2015 Argo decision

[bluffman]

I am currently debating between a 2015 750 HDI and a 2015 650 Frontier. My application is Rocky trails (30 degree) and some river access. Is it worth the extra $5k for the 750 HDI or will the 650 Frontier fill the bill? Which of these Kohler engines has been around the longest and is the most reliable? Thanks for any feedback.

[bluffman]

A slight clarification on my previous thread. I am comparing the 2015 750 HDI 8x8 and the 2015 Frontier EFI 8x8.

[philipatmaxfour]

A slight clarification on my previous thread. I am comparing the 2015 750 HDI 8x8 and the 2015 Frontier EFI 8x8.

Tough question.The 8 wheel frontier was always a pretty good machine but nobody was real excited about the 23 horse Briggs. engine that it came with. but now with an efi Kohler it gets pretty close to call. Nearly everybody prefers the Kohlers. Does the Frontier have 24 inch wheels? Do you think that the larger tires float higher? Let us know what you decide. Good luck

[jtb51b]

i made the same decision a few weeks ago.i didnt mind spending the extra money to get the beter machine, however for me it turned out the better machine was the less expensive one. i suggest you contact Tim at adair argo, he can help you make the right decision even if you dont intent to buy from him. one word of warning tho, he will make it very difficult to buy one anywhere else. I like my frontier EFI, the only thing i might have would change is the tires, i think the 25" tires offer more flotation. I have only ran mine a short time. I definitely prefer the air cooled engine, I have ran rock crawlers for years and water cooled engines just add one more thing to go wrong. I prefer them in my car, on pavement but in an offroad situation I prefer the air cooled Koehler better. You will not notice any power issues with the EFI engine, I regularly go up and down a steep road and have no problems. I even run it in high most of the time. I have the 3.3 trans which is lower geared but I am not sure how much, I go slow mostly so it's great. I have not taken it down the road yet but it seems to be as fast as my max iv was. I had 4 adults in it this weekend and climbed up the hills and in and out of the creek with no problem, only floated for maybe 10' but it handled that much weight just fine.

Jason

[bluffman]

Jason, did you have any concerns with the idler chain maintenance? I understand that the Frontier has vertical
chains that must periodically be tightened whereas the 750 HDI uses a driveshaft configuration.

[jtb51b]

Jason, did you have any concerns with the idler chain maintenance? I understand that the Frontier has vertical
chains that must periodically be tightened whereas the 750 HDI uses a driveshaft configuration.

Had no idea. However, I still wouldn't trade that maintenance for the maintenance of a water cooled engine, or possible maintenance of. I will probably put very few hours and even less miles on my machine per year so it will be a long time before those things need adjusting. I came from a max iv and this Argo steers similar to the max, albeit a whole lot easier. The 750 hdi seemed different, maybe easier to steer but less responsive. It's hard to explain, but I like the feel of the frontier better. Honestly I don't really think you can go wrong, I just think the frontier EFI is the most bang for the buck. I was about to save about $5k with this one. I think I got a very fair deal from Adair Argo, but for me I was happpiest to find a knowledgable dealer as our local one is anything but. I am a very mechanical person and I want to have all the info I can prior to buying anything like this, Tim helped me a lot with all of that.

Jason

[msafi65]

The additional maintance on the frontier probably is 1/2 hour at most once you learn to keep the chains tensioned. If you haven't been amphibious before the frontier is going to be like going to the moon over a 4wheeler. My opinion is the new EFI Frontier may be the best amphib for dollar spent at this time.

[mightymaxIV]

Bluffman-I assume you are going to run this machine with Adair tracks?
I own I own a 2011 Argo HDI with Adair tracks, and I have owned the 650 HD, both Machines had the Admiral transmission.
The 23 horse Briggs engine has always been the short fall of the frontier. Now that you can get it with the Kohler EFI engine that issue is gone.
The new Frontier is lighter then the HDI, if you order the low 3.3 transmission your going to have a mountain goat. If your going to run the machine on tires you will soon see that the Admiral transmission has an advantage in most areas. If your going to run the machine with Adair tracks the old style low geared transmission will perform as good or better under certain circumstances.

Here is what I would tell you, save your money, get the EFI Frontier with a set of Adair tracks, brush guard, winch, 3.3 transmission and rear Axle extensions. If you do this you will save a lot of money and have an almost unbeatable combination that will carry through mud and swamp conditions you simply will not believe-there is not a 4x4 made that will follow you in bad mud conditions.



Watch the video-if the mud looks bad with tracks you would not make it with tires-I have run my HDI on tires and got stuck in small mud holes-simple stuff-the Adair tracks just make it easy.

[bluffman]

Thanks for the advice and the video. I am leaning towards the Frontier configured exactly like that.

[mightymaxIV]

Bluffman-On Rocky trails and climbs the HDI with tires is far better suited to your application-the true 8x8 drive make the machine more conrollable for climbing and the 25 inch swimmer tires are great on trail rides and swim like a fish.
The Adair tracks are not really good in rocky conditions-they are more suited to mud a swamp conditions- for any kind of rocks it's tough to beat the 25 inch swimmer tire and Admiral transmission

any of the Kohler engines are almost bullet proof.