Hi guys,

I've been into dirtbikes and 4x4s since I was a teenager, a long long time ago, and I've been following ATVs since they came on the market, but never took the plunge...until last week when I went into a local dealer and after some haggling hauled home a 2016-sportsman-xp-1000-highlifter-edition.

I haven't taken it into the woods yet and will buy a second set of wheels (with more offset for side stability) and tires (that aren't just good for mud), but riding it around in my shop I noticed that I had to 3 point turn it in situations where I thought I should easily be able to turn such a short wheelbase vehicle. I looked and there is quite a bit of clearance at full lock, so I'm not sure why they limit steer angle so much. I checked the manual and sure enough the turning radius on the Sportsman XP 1000 is 84" and on the Highlifter 1000 it's 168"!! Double. Really?

There are lots of features I like about the Highlifter and frankly I probably would not have bought an ATV at this point if it were not for those features, but the reality is most of my time in the woods is going to be crawling around down in Arkansas on some very step rocky property I have and mudding is definitely secondary. At least at this point. So maneuverability is pretty key.

So does anyone know if I can increase the steer angle? What limits it? There are no stops like on a truck axle. Different steering rack?

Thanks.

 

You bought a hardcore mud machine designed to go straight. Getting new tires would be a good idea, but leave the offset be. Polaris has their antikick back steering down to a science, offsets were part of the formula.

There is no steering rack, its an electronic box, no fluid, just gears and electronics.

My 400HO does not turn on a dime either, multi point turns are the norm in tight areas.

Go ride it, learn it and have fun, just need to remember its not a dirtbike.

 

It's really odd that the turning radius is exactly double. That's kind of hard to believe.

 

Yes I thought that was odd too. Maybe there is a typo on the radius for the non lifted 1000, because that seems pretty tight. I played around with it a bit today and full lock it's every bit of 14 feet if not more to make a circle. I didn't measure it though. My suv has a smaller turning radius I bet. I also looked at tire clearance and there is a couple of inches on the left side but on the right side the tire just barely clears the cover over the air intake snorkel. So turning sharper with those tires is not an option. They are 29.5s but I think they measured right at 28" when I checked last week.

I think I'll go with Maxxis Bighorns as an all around tire, with a couple more inches of offset in the wheels. I'll have to talk to a tire/wheel dealer next week to see if they know what size I can run and what the actual OD is.

My stock tires are the same front and rear. If I want a wider tire do I run rears on both ends?

 

I just noticed what you said about offset. So you think a couple of inches would screw it up? What do you think it would do and where did you red about this design change?

What do you mean by "It's not a dirtbike", besides the obvious?

 

When Polaris designed the XP, they designed antikickback steering. Even without eps, they are easy to steer. It is the way the front a arms are designed in relation to the axle centerline. As for offset, you dont want the wheels out too far, will put strain on thbe wheel bearings.

 

A big part of the extra turning radius is the width of the High Lifter long A-arms. If you start wider to begin with you're going to need more of a circle to turn width-wise. I don't think you'd be able to modify it if the air intake tubing is in the way as mentioned. As said earlier, this is a machine made for straight line mud bogging. Not for tight wooded trails or for crawling up rocks, though it may turn out to be good at that with all the clearance. If mud isn't so big an issue I'd see if they can set you up with a regular Sportsman.

 

I vote keep it! You have the ideal set up for hunting. You can cross streams and not fear plugging the rad, and it has warranty for a mud machine. . You have a suspension set up that many add afterwards. If you want new rubber, get some and enjoy.

 

These factory mud machines are great if that is what you primarily ride in. If you want to trail ride, then the extra weight, width and turning radius become very apparent. You probably would have been better off buying a regular sportsman and just getting slightly bigger, more aggressive tires and adding a winch. The factory snorkel is a nice feature and as I have discovered just recently, adding one yourself basically voids any warranty on the machine. Since it comes factory with the snorkel, relocated radiator, winch and bigger rubber, you get a factory machine that needs no modification.

 

Better ground clearance is good no mater what you are doing offroad unless it's on a track and you need higher corner speed and stability and it was one of the selling points for me, high intake is good for not only water crossing but for cleaner air in the dust, like on heavy trucks and tractors, I would have installed a winch and I doubt the weight or width is much different outside of the big mud tires, which need to be changed anyhow for anything other than mud. So basically it seems that it is the right machine except for the turning radius issue. Besides I took off all but one of the warning stickers that plaster almost every flat surface, so I'm sure the dealer wouldn't take it back. I guess I'm stuck with it.

Thanks for the thoughts.