I dunno what the big news is. These things have been out for some time. I test drove one last month (a 3010 4x4 model). It's nice but I don't see the point. For that much money I can buy a street legal late model Jeep Wrangler and rip the back seat out. I'll have enough ground clearance to actually go offroad (6" of ground clearance with the Mule's wheelbase makes it pretty useless in anything but established roads & trails free of obstacles). It doesn't go particularly fast and doesn't come with particularly large tires. For over $10,000 I have to ask why anyone would buy this over a slightly used 4x4 Jeep.

Since I already have a 4x4 Bronco, I ended up getting an Arctic Cat 500 4x4 for fun and lighter utility work. The Bronco is more than capable of the heavy utility work that I might use a mule for.

In order for the Mule to have broader appeal and make sense to the buyer, I propose the following changes:
1) Reduce the price. If it is getting close to the price of a superior street legal vehicle it costs too much.
2) Increase ground clearance. Nine inches is the minimum here IMHO.
3) Taller tires (which will help the ground clearance). Use a more aggressive tread.
4) Consider reducing the wheelbase. This vehicle will high-center too easily.
5) Consider increasing the size of the load bed but not necessarily the weight capacity.
6) Increase suspension travel to take advantage of the increased suspension height. The Mule needs to be able to get over obstacles such as small trees blocking trails, small rocks, etc.

 

Does this mean you're NOT putting a deposit down on a new Mule, Warthog?

hehehehehehehehehe

Actually, you make some sound and reasonable suggestions. Why not send them to Kawasaki? I sincerely believe the manufacturer would be interested in reading them.

By the way, I made a train trip to Washington DC; observing at Union Station, Mules (old models) are used as baggage trucks and tractors. The surfaces there are essentially flat, so suspension, wheel travel, etc., are not as critical as for off-road applications, certainly.

Diogenes

 

Well I would hope that Kawasaki reads some of the public forums (like this one) to get a feel for what people are saying about their products.

I'm communicating with my wallet. I went into the dealership, checked it out, and didn't buy it. I told the dealership why. If this happens enough, the dealerships will raise a lot of noise with Kawasaki over the lost sales.