Polaris has raised the bar in side by side performance with the Rzr XP 900. I had always felt that side by sides were in their infancy stage, and were rather crude, unrefined, and under performing. I had owned two Yamaha Rhino's before and was so underwhelmed with their performance and quality that I sold them, and have gone without owning a side by side for the last four years. I really liked the side by side concept, and had thought they had the potential to be very fun vehicles. But each time I looked at them and test drove them I came away unimpressed again. Then a friend was given a Rzr XP 900 as a test vehicle to write about, and I had the chance to really check one over. The Rzr XP 900 surprised me. Anyone that has followed Polaris ATVs over the years can attest to the huge improvements in performance and quality that came about when Polaris developed their Sportsman XP 850 and XP 550 ATVs. The XP ATVs were such an improvement in every aspect that it was almost as if a completely different company had built them. The same holds true for the Rzr XP 900 when compared to previous Polaris side by sides, and when compared to side by side vehicles from other manufacturers. Every single aspect of the vehicle has been improved. Quality of construction is better, fit and finish is better. Noise, harmonics, and vibration are reduced. The engine feels strong and sounds solid. The transmission works better. And the suspension is vastly better than any other production off road vehicle, with the exception of current motocross dirt bikes.
I've owned my Rzr XP 900 for about a month now, and have 200 miles on it. Here she is:
Here are a couple of pictures that show the suspension in more detail:
I really like how easy it is to service this XP 900; remove an access panel in the bed and you have access to the air filter and spark plugs right in front of you. Remove the acess panel in the left upper part of this picture and you have access to the oil tank and dipstick. Remove the seats and an access panel in the engine firewall and you have access to the oil filter and the rest of the engine. The CVT is easily accessed from under the left rear fender.
Linear Mode
