I just took delivery of the Ranger Diesel HST Deluxe model yesterday. The dealer said they had done the prechecks but I found some problems. During the test drive, the dealer didn't have a good place to run them around to do a good run and it was super cold so I accepted his response that the hydrostat wasn't warmed up yet and it was sluggish when I mentioned it to the dealer. My John Deere 3720 does the same thing if I don't let it warm up for around 10-15 minutes. After the tractor is warm, it will run great (And apparently faster than the new HST ranger. Bummer to say the least.) Dealer said there were other ranger HSTs he sold getting up to 35mph but not this one for sure at this point.
With all of that, here are my findings.
1. Dealer didn't inflate the tires. Both rears were less than 5 psi. The fronts were around 4-7. With this being the case, the machine really struggled to move under it's own power even at 3100 rpm. (Max is 3750 based on specs)
2. Idle is a bit high and not running at the rated 1250 the manual states. It is running at 1500-1540, not huge but noisy. What are your warm idle numbers?
3. Basically it seems to be a Polaris Brutus machine from research and it does appear that I may suffering from the same control arm/swash plate issue others have mentioned here on the brutus forums.
I got out this morning and ran a test run after properly inflating the tires to 10psi front/20psi rear (Based on the book). Very big difference in getting the machine to move of course. It took off better at around 2700rpm and then I rode through a 40 acre pasture to a 1/3rd mile gravel back road that has a slight 2 degree incline upward and at the end, a right turn to a gravel road that is also 1/3rd mile long and flat out to the main road.
On the pasture, I could maintain 15-18 mph with the variation of terrain in high gear. When I say variation, I mean 5-10 foot elevation changes over 2-300 yards. That was with no Air, heater running low and turf mode on. When I got the rougher back road in the back I was able to get it to about 18-21 on high going up the hill. Made the right turn and tried to push the pedal through the floor and got it to a stable 24mph but never could get it any higher. IT took about 1/6 mile to get to that speed on the flat. On the way back, even going down the hill, I still couldn't get more than 24mph so that is what she has until breakin is complete.
When I picked it up, it had 12 miles on it, but had ran for 44 hours on the hour meter which seems a bit strange.
Any way, this is my experience with the Diesel HST so far with the few minutes I have driven it.
Final thoughts:
Do I like the top speed, Heck no. Especially coming from a ranger xp800 that I could get to 40mph in a 700ft driveway. But I have signed the papers and it is mine.
I do think it will be a better workhorse than the xp800 was. I used my 800 to move a lot of dirt and gravel and this machine is better for that in several ways. Bigger box, better handling, power dump bed, cab, etc.
It is NOT for taking trips and going hunting where you will need to cover lots of ground or travel along with slower traffic. I wouldn't even say that it would be a good trail ride.
It is louder by far than my xp800. But that 90 amp alternator makes up for that. I have no worries about adding accessories to this beast like I had with the xp800.
If you are a rancher, this machine cannot outrun a cow or a horse. Which to me is sad for all the other thought that went into the machine.
With all of that said. Are your experiences with a properly running machine the same or better than I have seen here?
With all of that, here are my findings.
1. Dealer didn't inflate the tires. Both rears were less than 5 psi. The fronts were around 4-7. With this being the case, the machine really struggled to move under it's own power even at 3100 rpm. (Max is 3750 based on specs)
2. Idle is a bit high and not running at the rated 1250 the manual states. It is running at 1500-1540, not huge but noisy. What are your warm idle numbers?
3. Basically it seems to be a Polaris Brutus machine from research and it does appear that I may suffering from the same control arm/swash plate issue others have mentioned here on the brutus forums.
I got out this morning and ran a test run after properly inflating the tires to 10psi front/20psi rear (Based on the book). Very big difference in getting the machine to move of course. It took off better at around 2700rpm and then I rode through a 40 acre pasture to a 1/3rd mile gravel back road that has a slight 2 degree incline upward and at the end, a right turn to a gravel road that is also 1/3rd mile long and flat out to the main road.
On the pasture, I could maintain 15-18 mph with the variation of terrain in high gear. When I say variation, I mean 5-10 foot elevation changes over 2-300 yards. That was with no Air, heater running low and turf mode on. When I got the rougher back road in the back I was able to get it to about 18-21 on high going up the hill. Made the right turn and tried to push the pedal through the floor and got it to a stable 24mph but never could get it any higher. IT took about 1/6 mile to get to that speed on the flat. On the way back, even going down the hill, I still couldn't get more than 24mph so that is what she has until breakin is complete.
When I picked it up, it had 12 miles on it, but had ran for 44 hours on the hour meter which seems a bit strange.
Any way, this is my experience with the Diesel HST so far with the few minutes I have driven it.
Final thoughts:
Do I like the top speed, Heck no. Especially coming from a ranger xp800 that I could get to 40mph in a 700ft driveway. But I have signed the papers and it is mine.
I do think it will be a better workhorse than the xp800 was. I used my 800 to move a lot of dirt and gravel and this machine is better for that in several ways. Bigger box, better handling, power dump bed, cab, etc.
It is NOT for taking trips and going hunting where you will need to cover lots of ground or travel along with slower traffic. I wouldn't even say that it would be a good trail ride.
It is louder by far than my xp800. But that 90 amp alternator makes up for that. I have no worries about adding accessories to this beast like I had with the xp800.
If you are a rancher, this machine cannot outrun a cow or a horse. Which to me is sad for all the other thought that went into the machine.
With all of that said. Are your experiences with a properly running machine the same or better than I have seen here?
