ATV Connection Reviews the 2016 Kawasaki MULE PRO-FX Lineup

By Manuel Carrillo III - July 27, 2015

Even for great UTVs, one year can make a difference. Last year Kawasaki launched the MULE PRO-FXT. I liked it very much. You can read about how much I liked it here. If you just want the Reader’s Digest version of what I thought of it, here it goes.

Until ASIMO goes on sale to the general public, the Kawasaki MULE is probably the closest mechanical rival to man’s best friend you can buy right now.

Until Honda’s ASIMO humanoid robot goes on sale to the general public, the Kawasaki MULE PRO-FXT is probably the closest mechanical rival to man’s best friend you can buy right now. Its capable utility and fun-to-drive character make it more than just a UTV to help you out on the farm. Spend enough time with it, and it begins to feel like a trusted companion.

This year, Kawasaki invited me to Paso Robles, one of the nerve centers of California wine country, to experience the newest vehicles in the MULE lineup: the 2016 MULE PRO-FX and the 2016 MULE PRO-FXT Ranch Edition.

If I may get all Reader’s Digest up in here once again to quickly sum up the new MULEs, the MULE PRO-FX is the best MULE ever, in my opinion, and the MULE PRO-FXT Ranch Edition adds just the right amount of sugar and spice to the already robust standard MULE PRO-FXT. Indeed, the Ranch Edition is a delicious treat on the trails.

Because we were in wine country, there were lots of wines sampled during this press launch (after we were done driving for the day, of course). I can report they were all tasty. The MULE is a vehicle that is just as much about fun as it is about utility, and as a result, Kawasaki really brought the fun to this launch event for its new two-row MULE and its enhanced MULE PRO-FXT Ranch Edition. Every time I twisted a key on a MULE product at the historic Santa Margarita Ranch where the press launch was held, I felt like a DJ dropping a needle on the vinyl and announcing “Let’s get this party started,” to a crowd of eager concertgoers.

You can see how much fun I had testing the MULE and ziplining over the Ancient Peaks vineyards in the video and gallery below.

I think the new-for-2016 Kawasaki MULE PRO-FX amplifies what’s already great about MULEs. It’s the single-row-seating option in the full-size MULE lineup, but where it’s down on maximum passenger capacity (it can carry up to three people instead of six in the MULE PRO-FXT) it’s up in utility.

The single-row MULE offers a longer bed than the double-row model. In fact, it’s the largest cargo bed in its class at 54.1 inches. The MULE PRO-FX’s bed is 11.4 inches longer than that of the MULE PRO-FXT at 42.7 inches. With that 20-percent-larger bed, you can haul a full-size, 48-inch x 40-inch wooden pallet. So you can’t bring the whole family along for the ride to transport hay across the farm, but you can bring along two helpers, and that seems sufficient.

But for people like me who like to have fun more than they like to work, this new single-row MULE is a machine after my sporty heart. As someone who reviews exotic sports cars for a living, the new MULE PRO-FX had high excitement standards to meet against the Ferraris and McLarens I deal with. It met those standards easily.

Last year, a heavy chunk of my MULE PRO-FXT review centered on how capable and rally car-like the MULE felt on the trail. I am a child who refuses to grow up, so I was drifting that side-by-side every chance I could get. The MULE PRO-FXT loves to play ball when you hang its tail out. It is so controlled during limit handling. This year, I was back to my old antics once again with the MULE PRO-FX. Let’s just say it was love at first slide. The single-row MULE weighs about 130 pounds less than the double-row MULE. That weight loss pays dividends during spirited trail carving. It’s more tossable than its two-row brother, so it’s more fun through the corners. On the straightaways, the PRO-FX climbs toward its 45-mph terminal velocity with increased ease compared with the FXT, so you can arrive at those turns quicker, and get back to experiencing how talented this MULE is for tail-out antics.

The MULE PRO-FX’s sporty character can be attributed to three things: first is its rear-mid-engine architecture. The MULE PRO series has been engineered to distribute its weight similar to how exotic sports cars distribute theirs. At speed, but especially during limit handling through the turns, the mid-engine layout communicates sophistication through the MULE’s robust, super-solid, squeak-and-rattle-free chassis.

The second MULE ingredient that contributes to its sporting character is its well-tuned suspension. As good as it is at keeping the MULE behaved when you’re doing your best impression of Tanner Foust, it’s just as capable of soaking up bumps. The setup offers 8.7 inches of suspension travel (8.5 inches at the left-rear corner), which is just fine for most trail-riding scenarios, and still good enough for crazy old me who tried driving the MULE like it was a trophy truck. If I were to buy a MULE, I’d figure out a way to throw a turbo on the motor and jack its suspension travel up to 20 inches, but I digress. Still, I’d feel confident modifying the living hell out of a MULE because of the third thing that contributes to its sportiness: its stiff frame.

Earlier I touched on how solid the chassis is. The MULE’s first two performance contributors (mid-engine layout and capable suspension) would mean nothing if it weren’t tied to a solid chassis. Also, the lack of squeaks and rattles while riding on the trail increases overall comfort throughout your work day, and gives you the satisfaction that you’re riding in a high-quality recreational vehicle when you’re headed to the fishing pond, or wherever you go to forget about the world.

The MULE is powered by an 812cc, three-cylinder engine good for 48 lb-ft. of torque. The motor is connected to a continuously variable transmission that channels power to the rear or all four wheels via a switch on the dash. The fully automatic transmission is tuned to provide engine braking down steep slopes. Last year when I first encountered this engine-braking-tuned CVT, I was displeased with how you had to have your foot slightly on the accelerator in order for the engine braking to take place, and then when the engine braking started to occur, there wasn’t much of it at all.

This year, that’s all changed. Kawasaki made no mention of it, but their transmission is now much more involved in keeping speeds civilized down slopes, and I didn’t even have to place my foot on the go pedal to get it all to work. It just worked.

Thankfully the MULE has always been equipped with a capable hydraulic braking system. It’s got 212-millimeter (8.35-inch) rotors at all four corners with dual-piston calipers up front, and single-piston calipers in the rear. It’s nice how the MULE PRO series has always offered engine braking, but it would have done fine without it. Its brakes perform well, and they feel up to the task of hauling a maximum of 1,000 lbs. in the cargo bed, or towing up to 2,000 lbs. with the optional two-inch receiver hitch.

Kawasaki also used this Paso Robles press launch to introduce the MULE PRO-FXT Ranch Edition. Think of it as the side-by-side for the style-conscious; those who like a splash of luxury with their utility. The special PRO-FXT gets new metallic titanium paint, Ranch Edition badging, and two-tone seats with Ranch Edition logos. Aluminum wheels come standard, too. But the Ranch Edition goes beyond styling touches. It also comes standard with a WARN winch coupled with a wired remote actuator and an integrated fuse kit, as well as a standard composite sun top and high-intensity LED headlights.

As far as the way it drives, you can refer to my earlier review of the MULE PRO-FXT, or Ed Tahaney’s take on it as well, but in a nutshell, you can immediately feel the roughly 130-lb. weight difference between the two models. Last year, I thought the MULE was really nimble for a UTV its size, but now it feels average when compared with the two-row model. The MULE PRO-FX is the one to get if you want the most fun out of your utility vehicle, but the MULE PRO-FXT can easily outshine the FX’s fun factor if you bring five really awesome people along for the ride.