[Odyknuck]

My Wife and I went to Patton PA on Saterday to drive the long antisapated Commander. I drove two different Models, an XT and then the X. The X was by far the better handleing machine in my opinion. Good shocks make all the difference on offroad. The XT was more Utility like were as the X was as expected more on the Sport side. The fit and trim on both machines was very well done with attension to detail. The cockpit was very confortable and the ergonmics was also good. The power was way better than I expected from a UTV. I took a very close look at how it was designed and built. The welding on the machine was top notch with goods penatration. I was impressed with how it was done with the exception of a few things. Number one it needs power steering for where I ride. The front "A" arms and tie rods were on the light duty side as I expected at least 1" DOM on the arms and 5/8" OD on the tie rods for the weight and size of the Commander. The rear arms were built much better. Although the braking was Impressive a fourth caliper on the left rear wheel is needed to take the load off of the CVs and drive train to reduce ware. Overall it appears to be an easy machine to work on as everything seems to be accessable. Now on to the drive. The cource was a very tight and twisty up and down hill thru the Woods. I felt its was the perfect test run area. I tried the X in all modes and found that the best setup was 2 wheel drive in sport mode with gearbox in High. I was able to slide it at will and did not feel it was top heavy (one of my concerns). The steering was harder (more so in 4 wheel drive) than I expected. It wood be fine for desert and dunes however for tight high speed woods driving you could easyly get into trouble. The power is very good and consistant with a typical CVT setup. Overall I feel this would be a machine I would buy. I currently own a full sized Woods buggy that is a completly different animal than a SxS and are not in the same catagory. At this point I am not convinced I would give up the Buggy for a SxS however the Jurys still out on that. Odds are when there is enough Empircal data to pull from and it meets the low maintence and breakdown minimum I will be buying one next year.

 

[BLR]

Thanks for review...

 

[dieselpowered]

Thanks for taking the time to share this!

I am sure some of your concerns with the front suspension will be taken care of by the aftermarket industry, however, to your point maybe that could have been something straight from the factory.

Guess time will tell how the front end holds up.

 

[LBR]

BTY, here's a shot of the Commander X with an all-black top instead of the black/yellow combo....we think it looks so much better all black rather than the 2-tone....Lance

 

[Mountainman]

I was there as well on Sat. at the Fisher's reunion.
I agree they could use some power steering. I love the torque
of the engine though. I thought they were very comfortable, and rode nice through the trails. The X model was definitely smoother...

 

[dieselpowered]

Thanks for the pics Mountainman, is that lifted Commander above the Gorilla Axle Commander? Kinda looks like it.

 

[Odyknuck]

Thanks for the pics Mountainman, is that lifted Commander above the Gorilla Axle Commander? Kinda looks like it.

Yep, thats the one. They also had a quad with a seat hieght of about 7'. Impractical however interesting.

 

[Odyknuck]

Thanks for taking the time to share this!

I am sure some of your concerns with the front suspension will be taken care of by the aftermarket industry, however, to your point maybe that could have been something straight from the factory.

Guess time will tell how the front end holds up.

Yea a stronger front suspension would have been nice. I am looking for something that I can leave stock with no need to modify for better performance. Thats what I am trying to get away from. Hopefully by the time I buy one there will be power steering on them. Hopefully the rider feedback from the test run events will have some influence on the factorys decision to do that. In talking with one of the reps about the PS, he stated they did consider it however it would have Increased the price and be one more thing to possibly fail.

 

[dieselpowered]

This is true, I have power steering on my Teryx and it is crazy how much of a difference it makes. With that said, do I like it more with or without the power steering, truthfully I think that is still up in the air. Guess it could potentially come down to the terrain you ride in. In the rocks and tight forest rodes, I could see the benefit, in the sand or desert, maybe not so much. Down the line if you feel you just have to have power steering, I am sure Unisteer will have a kit!

Unisteer Performance Products

 

[Odyknuck]

I would not let the lack of PS deter me from buying one. As you stated there will be an aftermarket unit avalable for it. Not my first choice however acceptable.

 

[LBR]

Guess it could potentially come down to the terrain you ride in. In the rocks and tight forest roads, I could see the benefit, in the sand or desert, maybe not so much.

My feelings exactly, or if the factory had PS, definately make it an option for pricing to those who are duners and may not want/need it....Lance

 

[Mountainman]

Yep, that's the Gorilla axle Commander..
Here's a pic of the crazy lifted Outlander, with
my daughter next to it...

 

[Odyknuck]

Yep, that's the Gorilla axle Commander..
Here's a pic of the crazy lifted Outlander, with
my daughter next to it...

Yea that's it!

 

[dieselpowered]

Here's a pic of the crazy lifted Outlander

I really don't know what to say about that