| Polaris Ranger RZR 800 Long Travel Kits
The RZR was just released to consumers Summer of 2007, but a fewaftermarket companies got pre-release units that were used for research anddevelopment. Many more followed on and I saw twelve different kits at the2007 Sand Sports Super Show. Things are definitely moving for the Polaris RZR. Expect long travel kits from many of the companies that are alreadyin the mix for Rhino long travel kits. As new products become available, we will update this page tostay current.
Polaris Ranger RZR’s come stock with fully independent four-wheel suspension: Double-wishbones front and rear deliver 9″ offront wheel travel, 9.5″ of rear wheel travel and 10″ of groundclearance. Stock RZR’s have a 77″ wheelbase (2″ longer than aRhino), and are 50″ wide. The seat position is 7″ lower, so right outof the box, you won’t feel as tippy.
Although long travel kits are far from cheap, they are the bestway to improve your RZR’s suspension. Approaching the goal of longtravel in steps can result in more expense because stock length shocks will notwork. It is a hard pill to swallow, but if you want to get to long travel,you will save money in the long run by waiting until you can buy a full longtravel kit. If a long travel kit is just out of reach, but you still want toincrease your track width for more stability in the dunes, you can try offsetwheels and/or wheel spacers. Most of the long travel kits increase wheeltravel, front and rear track width and stretch the wheelbase. Long travel kitswill be available fromseveral manufacturers. What is included in a RZR Long Travel Kit?Before you go running off to buy one of these long travel kits,it is best to understand what is included so that you can make side by sidecomparisons. A-Arms – A few different types of a-arms are outthere. Most are made from chromoly tubing, others are boxed, and a few aremade from billet aluminum or mild steel. Each material type has pros and cons.Ask questions about why a particular material and arm design was chosen. Some kits come powder coated in a standard color.Others come unfinished or offer custom colors. A-Arm Hardware – Inner and outer a-arm hardware istypically replaced. The majority of long travel kits come with new bushings (Delron,Daystar, etc.) on the inner side of the a-arm, but some come with heims. On the outer or spindle side, some kits use heims, others use uni-balls, and afew reuse the OEM ball joint. There are pluses and minuses to each type of setupand quality can vary from heim to heim and bushing to bushing, so ask questions. Axles – When you extend the wheels out, you are going to need new axles. There are two approaches to this. The cheaper route is to reuse the stock CVs and just replace the axles. The more expensive route is new axles and CVs. Tie Rods – Some kits come with tie rod extenders. Afew come with new tie rods. Shocks – All of the kits include new coilover shocks.Several shock manufacturers have developed RZR specific shocks, so there aremany options and prices out there. Long travel kit manufacturers will tend tohave a favorite. If you don’t want to mess around with shock valving, stick withwhat the manufacturer recommends. Shock selection can greatly affect not onlythe cost, but also the performance of the kit. Shock Towers – Some kits come with shock towers that move the upper shock mounting location up and out. This allows the shock to be mounted in a more vertical position. Spindles – Stock spindles aren’t typically replaced, buta few manufacturers are now offering new spindles as an option. If you race orlike to jump, you may want to look into new spindles. Frame Gussets – Long travel kits put more stress on thefactory mounting locations. Several manufacturers are now offering bolt-on orweld-on gussets to help beef up the stock frame in critical areas. Upper-rear shock mount is a weak point. Look carefully at additional support for this area. Extended Brake Lines – Most if not all RZR kits need longer brake lines. Other things to ask:
Polaris Ranger RZR Long Travel Kits
Status: Available A-Arm width: +4 1/2″ each side
A-Arm width: +6″
Status: Available A-Arm width:
A-Arm width:+4″ per side
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