I have a couple hundred miles on it. 90% of the miles/hours are driving the 2 year old grandson around my property – which consists of mostly hay field and some muddy trails in the woods.
The other 10% has been regular trail riding and some mudding.
My observations:
1. I really don’t like the heat that is put out on the right side. When driving slow (under 20mph) it is literally too hot to keep your foot on the floor board – which is unsafe having your foot sticking out.
2. I like the power steering. A lot. However I have found that if the machine is idling and the steering is stressed, the machine will die. This has only happened a few times. Usually at a stand still, so it’s not a big deal. But one time it happened when I was doing a technical climb and at the top of an incline. The brakes held me until I got it restarted, but it could have been worse. I cannot reproduce this on demand, but it does happen.
3. The down-hill braking is great for going down steep hills, but I rarely go down steep hills. This leaves the machine very "jerky" when riding slow on level ground. If you are buzzing around doing yard work, and let off the throttle, it has a tendency to throw you forward hard enough to make low speed driving kind of awkward.
4. I have noticed the smell of gas when trail riding. It doesn’t matter if the tank is full or not. I think its just a venting issue. I doesn’t give me a headache or make me dizzy, but I could see how it would affect someone more sensitive to the smell of fuel.
5. The battery seems a little under powered. When I start the machine, it seems like it’s cranking slow and doesn’t always fire right off. My 95 Xplorer 400 and 98 Xpress fire right up as soon as I touch the start button. Idk if it’s a battery issue or EFI thing. Either way I expected it to be quicker to fire up.
6. Power is decent for a single rider. A little underwhelming for two up mudding, but fine for regular trails.
Overall I’m happy with the machine. The negative items above are mostly annoyances. Going from a 1995 machine to a 2015, I had a lot higher expectations in terms of engineering and performance.
Comparing the two machines, the only thing I’m truly impressed with is the power steering.
Time will tell if I warm up more to the machine or put a for sale sign on it.
