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New Polaris Xpedition Rangers

I'll admit I was guilty of the noise part on my sxs.

But when you spend that kind of money and can't have a conversation with your passenger while just cruising, it's annoying. Yet somehow my 87 samurai with a 43g piece of tin between me and the drivetrain is just fine.

I later found out honda uses straight cut gears in their transmission :laughing:
 
Top contributor to noise is the CVT transmission holding the thing at peak torque, 5-9k rpms pretty well all the time. CVT clutches also require a ton of airflow which also adds to the noise. A torque converter auto or DCT would help this but we've seen people choose the CVT over DCT for smoothness and ease of use.
 
My defender max xt without cab was pretty quiet. But it's so long the engine/trans seems like it's 15' behind you. :laughing:

Any of the mid-engine machines suck ass for noise. I hated my 1st gen commander.

The one that really gets me is the gator. Those are so damn loud I could hear my neighbor running around in his timber a mile away like he was right in my yard.
 
redneckK20s said:
Top contributor to noise is the CVT transmission holding the thing at peak torque, 5-9k rpms pretty well all the time. CVT clutches also require a ton of airflow which also adds to the noise. A torque converter auto or DCT would help this but we've seen people choose the CVT over DCT for smoothness and ease of use.
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Mine was dct and I think it was louder than other sxs's I've been in. Like I mentioned the straight cut gears......

It was loud enough my buddy asked if I was worried about my kids hearing in the back seat :homer:
 
Well got to experience one of these first hand. Wouldn't even drive itself off the truck. Spent 3 hours fixing various shit and finally drove it. Interior is nice, pulls pretty strong for a heavy NA vehicle. Ergonomics are very weird, tons of headroom without the legroom to match. Seats are a little low so visibility out isn't the greatest. The sealing of the cab should be good, the AC seems to work pretty well. Ton's of accessory switch options. Should be a good seller. This was a 2 seat with the dump box, $39k retail. Yikes.
 
I would be beyond disappointed to spend $40k on a machine and the dealer has to unfuck it to even get it off the delivery truck. :laughing:

I bet they sell the shit out of these though. I have always said that if they did a Northstar General that would be the hot ticket for casual trail riding and puttzing around on backroads in the Midwest. Sounds like this is pretty much a hybrid Ranger/General with heat and AC.
 
Wades_76_cj7 said:
I would be beyond disappointed to spend $40k on a machine and the dealer has to unfuck it to even get it off the delivery truck. :laughing:

I bet they sell the shit out of these though. I have always said that if they did a Northstar General that would be the hot ticket for casual trail riding and puttzing around on backroads in the Midwest. Sounds like this is pretty much a hybrid Ranger/General with heat and AC.
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Worst part is Polaris has real time shipping updates so the guy knew it was in transit and came to the shop to start paperwork, pulled up to see us towing it off the truck with an ATV. But you're 100% right, they took the chassis performance and interior comfort of a General and added the sealing cab and HVAC of the Ranger. Considering about 80% of our Ranger Northstar sales are to recreational customers, I imagine it'll sell. I imagine the only reason the General is still around is to be a cheaper alternative.
 
Do the Generals have the same front diff size as the RZR S and NA XP? I know a guy I used to work with had a friend that had a Ranger on portals and he made the comment that the Ranger front diff are tiny compared to the RZRs and this guy grenaded his front diff pretty quick. He was running portals and 30-32s IIRC.
 
Wades_76_cj7 said:
Do the Generals have the same front diff size as the RZR S and NA XP? I know a guy I used to work with had a friend that had a Ranger on portals and he made the comment that the Ranger front diff are tiny compared to the RZRs and this guy grenaded his front diff pretty quick. He was running portals and 30-32s IIRC.
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Up until the new XP1000 RZR came out, the General shared almost it's entire drivetrain minus the transmission being more Ranger style because of the turf mode. The diff on the Xpedition is the same as the newer Ranger's I believe, rubber mounted but still has the roller cage with rollers and magnet style setup, so it's geared differently front to rear to make the 4wd act like AWD kinda. I think that's part of the problem with the Polaris setup, once you start throwing traction at it the gearing difference has to displace the load somewhere and the front diff components are the first to go because they're pretty weak.
 
I thought Polaris always had different gearing to make thier front locker work the way they want it to?


Side note. Any one ever wonder why there is not a single company making different diff gears for sxs's? Seems like it would be a thing.
 
Easier to regear the trans than regear the diffs. Have three friends that did put lower trans gears in theirs.

Different model RZRs have a little different gearing in the front diff to make them work differently. Regular XP, S, and XP turbo the rear tires over drive the front end so the front isn't pulling until the rear tires break loose. That gives lighter steering under normal riding. The Highlifter and Trail and Rock edition has the front diff gearing closer matched. I think the rear tires over drive the fronts like 1-2% instead of the 5-6% of the regular RZR. The steering in the R&T is heavier when in 4wd since the front tires are pulling as well.
 
YotaAtieToo said:
I thought Polaris always had different gearing to make thier front locker work the way they want it to?


Side note. Any one ever wonder why there is not a single company making different diff gears for sxs's? Seems like it would be a thing.
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The only Polaris with matched gearing is the Pro R, it also has a selectable locker in the front which none of the other Polaris' do. But what Wade said was correct, about Polaris gearing and how transmission gearing is typically the way people go.
 
I have never heard of anyone offering an aftermarket gear set that differed from stock ratios for the front diff. I believe even the trans regears are only gears from different Polaris models. Ace 325, RZR 570 and the like.
 
Went by Freedom Cycles in Grandview MO last night to get some parts and I wanted to eye fuck the new Pro/Turbo R, and KRX 4. They had one of the 2 seat ADV on the floor so I checked it out a little. I do like the doors on it. They feel like a truck door in the fact that there is some mass to them. Latches worked well and nice and smooth on closure. The seats were pretty comfy. I am 6', 270# with a 32" inseam. Seating position was pretty good. decent leg room, seats were pretty comfy for a factory seat actually. I had read somewhere that the seating was wonky on these. no leg room and tons of headroom. Seemed pretty balanced to me. The front bodywork is a little different than the Ranger but it still looked like a Ranger more than the General/RZR to me.
 
Indeed, the introduction of a Polaris xpedition model by Polaris shows their venture into the Overland segment. While the addition of new models is appreciated, the rising prices in the industry, exemplified by the $45k cost of the Xpedition ADV 5 Northstar, can be startling. The expanding features, technology, and capabilities of these vehicles contribute to their higher costs.
 
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Xailking said:
Indeed, the introduction of a Polaris xpedition model by Polaris shows their venture into the Overland segment. While the addition of new models is appreciated, the rising prices in the industry, exemplified by the $45k cost of the Xpedition ADV 5 Northstar, can be startling. The expanding features, technology, and capabilities of these vehicles contribute to their higher costs.
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Austin - Think we have a bot in our midst haha :flipoff2:
 
Xailking said:
Indeed, the introduction of a Polaris xpedition model by Polaris shows their venture into the Overland segment. While the addition of new models is appreciated, the rising prices in the industry, exemplified by the $45k cost of the Xpedition ADV 5 Northstar, can be startling. The expanding features, technology, and capabilities of these vehicles contribute to their higher costs.
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So 20% of the features of a wrangler or Bronco. For 100% of the cost
 
Can confirm these things are loud as shit. Pretty comfortable by SxS standards but the in cab noise is terrible. So terrible aftermarket companies are coming up with clutch kits to drop operating RPM to make them tolerable.
 
Saw one in person the other day when I was trading in my 2020 450 HO. Pretty sweet looking but here in Virginia, you aren't going to do much overlanding (God that is so fucking gay) with out a license plate.
Traded the Sportsman 450 for a 2023 Sportsman 850.
 
Buddy told me he rode in one last week. Said it was quieter than his RZR but not car like quiet. He said it was pretty nice though.
 
I will say the factory audio in the higher end ones is pretty impressive. Has a sub down between the driver's and passenger's feet and it bumps pretty good for a stock setup.
 
These mofos are really nice. The plastic interior is really thick and has some sound absorbing mats on most surfaces.

I put a battery switch on one Saturday, sounds like I am gonna get all the maintenance etc. on it, looks like a bastard to work on.

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Gotta drop the skidplate for any maintenance which isn't awful. They want all the drivetrain oils changed and the belt checked every time. Should be easy $$ once you get used to it.
 
redneckK20s said:
Gotta drop the skidplate for any maintenance which isn't awful. They want all the drivetrain oils changed and the belt checked every time. Should be easy $$ once you get used to it.
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Sounds like a job to do in my shop instead of at his place though huh.
 
Honestly the skid drops pretty easy, just a bunch of T40 torx. Worst part is you have to drop the skidplate before you try to put it on a lift because it covers the whole belly.
CarterKraft said:
Sounds like a job to do in my shop instead of at his place though huh.
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Austin said:
Damn! When are these just mini-cars vs a "SXS"
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i dont want a mini car. i want something i can slide in and out of easily.

of course i dont have winter here, but shit shit defeats the purpose.
 
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