John Deere UTV Product Reviews

John Deere Gator 825i Long Term Review

Long Term Product Review

John Deere Gator XUV 825i

John Deere Gator XUV 825i

Using our Gator:

August 2012

John Deere Gator XUV 825i Hydraulic assist bedJohn Deere Gator XUV 825iJohn Deere Gator XUV 825i and RSX850i
Hauling Oak Firewood

May 2012

John Deere Gator XUV 825i hauling fence material
Using an old kennel and baby pool to create a goose habitat.

John Deere Gator XUV 825i
Dumping grass clippings in the compost pile.  Electric dump bed is super nice!

John Deere Gator XUV 825i
Cleaning out the pasture of downed branches.  Big bed and headache rack are real nice.

John Deere Gator XUV 825i towing Kunz Rough Cut MowerJohn Deere Gator XUV 825i towing Kunz Rough Cut MowerJohn Deere Gator XUV 825i towing Kunz Rough Cut MowerTowable Rough Cut Mower - offset mowing
Mowing the pasture with out rough cut mower – Ground is wet and muddy.  Gator just powers through the thick grass and mud.

April 2012

John Deere Gator XUV 825i towing Kunz Rough Cut MowerJohn Deere Gator XUV 825i towing Kunz Rough Cut MowerJohn Deere Gator XUV 825i towing Kunz Rough Cut Mower

Mowing the pasture with out rough cut mower

March 2012

Towing a trailer with our John Deere Gator XUV 825i

Used our Gator to tow our friends trailer.  I used the Gator because the area was muddy and tight so the Gator could easily maneuver it in place.

John Deere Gator XUV 825i

The pasture is looking good.  Split the remaining two cords of wood from the huge oak tree that went down last year.  Finished off the day with a nice fire of all the scrap leftover and a load of camping wood in the Gator. Nice to have that all done!

February 2012

John Deere Gator XUV 825i John Deere Gator XUV 825i

Our John Deere Gator 825i is a huge help doing work around the alpaca ranch. Today my son & I cleaned the pasture of downed branches. Can you tell we only like to make one trip?! lol. The Gator bed is big, and the grate behind the seats allows you to stack stuff up super high. Then, the hydraulic dump bed kicks in and boom, it is all out. Got to love it. Then I loaded it up with oak firewood for an upcoming trip to Glamis.

January 2012

John Deere Gator XUV 825i  hauling dirtJohn Deere Gator XUV 825i  hauling dirtJohn Deere Gator XUV 825i  hauling dirt

Hauled about 20 loads of dirt in 45 minutes.  Speed dumping! The Gator’s electric  dump bed was key to making quick work of this and it kept the Bobcat doing its job instead of driving much slower than the Gator back and forth.

December 2011

John Deere Gator XUV 825i John Deere Gator XUV 825i John Deere Gator XUV 825i John Deere Gator XUV 825i

My daughter’s eight grade class had a work day out at the White Feather Ranch.  I took our Gator 825i along to help haul tools, people and do work.  We hauled a load of compost and used the dump bed.  Used a tow strap to drag big branches up a hill to the burn pile. The eighth graders and our Gator did a great job today!

November 2011

Rock Lined Pond Outlet - John Deere GatorJohn Deere Gator XUV 825i with dump bedHauling rocks with our John Deere Gator XUV 825i

Created a new outlet for our pond so the water will stay away from the new shop. Used the Gator 825i to haul and dump river rock in the new channel.  Dump bed worked awesome, even with the super heavy load.  4×4 low range was key because I had to cross a muddy creek to get here. Only complaint I have is the rocks don’t load themselves into the Gator…

John Deere Gator XUV 825i

Using our Gator to haul straw out into the alpaca pasture.  Few areas that need some coverage before big rain hits.

September 2011

John Deere Gator XUV 825i

Running around the alpaca pastures picking up the dung piles. Strangely enough, alpacas like to go in common piles. My wife likes this because there are less areas to rake up. I argue if they went anywhere that we wouldn’t have to pick it up. Either way, our John Deere Gator comes in handy. Especially the hydraulic dump bed!

July 2011

John Deere Gator XUV 825i towing trailer

Right after I got back from picking up the John Deere Gator at Valley Truck and Tractor, we put it right to use.  First up, move the “new” horse (or in this case alpaca) trailer into the shop. TheGator 825i XUV did not even flinch moving the dual axle trailer!

May 2011

John Deere Gator XUV 825i with towable field mowerJohn Deere Gator XUV 825i with towable field mower

Field Mowing with John Deere Gator XUV 825i Field Mowing with John Deere Gator XUV 825i Field Mowing with John Deere Gator XUV 825i John Deere Gator XUV 825i with towable rough cut field mower
More field mowing with our Gator 825i XUV. Grass is really tall and ground is still wet and muddy in many places.  4 wheel drive is a must and low range is key to maintain slow speed for mower.  Mowed about 5 acres and the Gator never skipped a beat. Towable field mower from Kunz Engineering.

April 2011

Rough Cut Field Mower behind a John Deere Gator XUV
Parts of our pasture are still super wet from all the rain this season. Grass is over my knee in many spots so I have no choice but to get it mowed. The Gator 825i is doing awesome. Good traction and float through the slop so it doesn’t tear the pasture up too much.

John Deere Gator 825i XUV
The Gator 825i XUV is coming in handy again today. Hauling 8 foot lodge poles, concrete and tools out to the work site.

March 2011

John Deere Gator XUV 825i with towable rough cut mowerJohn Deere Gator XUV 825i with towable rough cut mowerJohn Deere Gator XUV 825i with towable rough cut mower
It has been raining almost nonstop here in northern California, and our pasture is out of control.  The alpacas can’t keep up with this thick meadow grass so I use our towable rough cut field mower.

The mower is a Kunz AcrEase 57″ Rough Cut Mower and it does a great job with this thick, tall, wet meadow grass.  The ground was still pretty wet, so it was nice to have the John Deere Gator 825i XUV in 4×4 low.  UTVs are perfect for towing field mowers – comfortable, powerful and with 4×4, almost unstoppable even in sloppy conditions.

I was able to cut about 4 acres of this thick, wet grass in about 2 hours. I am sure this won’t be the last time I mow it this season.

John Deere Gator XUV 825i at Sand Mountain
Day trip to Sand Mountain in Nevada.  Brought the Gator along to try out the Fox replacement shocks.

February 2011

John Deere Gator XUV 825iJohn Deere Gator XUV 825i

John Deere Gator XUV 825iJohn Deere Gator XUV 825i
Weed abatement along six miles of rail road tracks. This right-of-way is used for mountain biking and hiking. The Gator is hauling a 35 gallon sprayer in the bed.

Fox Racing Shox for the John Deere Gator 825i XUVFox Racing Shox for the John Deere Gator 825i XUVFox Racing Shox for the John Deere Gator 825i XUV
Fox Racing Shox for the John Deere Gator 825i XUV. The shocks are built by Fox and are available through your John Deere dealer.  The shocks feature a remote reservoir and a compression adjustment so you can dial in your ride.

January 2011

John Deere Gator 825i XUV
A heavy gate fell off its track last night. Busted out ourJohn Deere XUV 825i and used the Warn winch to pull it back in place. Made the job much easier.

John Deere XUV 825i
I didn’t realize a friend’s GMC truck was two wheel drive until it was stuck in the ditch. He was pulling a heavy landscape trailer. I hooked up the John Deere Gator XUV 825i and pulled him right out. Pretty impressive.

Warn winch on the John Deere Gator XUV
My John Deere Gator XUV 825i came with a factory installed Warn winch. It is coming in handy today with pulling some hug logs (not in picture) so they can be cut up into 16″ lengths for firewood.

John Deere Gator XUV 825iJohn Deere Gator XUV 825i
OurJohn Deere Gator XUV 825i is really coming in handy with our fencing project.  The pasture is really sloppy wet in some areas so you can’t even get a truck in there.  The Gator can be loaded down with fence posts, fence or a big load of concrete and no worries about getting stuck.

December 2010

John Deere Gator XUV 825i
Time for yard work.  Gator is hauling all my tools around the property.

John Deere Gator 825i XUVJohn Deere Gator 825i XUV
Recent storms took out a big oak tree in the pasture. Time to cut and burn the small branches and haul away the firewood. Our John Deere Gator 825i XUV will come in handy today for bring out all the chain saws and other tools. Plus we will load it up with firewood when we are done.

November 2010

Hauling oak firewood with a John Deere Gator XUV 825i Towing a splitter with the John Deere Gator XUV 825i
Amazed at how much oak firewood the Gator can haul

October 2010

John Deere Gator XUV 825i
The Gator can haul five bales of straw in the bed!

John Deere Gator 825i XUVJohn Deere Gator 825i XUVJohn Deere Gator 825i XUVJohn Deere Gator 825i XUV
Sand Mountain Nevada – Took the Gator to Sand Mountain.  I was able to make it up Super Bowl, and all the way around the mountain.

Dump bed on the Gator 825i

John Deere Gator XUV 825i John Deere Gator XUV 825i John Deere Gator XUV 825i John Deere Gator XUV 825i
We are using our new 2011 Gator 825i to haul oak firewood. The bed has a 1,000 lbs capacity with 16.4 cubic feet of space. It also has a spray in liner and 20+ attachment points for tying down loads. Our Gator even has a hydraulic dump bed.

John Deere Gator XUV 825i  John Deere Gator XUV 825i
I picked the John Deere Gator XUV 825i today at Valley Truck and Tractor in Elk Grove. Took it for a quick drive to deliver some paddle tires to a friends house.

Information:

John Deere recently unleashed its most performance-driven Gator™ utility vehicles yet. Targeted toward the true outdoor adventurist, the 2011 lineup of Crossover Utility Vehicles (XUV) is packed with advanced features that deliver an unparalleled balance between work and recreation. 

The 2011 Gator XUV 825i is the fastest Gator ever produced. Boasting 50 HP, it is the highest-powered engine in its class with superior low-end torque for taking on even the toughest tasks, trails, and terrain. Horsepower is delivered by an 815cc, liquid cooled, inline 3-cylinder engine featuring 4 valves per cylinder, dual overhead cams and electronic fuel injection.

All the new Gator XUV models have a completely re-designed front and rear independent suspension system that delivers a superior ride through rough terrain. The new models are designed for less body roll and superior side-hill stability with either no-load or maximum cargo. Also, all the models sport an entirely new braking system that improves stopping performance over previous models.

The Gator XUV also features 1500 lbs. of towing and 1400 lbs. of payload capacity. The all-new hybrid metal and composite cargo box offers 16.4 cu. ft. of capacity, the most in its class, and an available factory installed spray-in bed liner with 20 integrated tie downs to help keep cargo in place. The sides of this cargo box are removable as well, giving the user a flat bed that’s easy to load and unload from any side.

Best-in-Class Advanced Engine Systems

  • 50HP – Highest power output in its class with superior low end torque
  • 812cc liquid-cooled inline 3-cylinder with dual overhead cams, electronic fuel injection, 4 valves per cylinder, aluminum heads and cast block with painted interior walls.
  • Largest displacement engine in this class
  • Only 3 cylinder model in this class
  • Only DOHC in this class
  • Lowest noise/vibration

Best-in-Class Ride, Safety & Stability

  • Advanced Double A-Arm Suspension
  • Fully independent and adjustable suspension
  • 8in front and 9in rear suspension travel
  • Load ready ride: Light- to no-load smooth with max load ride balance
  • Greatest stability in its class
  • Wide stance, long wheelbase and predictable handling
  • Operator Protection System (OPS)
  • SAE, ANSI, OSHA ROPS certified overhead structure
  • 3 pt. automotive seat belts
  • Multiple handholds

Best-in-Class Utility

  • Deluxe Cargo Box with 16.4 cu. ft. cargo, (Best-in-class) with 1,000 lbs capacity, 1,500 lbs towing and 1,400 payload
  • Auto style tailgate
  • Integrated attachment system
  • 20+ tie down points
  • Convertible to flat bed mode
  • Integrated brake and tail lights
  • Quik clamp attachment system
  • Factory installed spray-on liner
  • Advanced Suspension to provide a level & stable ride through the entire load range

John Deere Gator™ XUV 825i Specifications Long Term Review:

Engine

  • 4-cycle gas, Electronic Fuel Injection (EFI)

  • Cylinders/Valving: 3, DOHC, 4 valves per cyl.
  • Horsepower: 50 (37.28 kW)*
  • Displacement: 812cc
  • Maximum torque 47 ft-lbs. (64 Nm)

Dimensions

  • Length 119 in. (3035 mm)

  • Width 62 in. (1571 mm)

  • Front/Rear-tread Centers 44.8 in. (1137mm)/

  • 47.9 in. (1216mm)

  • Height (with OPS) 75 in. (1903 mm)

  • Wheelbase 79 in. (2007 mm)

  • Weight (dry weight) 1630 lb. (739 kg)

  • Towing Capacity 1,500 lb. (680 kg)

  • Payload Capacity 1400 lb. (635 kg)

  • Sound rating (driver’s ear) 89.4 dB(A)

Cargo Box

  • Material Hybrid steel/glass-filled poly

  • Dimensions, in. (mm) 45 x12 x52 (1143 x304.8×1320)

  • Volume 16.4 ft3 (0.46 m3)

  • Weight 1000 lb. (454 kg)

  • Dump Manual with lift assist shock (factory installed power lift option)

  • Tailgate Center truck-style latch

Tires Front

  • Maxxis Big Horn 2.0, Radial 27x9xR14

Tires Rear

  • Maxxis Big Horn 2.0, Radial 27x11xR14

Color

  • Camouflage

Videos:

Links:

Manufacturer Info:

John Deere

Website: www.deere.com

John Deere is a world leader in providing advanced products and services for agriculture, forestry, construction, lawn and turf care, landscaping and irrigation. John Deere also provides financial services worldwide and manufactures and markets engines used in heavy equipment. Since it was founded in 1837, the company has extended its heritage of integrity, quality, commitment and innovation around the globe.

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