maybe a little off topic... I was looking at these things longingly for a while to use on the farm, the price kept putting me off though, even a good used UTV cost more than a nice used truck would cost and I never could bring myself to pay that much for something that while handy, just isn't quite "sturdy"
enough for real work. I ended up finding a little suzuki samurai that some young guys had rolled over offroading, ran great and only cost 400 bucks. It's stronger than any UTV on the market, has a better electrical system, and has a full boxed frame under it so hooking up chains and cables to it to
jerk and yank big things around won't damage the vehicle...
Drawbacks? I can't think of any. Maybe slightly more fuel usage (very slight) and it isn't as "nice" looking, but it will haul more, work harder, and is cheaper to fix. I guess it does weigh more, but with wide tires it will not be much of an issue with compaction.
I have a good 4 wheeler for light duty stuff and for running around on, but the samurai is basically the same size as a UTV with quite a bit more going for it.... I've had a samurai before as a road vehicle and absolutely hated it, but for working around the farm, it's perfect for us. I completely removed the doors since opening and closing them proved to be a bit of a pain when I get in and out over and over again, but so far it's done everything I've asked of it and fills the niche between 4 wheeler and truck nicely. You can haul a surprising amount in the bed as well,
firewood for instance, I can carry about half of what we can fit in my g/f's chevy s-10. I would like to eventually build a dump bed for it, something maybe 4x4 or 4x5, with that built on the rear frame, it would be absolutely perfect.
also, for those wanting to go electric, there are ready made bolt in kits to turn samurai's electric
There are plenty of other similar size vehicles, geos, chevys etc...
I did get a subaru brat about 5 years ago to try and fill this niche, but subaru brat's do not have a frame, they're unibody and being able to abuse the vehicle by dragging logs etc. was important so I sold the brat... For those looking, I would seriously consider checking craigslist or similar places for small 4x4 vehicles, if you are only using it on the farm and don't care what shape the body is in, you can get a really good deal. Now that I have the samurai, I do not think I would consider owning a true UTV... Having a windshield, wipers, heater (even without doors it helps) and all the amenities of a car have actually proven quite nice. If I had A/C on this vehicle, I'd probably put the doors back on again for summer use haha...
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