AATV vs Side-by-Sides

[MaxRules]

Originally Posted by MaxRules:

One important thing you have over looked in your comparison is what your friends will be riding while you're in the amphib.

JP, you won't find anyone who loves aatv's/Max's/T20's more than Brandon Price. I agree with him about pointing out that what your friends ride is important in what you choose to buy and ride with them. I've even felt like the odd man out when riding with 2 maxII's in my 8x8. They made every tree a slalom course marker and hit every tiny rabbit trail, while I just cruised along the general area waiting for a point to re join them.

Yes Roger, that pretty much sums it up. You'd have to search the world over to find someone who has enjoyed the 6x6 sport more than me. There are times though, I have to see past my blind love and admit amphibs aren't for everyone or every situation. The T-20 has taken me places I still can't believe, and the old reliable Briggs has powered me through everything. But when the terrain doesn't demand an amphib, that T-20 suddenly becomes difficult to shift and the Briggs just doesn't give the same thrill as the 800 Polaris.

Maximize your off-road fun by getting the right vehicle for your terrain and the way you ride. No matter what you ride, ride it like you stole it!

[6X6]

I have driven side by sides before, never owned one though. I'm NOT trying to argue here, just my experience: They aren't overly tippy or top heavy, just being strapped in with a roll bar makes drivers over confident, add the powerful engines they put in them and you end up with accidents if you push it, and that's kinda the fun anyways. If you don't buckle up, or stick your hand/leg out to "Catch" yourself, you end up hurt (Rhino issue, didn't originally have any leg guard to keep legs inside in a rollover). The ones I have driven are quite stable at speed, within limits. Get to nasty trails and you loose that, unless you slow down, but to be fair, that goes in any vehicle.
Now, that said, I won't get one. I'll take the 6-wheelers cause I like the mud, the swimming, and I love the 2-stroke Attex speed/maneuverability. I don't miss the suspension, (though I do want it on one machine sometime down the road). There's no reason you can't mix/match machines as long as the riding allows, hell ATVrider followed us at Busco on a SPORT Quad (not even 4WD!) though he did need a yank or two. So if you want to swim/mud, then it's AATV time, and if your friends get ahead down the trails a bit, you get to catch them at the mud or steep climbs. If you want more speed you can get it, motor/clutch/sprocket upgrades aren't too expensive as long as your on a real tight budget.

[trainguy438]

i ride with all 4 wheelers and they love having me there to pull them out when things get muddy.

[Roger S]

Originally Posted by MaxRules:

One important thing you have over looked in your comparison is what your friends will be riding while you're in the amphib.

JP, you won't find anyone who loves aatv's/Max's/T20's more than Brandon Price. I agree with him about pointing out that what your friends ride is important in what you choose to buy and ride with them. I've even felt like the odd man out when riding with 2 maxII's in my 8x8. They made every tree a slalom course marker and hit every tiny rabbit trail, while I just cruised along the general area waiting for a point to re join them.

[nairb35]

I don't understand why people do that to themselfs.Run up credit card bills and then sell off their toys to pay them off.Ya I will keep looking,it always seems like some people buy certain items then sell them in the off season.IE: snowblowers,snowmobiles,lawnmowers. Why would you buy something you use like that then sell it in the off season,I suppose some would justify it by saying," well I don't have to store it."

[jpswift1]

Hope my sarcasm came though right!

Haha, it sure did. I noticed the same thing you mentioned about the used AATV market. Lately the deals on used machines don't seem to be there as much as there were before. Keep scanning Craigslist everyday and eventually something will pop up. Maybe people will start selling machines after Christmas so they can pay their credit card bills down.

[nairb35]

Could all owners of 6x6s please stop taking their quad, side by side friends for rides! When they see what our machines can do. They tend to want one.The used market is pretty spare right now, and with every "convert", it gets sparser.I have been looking for a machine for my buddy for 6 months now and haven't been able to find the "right" deal. Thanks big mouths. So lets all just be quiet and we can all have that second and third machine. Hope my sarcasm came though right!

[jpswift1]

Had to throw one more thing in here. Anyone can go out and buy a brand new Ranger, guys like I mentioned in my previous post like Whipper, Meinfeld, George, Mike, and Lewis built their machines and can make changes as they go to better suite the terrain they ride. With a Ranger you have to go to the dealer and buy parts that are specifically for it, which costs a lot of money. Those guys that build their machines have something that is unique, extremely capable, and really cool. People that TRY to do that with their Ranger (or quad or other side by side) just have lots of payments to make on a common machine that is still inferior to an AATV.

[jpswift1]

One important thing you have over looked in your comparison is what your friends will be riding while you're in the amphib. You said they all own Rhinos and Rangers. I went to my first 6x6 ride over ten years ago and there is one thing immediately obvious: you can't mix ATVs and amphibs. They handle terrain differently. It's fun to take the amphib in water, what really what good is it when no one else has an amphib? Not only is the top speed of the Rangers much faster than any amphib, but they can travel faster over most terrain. I can ride my Max at a good speed down a wooded trail, but the Ranger can burn down that trail twice as fast and keep the riders in comfort.
If you ride with other ATVs and need something to carry four men and gear, you really can't beat the Ranger Crew. It has two bench seats, a dump box, 800 EFI engine, and enough suspension to carry it all smoothly over the roughest terrain.

So a Ranger can burn down a trail through the woods twice as fast and provide a more comfortable ride than a Max or other 6 wheel AATV? That certainly seems like you're exagerating......you won't be taking a Ranger through trails in the woods at 40MPH.....it would be very unstable at that speed and with its high center of gravity it obviously wouldn't be safe. I agree that ATVs and amphibs handle terrain differently, but it sounds like the only big advantage that you've brought up is that they're faster......what good is speed on tight technical trails, or what good is speed when you're going through super deep sticky mud like a lot of members on the site here do?

Next, you're wrong about the top speed of a Ranger being much faster than any amphib. Think about the 6 wheelers made roughly 35 years ago, way before any side by side was even invented. There were hot rod 2 stroke 6 wheelers like the Attex Superchief, 440 Thunderchief, and the Argo SS. I'd love to see my Attex 440 Thunderchief go head to head with a Ranger. The thing is basically a stock machine, with the addition of a cage and bucket seat, but I'm pretty confident that thing could outrun a Ranger, and it certainly would manuever better than one too. Sure the Ranger might be faster than most 4 stroke amphibs, except for guys like Whipper, Meinfeld, George, Lewis, Mike, and all those guys with the modded 4 stroke speed machines, but again, what good is high speed in off road conditions?

Finally you say how great the Ranger Crew is. What you wrote sounds like some kind of sales pitch straight out of a Polaris Ranger dealership brochure. Look at that thing, there is no possible way that it could do what an amphib can. It weighs nearly 1500lbs so the exerted PSI with just 4 wheels must be extrememly high compared to an AATV. It will just sink in a mud hole and bottom right out, no matter how much money you spend on lift kits or big tires. It looks like one of those stretched out golf carts that carry people through the airport.......so when it bottoms out in the middle trying to climb over steep mounds what happens? You spend more time winching and all that speed to get you there quickly isn't any good now because you're wasting all your time trying to get unstuck. And I'd love to see a Ranger in extreme terrain that us folks on the site take our machines in, like the sticky gumbo mud, the tight technical trails, the super deep snow, the steep hills, the flooded out trails and swamps. Sorry Brandon, you certainly won't be convincing anyone here how "great" a Ranger is.

[jpswift1]

Glad to hear you're happy with the new 6 wheeler! These things are amazing and the are far superior to quads and side by sides in just about every way, except for the speed and suspension. You can do so much more with them and when it comes to all around utility use, they're second to none......they float, they pull, they climb, and they're safe. Keep us updated, and maybe you can even join us for a ride sometime!

[TripleTriple]

Well... I got a Max IV a couple of weeks ago. I brought it home, blew it apart and cleaned and serviced everything at the suggestion of a lot of guys on this board. Then proceded to mount my winch, make a Lexan windshield and threw in some dry storage by the engine and under the seats. Still have some Ideas kicking around in my head but for the most part it is ride/hunt ready.
I hooked up with my buddies today for a TRUE shake-down run and comparison. I went riding with 2 polaris 500's and a Rhino 660. We ended up parking everything else, swimming down the creek about 100 yds, climbing the bank onto an Island I hunt on and pushing it to it's limits... Got stuck twice and scared the $#!^!! out of everybody climbing some stuff That I still pucker at when I recall it. The bottom line is that the manueverability of the 6x6 and its ability to swim MORE than makes up for the bumpy ride and relativly slow pace you're forced into. I also attribute my happiness with my decision to the fact that I spent months trying to research the 6x6's. On the roads and open trails I did miss the power I was used to but I forgot about that when the trail became "technical". Best part by far is how Stabile this thing is. I have NO problem putting my 5 year old in this and going on ANY trail I used to say no to in the past and carefully picking my way through.
Couldn't be happier!!

[hellraizor]

Yes this is a good site starting to like it here... I have went over to the guy house i'm buying the agro from and looked at it real good 1st i'm goin to replace fuel lines and clean out the tank 2nd change all the fluids lube it all up.. i want to put a top on itbut i think i'm going to make my own outa 1/2'' square tubing.. And was thinking about a heater i came up with a good idea i posted on here it's up heater/windshild... i drew up plains for it might work out ok just a few bugs i will post some pics as soon as I take some...

[trainguy438]

my vote is for the new argo! i have a 04 bigfoot and love it! i get 28miles an hr and can go where most atv get stuck. the ride isnt a nice as the others but when you learn how to ride it and when to slow down it ant bad. kids love it and its great for ice fishing, atving, fishing and many other activites. you have to decide whats most important. and if you have four guys with ya you should b able to get that ranger out of the mud! good luck.

[Castro]

I think you need an Argo 8x8 hdi with new style trans. It's an all new ballgame, no more limited slip. Just pure grip.

[amphibious drew]

Hellraizer,

That's an Argo in your picture. Their engines are in front. The Max line has the engine in the back. They both are still manufactured currently. Don't worry, there are people who own the machines that list them wrong on ebay and craigslist all the time making it difficult for a newbie to figure things out unless of course they find their way to this fine web site.