since soon after David became the gamekeeper in the late 1980’s.

Loyal Honda user

“Most of the shoot is on light land, but which are susceptible to rutting and damage in the wet winter months,” explained David. “We rely on ATVs and UTVs for shoot transport, as their low ground pressure tyres allow travel across the same areas day after day throughout the year without creating ruts. “Before moving to Tendring I worked at another estate for seven years where we used Honda ATC250 three-wheelers. Their ability to transport people and materials in all weathers had impressed me, and they were almost totally reliable. When I started at Tendring and needed an ATV, I automatically chose a Honda.” According to David, his first TRX350 4wd was ‘a league above’ the three-wheel machines he had used previously. The TRX350 was replaced by another the same, then a succession of five or six more Hondas of various models were purchased over the next 30 years. “Despite travelling an average 12,000km per year they were all incredibly reliable, and there was never a need to look at other brands,” he commented.

Diesel disadvantages

Five years ago, the estate’s trustees suggested that a load-carrying UTV should be purchased to replace the ATV so that larger loads could be transported without needing a trailer, and passengers could be carried safely. Because Honda didn’t offer side-by-side UTVs at that time, David had to look at other options. He tried several different brands before selecting a dieselpowered machine with generous loadcarrying capability. “As soon as we started using the diesel machine there was an immediate issue with damage to sensitive ground which we had never experienced in over 30 years of using the Honda ATVs,” said David. “It carried heavy loads, but it was too slow and noisy for vermin control, so the Honda ATV remained on the shoot.”

Versatile and efficient

In autumn 2016, a new option became available when Honda added the Pioneer 700 side-by-side UTV to its range. There were two models – the Pioneer 700-2 with two seats, and the Pioneer 700-4 with four – including two QuickFlip seats which are stowed away below the front section of the load bed until they are needed, and then can be

folded out in just a few minutes to provide safe and comfortable transport for two extra passengers. Both models come with a tipping rear load bed capable of carrying up to 386kg, and an optional hitch for trailers up to 680kg. A powerful 675cc, liquid-cooled petrol engine drives through a mechanical torque converter automatic transmission with power transmitted by shafts to the wheels for high efficiency and excellent performance. A demonstration of the new Pioneer 700-2 was requested from the local main dealer. “I was very impressed,” said David. “Our diesel UTV can carry more but the Honda Pioneer was much lighter and more compact. Its offroad performance was similar to the Honda ATV and, unlike the heavy diesel model, it didn’t create ruts on soft ground. We placed an order then while we waited for it to arrive I persuaded the dealer to leave the demonstrator with us, as it was proving so useful.”

Brilliant tool

In the three years that David has used the Pioneer it has recorded 9,400kms and 641 working hours. Its main tasks have been delivering feed around the estate, transporting pen sections by trailer when ground conditions are too soft for the diesel UTV, and vermin control – most of which is at night. “It’s a brilliant tool,” said David. “When ground conditions are soft and wet we use it instead of the diesel machine. It’s got plenty of power, so even fully loaded it handles our slopes easily. It can travel almost anywhere the ATV could and the

narrow width and its extreme manoeuvrability mean we can use it wherever we want in the woods, rather than being restricted to wider established tracks. The petrol engine is smooth and very quiet so it’s ideal for night-time vermin control. It’s economical too and uses only slightly more fuel than the ATV, despite its ability to carry a passenger plus bigger loads.” David said that he can rely on the backup from his local authorised Honda dealer, MKM Agriculture. He has the Pioneer serviced annually by the team there and is confident that if it is ever out of action then a loan machine will always be available. Daily checks are straightforward and take just a few minutes, and there is very little routine maintenance. “None of the other petrol UTVs that we tried offered the performance and durability we needed,” concluded David. “The Pioneer has the best combination of off-road capability, operator comfort and load capacity, so we would definitely choose the same model again. It’s a great machine, and the only improvement we would suggest would be the addition of power steering to the options list.”