Compact Equipment Covery Story

All-Terrain Trucks
The Utility Vehicle Market Is Spreading into Both Commercial and Recreational Markets

By Keith Gribbins

Every contractor needs the ability to haul cargo and crews back and forth with speed over a jobsite. It’s a crucial time-saver and important moneymaker when you’re on the clock. Traditional trucks are the obvious go-to tool for most contractors who need to move materials and co-workers around their latest project. Load up your bed, throw a few fellas in the backseat and truck off to your project site.

Unfortunately, sometimes there are no roads. And while most four-wheel drive trucks can conquer some serious off-road terrain, there are just some applications that call for a specialty chore truck, engineered specifically to traverse inhospitable, off-road topography. For such applications, little trucks called utility vehicles, or UTVs, are tailor-made for the job. Similar to their ATV cousins, UTVs are made for off-road applications, but differ in that they can take at least two
passengers and have a bed for cargo and supplies. Today, companies such as John Deere, Kawasaki, Kubota, Polaris and Yamaha (along with a bevy of other big name corporations) manufacture a variety of 2x4, 4x4, 6x4 and 6x6 variations for both the commercial and recreational markets.

In the late 1980s, John Deere and Kawasaki launched the off-road utility vehicle segment with their Gator and MULE UTV lines. From the start, manufacturers aimed at creating a workhorse for hard-working commercial purposes.
“The Kawasaki MULE was envisioned as a work vehicle from the start, combining a purpose-built gasoline engine with an off-road chassis capable of handling passengers and cargo,” explains Vince Iorio, ATV and utility vehicle product manager with Kawasaki Motors Corp. U.S.A. “The core models that make up the industry are very much work machines and these types of machines lead the industry.”

Yet the commercial market today only makes up 40 percent of UTV sales, while private users (many of whom are large estate owners and hunters) make up the other 60 percent of the market, according the manufacturers that CE surveyed.
“A recreational UTV tends to have higher speeds, four-wheel drive, greater suspension travel, all-wheel suspension and generally less utility capability in terms of cargo volume and weight capacities than a purely commercial-grade UTV,” says Lynette Hart, senior product marketing manager with John Deere utility vehicles.

But even private users and hobby farmers are using their UTVs for as much work as play. When not tooling around the countryside for fun, large estate owners are hauling wood, transporting feed, ferrying landscape materials, moving garbage or carrying construction supplies.

And that’s what’s great about utility vehicles — they offer plenty of work and recreational options for both private and professional users. These all-terrain trucks can easily handle almost any wilderness an ATV can (although they are wider and taller than your typical ATV), with the added bonus of passengers and supplies.

When considering the major commercial segments, parks, universities, governmental agencies, landscape contractors, farmers and general construction are the most popular hot markets for UTVs. And while most manufacturers are wary of sharing market numbers (alas, no association officially tracks UTV sales), growth is definitely on the rise. Industry insiders estimate that sales are in the 120,000 to 150,000 units per year range, but there’s no hard data to confirm this.

“While we’re not able to cite industry figures, I can give you an idea of percentage growth — for 2003 it was 12 percent, for 2004 it was 14 percent and for 2005 it’s estimated that it’s greater than 20 percent [of market growth],” says Iorio.

An Evolving Market
Today’s UTV industry is changing rapidly. Take a look over the utility vehicle landscape today and you will see a throng of manufacturers looking to pick a niche in this fast-growing transportation segment. Some of the latest players include Yamaha, Polaris, Honda, Kubota, Husqvarna, Club Car, Cub Cadet, Snapper, Land Pride, Bobcat, Ingersoll Rand, EZ-GO, Arctic Cat and AUSA (a recent UTV important from Spain).

Step onto a dealer lot of any of these manufacturers mentioned above and you will find a variety of new options and innovative models like never before. You will find engines (gas, diesel and electric) from 10 to 40 hp, payload capacities ranging from 400 to 2,000 lbs, towing capacities ranging from 600 to 1,500 lbs and options in wet disk brakes, power steering, electronic fuel injection, hydraulic bed lifts, enclosed cabs and a whole slew of innovative suspensions and attachments. When it comes to drive trains, you will have the option of 2x4, 4x4, 6x4 and 6x6 utility vehicles.

“4x4s are just over 50 percent of the market,” says Hart. “The 4x4 market has been growing very fast and is predicted to continue to grow quite a bit over the next several years.”

Prices for 4x4 UTVs tend to range from $8,500 to $11,500, while pricing for 4x2s is in the $6,000 to $8,000 realm and 6x4s and 6x6s are falling between $8,300 and $11,000. Besides price and drive train, speed will be a big concern when considering whether you want a UTV for commercial or recreational applications.
“Speed is a big concern in commercial markets where liability increases dramatically with speed. There are certain underwriters who will not insure a vehicle with a top speed of over 25 mph,” explains Iorio. “But higher speed vehicles are fairly new to the market and have seen fairly good buyer acceptance. On the recreational side, a number of products exceed 25 mph and the market has accepted these models.”

While most UTVs still tend to only go up to about 20 or 25 mph, Arctic Cat’s Prowler XT goes 50 mph and most Polaris RANGER UTVs go up to around 41 mph.
“Some commercial applications such as road construction cover long distances where it is more efficient to go faster. Other applications such as university grounds maintenance require slower speeds. Our exclusive SpeedKey technology delivers both,” says Jan Rintamaki, RANGER marketing manager at Polaris.
SpeedKey is a dealer-installed option for Polaris (costing around $200) in which a control module can limit the vehicle’s speed without loss of power, depending on which key is used in the ignition. A yellow key delivers full power yet limits top speed to 25 mph, while a black key delivers full power up to 41 mph.

Speed can be dangerous on a jobsite, but in certain situations it has its advantages. “Nothing beats getting the job done quicker with the help of a utility vehicle,” says Iorio.

New Customers Buying Their First UTV
Besides increasingly faster speeds and quicker machines, the utility vehicle market is similar to the ATV market in many ways. For starters, much like the ATV market, UTV sales are being fueled by a constant re-generation of new buyers each year. And this variety of new customers coming into the market often only have a vague notion as to what a utility vehicle is used for and how to outfit it for their applications. Some buyers are more interested in safety and payload performance, others are more concerned with speed, drive train and off-roading potential. Each customer has a unique need, so consider your applications first.

“Think about all the things you want to do with your vehicle — haul dirt, go off roading, tow, plow snow, get to places quickly — and discuss that with your local dealer,” suggests Hart. “Some features you will want to consider are power and torque, serviceability, cargo box design and capacity, terrain capability, durability and reliability, creature comforts and available attachments.”

In short, you will need to outfit your UTV to coordinate with your growing checklist of daily chores. First, you will want to investigate the myriad of different accessories, features and attachments available. When considering add-ons, enclosed cabs, sun tops, windshields, brush guards, gun racks, performance light kits, towing hitches, electric bed lifts and rotating beacons are popular options. When talking attachments, mowers, brooms, snow blowers, blades, seeders, sprayers, wagons and winches top the list. Although attachments for UTVs are prevalent, they really aren’t as popular as the growing number of accessories.

“We’ve found that having many accessories available for individual models is the key to helping an owner or user customize the vehicle for a particular use,” explains Iorio. “Attachments, due to the absence of a means to power them, are not as high of a priority to the typical buyer as are the creature comfort accessories.”

For professionals, a UTV can be used for more than just hauling supplies and employees, so attachments definitely have a market.

“Customers don’t want to relegate their UTVs to a specific task. They want to maximize their productivity,” says Rintamaki. “Accessories and attachments extend the productivity of the machine, so naturally machines with more flexibility are better for consumers.”

Along with accessorizing your UTV with the extras, customers will have big options in tires, engines and seating. Most companies have three tire options — turf, heavy-duty and traditional tire choices. Third-party tire options are always available, as well as extras like snow chains.

While most UTV models come with a gas engine, diesel engines are on the rise; Kubota, Club Car, Kawasaki and John Deere now offer diesel engine options. Diesel engines give better torque in tougher applications, as well as last longer in the long run. Of course, gas engines are cheaper to buy and are more established in this automotive-style industry. Air-cooled and liquid/oil-cooled power plants are also a common option. Liquid-cooled engines do a better job of keeping an even temperature with the help of a radiator. They’re better for hotter climates and higher power hauling jobs, which are prevalent in commercial applications. Cost is the big differentiator —the typical cost between an air-cooled and liquid-cooled engine is between $1,600 to $2,100.

Seating selections for UTVs are typically either two bucket seats or bench seating. Bench seating offers the opportunity for three passengers to ride, while bucket seats are, well, just more comfortable. Kawasaki’s MULE 3010 Trans4x4 and Club Car’s XRT 1200 SE offer four forward-facing seats, as well as a cargo bed. The MULE 3010 Trans4x4 can also be transformed into a two-passenger vehicle with an extended cargo bed. Along with picking your preferences, buyers will need to assess each unit as an individual model. So take your time, kick the tires and grill your dealer on a variety of models.

“Shop the market carefully, examine the leading manufacturers’ offerings, determine what you are actually going to use the machine for, find out which models can do what you want, then determine the level of durability you desire,” says Iorio.

In fact, prepare a list of questions and put your sales person to work. Is four-wheel drive on-demand or do you need to push a button or pull a lever? What’s the size of the fuel tank? How much ground clearance does the unit have? What is the cargo bed made of? How high is the bed off the ground? What kind of protection does the UTV have on the front? How fast does it go? What features
come standard? What’s the warranty period? Hey, how much is this all going to cost me?

“You need to have a complete understanding of what you will use the UTV for and then go test drive it,”
says Rintamaki.

Keith Gribbins is managing editor of Compact Equipment.