Project Machines

-- Common-sense mods from TUSK --  By the staff of Dirt Wheels, photos by Pat Carrigan Our 2018 Polaris RZR XP 4 Turbo Dynamix is the upper end of the price range for the Polaris range. We have around 500 hard miles on the Dynamix at this point, with 200 of those miles being in the sand dunes. So far, the machine has been pretty wonderful. As we live with the Dynamix computerized suspension, the more we appreciate it. When it was new, it was great in the dunes, but with many miles on it now, it is working extremely…

-- Building a special UTV for a Dakar Rally veteran -- A famous racer claimed that the most important 5 inches in racing is the space between your ears. So much of off-road driving and racing is affected by your mind. Former off-road motorcycle star Chris Blais has the mind of a true off-roader and a racer. KTM is a rally powerhouse now, but when the company first got serious about the sport, KTM held tryouts in the desert. Blais impressed enough to earn a spot on the team for the Dakar Rally in South America. He…

-- Could this be the ultimate 400EX? -- Honda sold thousands of TRX400EX sport quads and you still see plenty of them out on the trail. Rarely are they box stock though, because the 400EX has always been a popular machine for its owners to modify and improve. Of the modified and customized EXs we've seen, this one here is at the top of the pecking order. You just don't see that many with an exotic aluminum frame. This Honda 400EX belongs to Dirt Wheels reader Blake Holzgen. It was his winter project and here is how…

-- The latest version of the famous two-stroke three-wheeler -- Ever since Honda dropped their ATC250R after 1986, people have wondered how one would look today if it suddenly returned to the line up. Well, that has not happened yet, but what we have here is probably the closest thing to a 2019 ATC250R that Honda would build. It has an aluminum frame, inverted front forks and a 2-stroke engine with a power-valve, raising and lowering the exhaust port to make a broader power band. So, how did this modern ATC250R come…

-- ONE FOR THE ROAD -- Here's a three-wheeler you can ride down Main street. Is it available at your nearest Honda dealer? Well, not quite. This one was built by Michael Noska who has a shop called 220 Trikes LLC in Penn, Pennsylvania. His Honda ATC450X began as 2012 CRF450X dirt bike and then he proceeded to turn it into a three-wheeler with the goal of making it look like a production model from Honda. Most of the parts are all brand new, with the exception of the headlight housing, which came from a 1986 ATC350X.…

-- FAST QUAD FROM CANADA -- Kurt Boyko lives in British Columbia, Canada and he's been a Dirt Wheels reader for 15 years. We thought it was about time to take a look at the quad he proudly rides. It began as a 2007 Can-Am DS 650, but Kurt set out to boost its performance considerably. First, he stripped it down to the bare frame and had it powdered coated in Illusion Orange Cherry. The motor got a big-bore cylinder and a 5mm stroker crank, supplied by OMW Racing, which brought it up to 770cc. The head has 1mm larger…

The wildest quads with the most horsepower go wheel-to-wheel down the strip to find out which one is the speed king.

Darin McGuffin just wanted something different than what everyone else had, and after changing a few things on his General 4 he now absolutely loves it.

-- PRO ARMOR MAKES IT EVEN BETTER -- By the staff of Dirt Wheels One of the beauties of off-road is that the sport is accessible. Chris Pino has never had much of a dirt background aside from some local mountain biking. He has owned street bikes and appreciates a performance automobile, but a friend and former coworker found a package deal of two RZR 800s and a trailer. A year later they had driven the wheels off of the 800s and were feeling the limitations in power and suspension. Pino’s daytime job is…

-- The Blackwater 100 was dominated by this fast 2-stroke quad -- In 1975 a race was born in the muddy waters of Davis, West Virginia. Dave Coombs, owner of the famed GNCC racing series, was contacted by a small-town preacher in West Virginia regarding the economy of his struggling town. He was interested in hosting a motorcycle race to bring money into the area. Coombs saw the enormous potential, and the Blackwater 100 was born! The Blackwater race was aptly named after nearby Blackwater Falls and Blackwater…

-- 253 horsepower never disappoints, By the staff of Dirt Wheels -- Recently, we have found ourselves getting seat time in a variety of machines with Evolution Powersports turbo modifications. Traditionally, when you start leaning hard on a motor and making a lot of horsepower, the power delivery can get finicky and lose drivability. When we first caught sight of the Evolution Powersports X3 in Idaho at the UTV Invasion, it was the look of the car that grabbed us. Later, though, when we strapped in, turned the key and…

-- YES, IT'S INCREDIBLY FAST -- Here is one of Tyler Clark's Banshees. This twin-cylinder, 2-stroke Yamaha is far from stock. In fact, there may not be one stock part on it. First of all, the chassis is made by Stellar Machine & Performance. The custom swing arm and A-arms are made out of titanium, and it has Fox shocks front and rear. The key to this beast is the Redline Racing 24DM engine with Mattoon Machine billet cases and Crankworks billet crank, custom domes and porting. It is reported to be 745cc which…