Machines

The smallest green machine By the staff of Dirt Wheels Kawasaki, like most manufacturers, has machines for the whole family. For the smallest member of your posse, Team Green offers a little 50cc four-stroke with a fully automatic CVT transmission. It uses a chassis similar to its larger 90cc brother, with smaller tires, lower overall seat height and a lighter weight. The 2020 Kawasaki KFX50 is recommended for kids 6 years old and older.  BASIC NUMBERS  This KFX is 34.7 inches wide, 55.1 inches long, 35.8 inches…

Choose between budget and bodacious By the staff of Dirt Wheels The Polaris Ranger series has been the driving force for the company’s utility recreation sales. When Polaris first released the Ranger XP 1000, it continued sales of the Ranger XP 900, the machine the 1000 had grown up from. The XP 900 was a company best seller, and there was little motivation to mess with it. Even when Polaris updated the Ranger XP 1000 in 2018, the all-new machine was joined in the line by the venerable Ranger XP 900. Now, though, the…

Power meets finesse By the staff of Dirt Wheels It can be tough proving which machine is the best between two highly acclaimed 4x4 ATVs from two of the top Japanese manufacturers. Kawasaki has had great success with their hefty Brute Force 750 4x4i powerhouse. It hasn’t been upgraded in quite a while, but Suzuki performed a full makeover on the KingQuad 750AXi 4x4 in 2018. It was refaced, reworked, strengthened and tuned to be a better version of its previous self. We jumped, crawled, clawed, submerged and ripped…

Tremendous value, super performance By the staff of Dirt Wheels From the earliest introduction of the Can-Am Maverick X3 line, the byword has been” performance.” One year there was a normally aspirated model, but we never saw one. We have only experienced X3 versions with factory-installed turbos, and the lion’s share of those are intercooled turbos. In 2018 Can-Am started selling a lower-priced non-intercooled model simply called the X3 Turbo. That put it at 120 horsepower instead of the 172 ponies for the…

Power-hungry By the staff of Dirt Wheels, Photos by Casey Kramer Kawasaki’s Brute Force 750 has always been defined as a power-monger in the class. From the beginning of the model’s long lifespan, the engine performance has been so impressive that it has remained the class bully with few revisions. We aren’t belittling the chassis at all. It does all that is asked in fine fashion. While the shocks are relatively basic by sport standards, the suspension is supple and surprisingly well-controlled for spirited riding.…

Backwoods bandit By the staff of Dirt Wheels Nothing says you are ready to rip through the elements like a machine equipped with a winch, beadlock wheels, added LED lighting and some aggressive tires. Adding all of these products to your machine is much less of a hassle when the manufacturer offers it in stock trim, and that’s exactly what Yamaha did to please tight-trail tamers. We lovingly dubbed the 2020 Yamaha YXZ1000R SS with the XT-R package the “Backwoods Bandit” due to its sinister color scheme and…

Two-seat fun for the young ones By the staff of Dirt Wheels There’s no better way to teach your kids how to drive than starting them young. Car control, rules of the road and safety can all be learned in the dirt, making them a great driver years before they are ready to hit the road. We like to get kids behind the wheel early, and a new youth-sized UTV is a great way to do it. This test took place with a 2019 model, and the only changes Polaris made to the machine is to add green and white color options. On…

2020 PRO XP Polaris RZR introduced the RZR® PRO XP Orange Madness LE and RZR® PRO XP 4 Orange Madness LE, a new limited edition model to the 2020 RZR lineup. The RZR PRO XP Orange Madness LE, is equipped with the ultimate trail performance that can only found in the RZR PRO XP lineup, including a 64-inch width to navigate the trails and 22-inches of usable suspension that provides all day comfort. Coupled with its performance, the PRO XP Orange Madness LE also features industry-leading RIDE COMMAND technology, Rockford…

The image with the machines under cover are the new models that will be announced on July 7th. It’s easy to tell, the one on the left is a Mule utility model, the one in the middle could be a 4-seater with KRX1000 bodywork and the one on the left is another yet to be released KRX.  On June 1st, Kawasaki released the 2021 KRX1000, so this new model is either a special edition model or possibly, something with a turbo or supercharger. The anticipation is killing us. Here’s what we know so far. For 2021, the Kawasaki…

One-month wonder By the staff of Dirt Wheels Few people would question Jeremy McGrath’s dedication as a racer. His Supercross career is unrivaled with two 125cc SX championships and a championship—the first of eight—in his rookie year in the 250cc (then the Premier class) class. Some of our staff watched as he attempted the nation’s toughest motorcycle hill-climb in Billings, Montana, where he missed winning the event by one-tenth of a second riding borrowed bikes he had never sat on before. In another lesser-known…

The Deluxe edition By the staff of Dirt Wheels, Photos by Kevin Wing Here is a fun fact: the recreational utility ATV market is still Honda’s bread and butter in the four-wheel category. When Honda had multiple sport quad models on dealer floors, the ranch-style performers easily had double or more sales. Honda 4x4s have a reputation for being the most durable and long-lasting in the business, which obviously helps sales. People purchase 4x4 ATVs for work and recreational performance and enjoyment. It is quick and…

Bring out the big gun By the staff of Dirt Wheels We affectionately address Polaris’ 2020 Scrambler XP 1000 S as the “Beast.” It has set new standards in the ATV world. Polaris decided to take an existing sport 4x4 platform, strengthen it, widen it and add more suspension travel. It boasts 89 horsepower from the ProStar engine, and jaws drop at its massive appearance. They may also drop for its hefty $14,999 price tag. We will let you decide if the price is worth the Scrambler XP 1000 S pure-sport experience.…