With the demise of the 800cc powerplant in the Polaris off-trail side-by-side lineup, the RZR 900 has become the new tweener in the RZR family—sitting between the RZR 570 and RZR 1000.
Yes, the 800s were probably more “true” tweeners than the 900s, but no one we know is complaining about the extra 100cc of displacement the new RZR 900s have over the 800s.
And while it’s not a 1000, the RZR 900 still has plenty of attitude (“attitude” is somewhat synonymous with tweeners) when it comes to most off-road situations it might find itself in. It has decidedly more horsepower than its smaller sibling, the 570, with a Polaris-claimed 75 hp compared to the 570’s 45 hp, which is roughly the same difference between it and the 1000, which has a claimed 110 hp.
A Tweener Indeed.
After riding both the RZR S 900 EPS and RZR 900 EPS Trail last fall in the rough and tumble high desert and mountains of southern Utah near Zion National Park, we came away with three distinct impressions: 1) the difference in horsepower between the 800 and 900 is noticeable and appreciated, especially on the southern Utah trails we traversed during our ride, 2) you gotta love that EPS and 3) the ride was great, thanks mostly to increased travel and nice shock package on the respective vehicles.
We spent the morning of our day of riding on the Hog Canyon Trails off U.S. Highway 89 north of Kanab and the afternoon riding the trails around Zion Ponderosa Ranch Resort, which is just outside Zion National Park. We rode the RZR S 900 EPS on the Hog Canyon trails and the RZR 900 EPS Trail on the trails near the ranch.
Wide Or Narrow?
Whereas trail width—or rather the width of the RZR—wasn’t an issue on the Hog Canyon trails, the afternoon ride was a different story. We may or may not have gotten a bit lost and taken a trail or two (or three?) that were tight (read: branches taking a swipe at us as we went by along with rocks littering the edges of the trails), windy and rough. The main trails where we were supposed to be weren’t necessarily tight, but the side trails were.
The 50-inch wide RZR 900 Trail was a better fit—if you know what we mean—for those trails than the 60-inch RZR S 900. As it turns out, those “Lost Trails” were a pretty good test for the RZR Trail as far as the ride and travel just as the Hog Canyon trails were a good test for the wider RZR.
There wasn’t anything in either area, really, that tested the 75-horsepower engine as it swallowed up anything we threw at it. And that anything included a lot of terrain and surface types from sand to rocks to dirt to hills to steep downhills (there were lots of elevation changes on the Hog Canyon trails) to mud to narrow two track trails. Most of the trail on the Hog Canyon system that we rode was classified as “most difficult” or “extreme.” Perhaps, but again the RZRs had no problem on any of the trails we rode. When compared to the 2014 Polaris RZR big bore, the 2015 models were a whole different animal with that extra hundred ccs. The vehicles did not disappoint for power delivery or acceleration, which we would describe as “snappy.”
The 900 has an 875cc 4-stroke DOHC twin with electronic fuel injection. One difference—a fairly big one in our mind—is the 900 Trail has an engine braking system (EBS), whereas the RZR S does not.
There was one spot on the “Lost Trails” when we rode the 900 Trail where the EBS was a welcome feature, but interestingly enough, we could have used it more on the Hog Canyon trails where the RZR we drove was EBS-less. Not sure of the thinking behind why one RZR is equipped with EBS and the other isn’t. It should be a standard feature on all big bore RZRs. Yea, maybe you don’t need EBS in all situations, but it is a handy feature on most descents.
Get Up And Go
One more observation about the ProStar 900. As much as we liked the overall powerband of the engine, it is the acceleration that we really noticed. It seemed that regardless of where we were in the powerband, the engine always had a little more to give.
As for the EPS, we’re a broken record but we love EPS, especially on the kind of trails we rode both RZRs in southern Utah. It’s on those rocky, rutted trails where you appreciate it most, especially when you are in 4WD. Polaris may not have the best EPS on the market, but it gets the job done.
One of our test drivers did note, “The steering wheel is nice, along with the two-turn lock-to-lock steering, but the 20 percent faster response can be a little much at times, especially after I drove the Ranger.”
Now comes the ride. One thing we have always liked about the RZRs, with very few exception, is the ride. Polaris usually has the ride on its high performance vehicles (although the company classifies the RZR 900 Trail as a “trail model” despite having the same engine size as the RZR S) dialed in. They certainly did in southern Utah.
“The adjustable Fox shock package has improved the ride and handling significantly and has given the owner the ability to dial up the shocks to personal needs,” one of the Dirt Toys test riders said. He was referring to the RZR S, which, as you might remember, was the vehicle we drove in Hog Canyon and had the rougher trails. The RZR S has 12.5 inches of ground clearance compared to the RZR Trail’s 11 inches.
More Travel
The S, with its Fox 2.0 Podium X shocks front and rear, also has more travel—12.25 inches in the front and 13.2 inches in the back—as compared to the Trail, with its 10 inches front and back. The Trail uses ZF Sachs shocks, which are not as high performance as the S but do offer pre-load adjustability. In commenting on the RZR Trail, our test rider said, “I could not help but notice and enjoy the added suspension travel and ground clearance on the very tight and rocky/rutted trail that I drove over.” One other noted difference between the RZR S and RZR Trail are the tires. The S comes with rugged GBC Dirt Commander 27x9-12 (front) and 27x11-12 (rear) tires while the Trail has very capable PXT 26x8-12 (front) and 26x9-12 (rear) tires.
So which vehicle do you choose? This may sound trite, but it really does come down to what riding you like to do. If you primarily ride the mountains or tight woods, then the 50-inch is the obvious choice, as trail width can come into play in the mountains and woods. Trail width not an issue? Then the wider 60-inch RZR S will do the trick. One more thing to consider is the sticker price. The RZR S has an MSRP starting at $16,499 while the RZR Trail has a price tag of $14,799, a difference of $1,700. We’re guessing that price difference is due to the GBC tires and premium Fox shocks.
Either RZR is truly a tweener and ideal for someone who wants more than a 570 can deliver (especially at higher mountain elevations that tend to slap down horsepower) but doesn’t need or want a 1000.
2015 Polaris RZR S 900 EPS 2015 Polaris 900 EPS Trail
Engine: 4-stroke DOHC twin 4-stroke DOHC twin
Displacement: 875cc 875cc
Fuel System: Electronic Fuel Injection Electronic Fuel Injection
Cooling: Liquid Liquid
Fuel Capacity: 9.5 gallons 9.5 gallons
Transmission: Automatic PVT P/R/N/L/H Automatic PVT P/R/N/L/H
Drive System: High Performance True High Performance On-Demand True AWD/
On-Demand AWD/2WD 2WD/Versa Trac Turf Mode
Front Suspension: Dual A-arm Performance Dual A-arm w/anti-sway bar, 10 inches
Series, Fox 2.0 Podium X shocks, 12.25 travel
inches travel
Rear Suspension: Dual A-arm Performance Dual A-arm w/anti-sway bar, 10 inches
Series, Fox 2.0 Podium X shocks travel
w/anti-sway bar, 13.2 inches travel
Brakes: 4-wheel hydraulic disc with dual- 4-wheel hydraulic disc with dual-
bore front calipers bore front calipers
Front Tires: GBC Dirt Commander PXT 26x8-12
27x9-12
Rear Tires: GBC Dirt Commander PXT 26x9-12
27x11-12
Wheelbase: 79 in. 79 in.
Length: 106 in. 105 in.
Width: 60 in. 50 in.
Height: 71.5 in. 69.5 in.
Ground Clearance: 12.5 in. 11 in.
Dry Weight: 1,228 lbs. 1,174 lbs.
MSRP: $16,499 $14,799
