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Passenger protection for the RZR XP Pro By Ray Gibbs and the staff of Dirt Wheels There you are, blasting down your favorite trail. Everything on your car is working just as planned. You take pride in your ride, and the accessories that you bought and installed. The day is going great! You are driving like a hero. And then, in an instant, a deer jumps out of nowhere and flies right across the front of your car. It missed you by inches. Or, it could have been a dirt bike or quad coming head-on that you didn’t see in…

Duncan Racing builds another beauty By the staff of Dirt Wheels Photos by Pat Carrigan Gambling is all about knowing the odds. If you understand odds, there are bets so safe, they hardly meet the definition of the word “gambling.” Dirt Wheels can’t possibly know anything specific about your significant other, but we can safely wager they have never gotten you a gift like this sublime 1985 Honda ATC 250R. Sure, maybe some of you have, but knowing the odds, we feel pretty safe with this blanket statement. After all,…

ATV boating, wet tech tips and drown-out cures By the “sink or swim” staff of Dirt Wheels DO ATVs FLOAT? A question ATV riders have been pondering for decades is, “Do ATVs float?” Joe Lepore of Loxahatchee, Florida, claims his FourTrax Foreman 400 not only floats but can actually motor along in the local canals with a rider on board! He even has the photos to prove it. Joe did, however, have to per­form a major waterproofing job on the entire machine, as well as add a snorkel air-intake extension up to the…

By Steve Casper Editor’s note: More than 20 years ago Steve Casper, one of the editors of Dirt Wheels, introduced the off-road aptitude test, a series of questions that allows enthusiasts to test their off-roading knowledge. We recently rediscovered the test and found it as enjoyable and valuable as it was when it was first published. We thought you’d enjoy it as well To folks who have never participated in off-roading, many of the terms, slang and technical jargon we use can be quite confusing. However, Dirt…

A UTV born for the badlands By the staff of Dirt Wheels Dirt Wheels hasn’t had the opportunity to test the RZR XP 1000 Trails & Rocks model since 2016. Since then we have seen that the model is a popular choice for serious trail hounds, including some of the Rally on the Rocks ride leaders. For 2021 the Trails & Rocks gets a full makeover with strong styling cues and LED lighting from the RZR Turbo S. In addition to the new profile, the machine is a lush Metallic Polaris Blue with color-matched suspension…

New winners for the season opener By the staff of Dirt Wheels, Photos by Harlan Foley The Best in the Desert season opener held record-breaking racer attendance with 330 total entries. Over 100 entries were registered for the various Pro UTV categories and 54 among the UTV Turbo class. The UTV Unlimited class nearly doubled in size from the previous year. The UTV Pro Open class ran for the first time in the Tensor Tire Parker 250 and was claimed by Mitchell Alsup. This class was designed to allow a more…

Connecting your UTV to help By the staff of Dirt Wheels As handy and mechanically savvy as we may fancy ourselves to be, the truth is, most of us are not fully trained mechanics with years of experience. What happens when you’re miles down the trail (or way out on the dunes) and something happens to your rig? Perhaps an “engine light” reducing performance? Or even worse,  the dreaded “limp home” mode? Those of us who are prepared will have basic tools and possibly even a basic code scanner available for us…

Who says you need a big-bore quad? By the staff of Dirt Wheels Most manufacturers have directed their attention away from sport quad production in the last decade, and Honda certainly has. On a positive note, utility-type quads are becoming a more appealing option. In fact, some are becoming so capable that 4x4 quads are becoming the new sport quad. We tested the $7699 Honda FourTrax Rancher 4x4 Automatic DCT EPS quad, which is a nicely equipped 420cc version with plenty to offer. This popular and reliable model is…

The chasers are stepping it up By Ken Hill The short off-season seems to get shorter each year for those competing in the Grand National Cross-Country series (GNCC). The run up to the 2021 season was shorter than ever when COVID delays pushed the 2020 season late! As teams and riders scrambled to get parts and needed equipment, the world seemed to be working against them. With restrictions at ports due to continuing COVID issues, even the suppliers were scrambling to get parts and products in the country and shipped.…

By Lane Lindstrom and the staff of Dirt Wheels Regardless of whether your choice of quad is a sport, recreation or utility vehicle, most of us wouldn’t put up too much of a fight if we could add a few more ponies to improve the performance of our ATV. An effective and relatively inexpensive way to increase the horsepower of your quad is with an aftermarket exhaust system. Not only can an aftermarket exhaust increase the horsepower of your quad, but, in most cases, it can also shave some weight off your vehicle.…

When an engine builder tricks out the Pro XP By Allen Knowles and the staff of Dirt Wheels When new UTVs come out, we often have them for a day or two of testing at a new-model introduction. That gives us enough information to share our impressions with you. Other times we end up with the unit to do more testing and even make modifications. That is the case with our RZR Pro XP 4. We’ve had it long enough to log lots of miles in the hands of CT Racing’s Allen Knowles. Knowles has been a racer and engine builder for…

ATVs throwing serious dirt By Juli Moore/Dirt n Dunz Photography The Professional Sand Drag Association (PSDA) brought world-record ATV sand drags back to the West Coast for the Arizona ATV Nationals. This race was held at Dome Valley Raceway just outside of Yuma, Arizona. After a three-year lapse on the West Coast, this event had racers from across the country getting bikes ready to compete at the highest level. This is where world records are set! Racers from all over the U.S. and Puerto Rico traveled through snow…