Project RZR...First Look

When I took on the Polaris RZR project I expected to outfit the 2009 Polaris Ranger RZR with a few accessories, some new tires and better wheels. I had known there were a lot of aftermarket accessories available for the RZR and other side by sides in general; however I had no idea I was diving into such a subculture of off-road enthusiast as the side by side drivers.

SxS, UTV, RTV, buggy and car are just a few names I found that these machines are referred to. From infinite mud pits, to the hot desert dunes in California, you’ll find these machines and drivers in numbers. This definitely seems to be the new fad for the off-road enthusiasts.

Why a RZR?

I knew I wanted to try a SxS, but since most of my riding partners were quad guys, we were going to be traveling the same trails. Width was a major deciding factor. The Polaris RZR is 50 inches wide, this meant to me it was only 2” wider than my previous ATV which was a Yamaha Grizzly.

Another consideration was the design. While I have never been a fan of Polaris, I had always been attracted to the RZR since its inception. I liked its style, its size, engine displacement and most importantly the features.

The Features.

The Polaris RZR was the only SxS that was fully trail capable. The front end is 27% smaller allowing the RZR to get in some of the tightest areas when compared to the Rhino or Teryx. The RZR also weights in at 945 pounds, this makes it come in 100 pounds less than the Yamaha Rhino.

I was not a deep mudder, so I felt that the Polaris On-Demand All Wheel Drive system was more than adequate for my style of riding. And to date I am very impressed with the systems overall performance. The RZR is not equipped with a locking front differential. I didn’t feel this as a major thing as I barely used the locking Diff on my Grizzly 700.

Those were my major factors in selecting the RZR here are the factory specs and comparisons.

Specifications	Polaris RZR 800	Yamaha Rhino	Kawasaki Teryx
Dry Weight	945 lbs.	1124 lbs	1387 lbs
Ground Clearance	10"	12.1"	11.2"
Length	102"	113.6"	115.7"
Width	50"	54.4"	58.3"
Wheelbase	77"	75.2"	75.8"
Travel	9"	7.3"	7.5"
Engine	Twin - 760cc	Single - 686cc	V-twin - 749cc
Hitch/towing Capacity	1500 lbs, 1 1/4" receiver	1212 lbs, 2" receiver	1300 lbs.
Bed Capacity	300 lbs.	400 lbs.	500 lbs.
Tilt Wheel	Yes	No	No
Seat Height	26.5"	29.5"	32"
Rollcage - ROPS Certified	No	No	Yes
MSRP	$10,699	$10,999	$10,899

So as you can see in the tables the only thing the RZR lacks is ground clearance. We easily solved that problems with a set of 26” (same size of the Teryx) Maxxis Bighorns and a set of Highlifter replacement springs. Our RZR now has 11.7” of ground clearance.

Some may argue that the RZR doesn’t have any cargo bed. To me, this was not a huge loss, I live in the city, I didn’t have any reason to use the RZR but for a simple trail machine. To put it simply this is my “toy” and not a farm implement.

There you have it, the specifications were very clear to me that the Polaris RZR offered the best and most for the money.

The Build

Once I started looking at the aftermarket accessories, I couldn’t decide what to add first. It was clear that I did want to focus on convenience and performance for East coast trail riding rather than wide open desert and dunes. We started with a Dynatek Dyna FS ignition and fuel ignition controller (DFCA-15 and DFS9-3). These two units work in combination to deliver the right fuel mixture and timing curves for better acceleration and throttle response. Then to complete the vehicles ignition we added a Dynatek high output ignition coil.

Next in line for our performance lineup was the LTE Racing RZR exhaust system. This is a dual stainless steel system with custom fabricated manifold flanges and exhaust tips. Super Trapp disks and quiet cores were provided to give us more options when tuning for racing or just trail riding. This is a very nice exhaust setup. There were certainly no shortcuts taken in the design and fabrication of this exhaust system.

With the performance items in place we wanted some protection, both physical protection and protection from the elements. To help with this, we chose the J.Strong roof from Jstrongindustries.com. This roof provides complete coverage of the RZR cockpit. The J.strong Industries roof has a AM/FM CD marine grade stereo, speakers, auxiliary switches and dome lights integrated into the it. This makes those trail rides that much more enjoyable when you can listen to some tunes. The switched panel makes it very easy to add auxiliary lighting to the RZR.

When it comes to protection, the OEM seatbelts in the RZR are inadequate for our style of riding. We replaced the belts with a 5 point harness from DJ safety. These padded harnesses are top of the line and a highly recommended ad on for anyone who owns a SxS. With all the occupants in the cockpit secure, we then contacted Direction 2 Inc. for a set of over fenders and a windshield. Since we were running the larger Maxxis Bighorns with wider offset wheels we wanted to keep the trail on the trail and not on us inside the cab. The Direction 2 over fender setup fulfills this task awesome. The windshield is just as nice, it is in two sections, flips up to let air in, or you can remove the top section completely leaving only a half windshield. I have no doubt that when the temperatures begin dropping the full shield will be most appreciated.

Along with the interior, I added a Dakota UTV-1500 gauge which was specifically made for the Polaris RZR. This not only gave the RZR cockpit a futuristic look, but enhanced the information available to the operator. Critical info like battery voltage, water temperature and oil pressure are now available to the driver at a quick glance. And talk about attracting attention, turn it on around a crowd and it’s like turning on a “Bar Open” light in the hot desert; everybody has to look at the UTV-1500. It’s the pretty lights I guess.

I already mentioned that the RZR has low ground clearance, but on our first test rides we intentionally took it into areas where I would have questioned many ATV’s capabilities. The longer wheel base and weight distribution provided some surprising results in the way the RZR negotiated the adverse and often off camber trails. But, to keep the underbelly safe against damage we outfitted it with a set of skid plates from Ricochet Off-road. The skid plates are a definite must for this machine as the factory skid provides less than ample coverage of critical undercarriage and drive train components.

To provide ourselves the confidences to pull the heavy RZR out of something we had no business being in the first place, we bolted on a 3000 lb XTR Winch from Gorilla Winches. The Gorilla XTR comes with everything needed to get you going into the nastiest areas on earth; and, the Gorilla will get you out too.

We have a Dalton clutch kit to install still and we are very anxious to see what this does for the low end of the RZR.

The Ride

Lastly I feel I need to comment on the ride. I feel that this may be a bit premature in my assessment with less than 500 miles on the machine, but from day one I am very impressed with the agile handling the RZR provides. The front and rear anti-sway bar allows the RZR to corner as if you were racing in an off-road version of the Le Mann’s or something. Although it is much bigger than a full size quad, I felt the steering was just as easy as my Dodge Ram truck. In fact, I can’t see the necessity for power steering for this except perhaps the less capable people. As an experiment, I removed the front anti-sway bar links. I must say, this improved the handling while in off camber areas dramatically. It is very possible this will not be bolted back onto the machine.

My only complaint to date on the RZR is the lack of an engine brake. The RZR has no engine brake so when descending steep hills your foot is naturally riding the brake all the way down. I did notice this as being helpful at times in off camber area or in sections the were very slippery combined with a decline.

That’s it; so far I am very happy with the Polaris RZR. It has taken some getting used to coming off an ATV for so long. But, I am enjoying the machine very much.

Check back for our product reviews of the items mentioned in this article.

For more information on the products used on Project RZR give them a visit with the links provided in the Project RZR sponsor section.