Yahoo Autos 2024 Polaris Xpedition First Drive: The UTV for adults
About 75 miles into my off-road drive of the new Polaris Xpedition in Arizona, the desert skies open up and it starts to rain. In a traditional open-air side by side I’d have to break out my rain gear and prepare myself for a cold and wet journey. In the Xpedition I just roll up the windows and flip the windshield down.
Game. Changer.
Side-by-sides are traditionally designed to rip around the desert at high speeds, wind in the hair and dust over the goggles. They are geared for performance and fun, but comfort…not so much. Polaris looks to change that with its line of Xpedition machines. These enclosed UTVs are the next step in comfort and utility for a more adult owner.
The trim line-up of the new Xpedition is a bit complicated. The XP and ADV are two-door models while the XP-5 and ADV-5 have four doors and room for five. The XP models have an open dump box in the back while the ADV models have an enclosed rear box. Then within each of those are Premium, Ultimate and Northstar trims.
However, there isn’t much difference between those three trims. The base Premium gets a 4.3-inch display screen, a downgraded stereo system and a 600-watt stator charging system. Moving up to Ultimate nets a better sound system, a larger display screen with Polaris’ Ride Command technology, a 900-watt charging system, a winch, front and rear cameras and a tilt and telescoping steering wheel. Northstar models go big with an upgraded Ride Command system, a fully-enclosed cabin with power windows and locking doors, a tilting windshield and the ever-coveted HVAC system.
However, all trims get the same 114 horsepower out of the 1000cc engine, a continuously variable transmission, a two-speed transfer case with low range, 14 inches of ground clearance and 30-inch ProArmor Crawler XP tires. The three-position adjustable shocks are courtesy of Fox, with bodies measuring two inches in the front, 2.5 inches in the rear. The front wheels have 14 inches of travel, the rears 15 inches.
I am immediately smitten with the two-door ADV Northstar in the Matte Orange Rust. Maybe including the word “rust” in the color is not the best marketing ploy but this thing is adorable. I even like it in Storm Blue, the only other color on tap. The wheelbase is a mere 87.5 inches, it’s 122.5 inches long and 64 inches wide. I just want to put it in my pocket.
However, Polaris gives me the larger ADV-5 Northstar for our off-road excursion. Here the width stays the same but the wheelbase is stretched to 117 inches and overall length sits at 152.5 inches. That’s the same wheelbase and width as the popular RZR XP 4, but the Xpedition is 6.5 inches longer overall.
Putting the thing in gear takes a bit of muscle and newbies will be alarmed by the noise of the CVT. I expect it and I still want to upshift to give the engine a break from the 6,000 rpm engine speed – and I’m just pulling out of the staging area. However, I’ll soon find that a CVT is the right application for this vehicle, allowing for constant power and quick acceleration.
