Tested: 110 HP, All Electric Polaris Ranger XP Kinetic UTV

Why did Polaris invite little ol’ Jo Borrás out to drive their new, 110 HP UTV? While it probably had more to do with me being the closest CleanTechnica writer available, I’m also smack-dab in the heart of the Polaris’ target market – or near enough, anyway, that our family recently picked up a new side-by-side of our own earlier this summer. What’s more, as a former sales manager at a Honda power sports store, I’ve ridden the comparable Pioneer and Talon models, and even sampled a Yamaha or two along the way.

I have also sampled Polaris’ first electric effort, the Polaris Ranger EV UTV. That vehicle – which developed prior to the Polaris/Zero motorcycle marriage – was powered by lead-acid batteries and had more in common with an E-Z-Go golf cart than a high-performance SxS. To someone who associates electric power with a gut-punch of off-the-line acceleration, it was disappointing … if not downright boring.

While the little Polaris Ranger EV UTV is capable enough to haul hay and hand tools around a small farm, I wasn’t convinced it merited its price tag, regardless of its electrified benefits. As such, I wasn’t entirely sure I’d be able to come at this new Polaris with the sort of clean-slate objectivity that the company probably would have liked. To be extra, doubly sure that I gave the Kinetic a fair shake, I brought backup.

Along for the ride with me this week was Hobbes, a twenty-something college student who likes to drive stuff. It was both his first time on the perimeter trails outside Road America and his first time piloting a Polaris of any kind, and he was psyched. Somewhere between my jaded cynicism and his wide-eyed enthusiasm, maybe, is objectivity, right?

Maybe!

The Ranger XP Kinetic represents the first fruits of the “rEVolution” partnership between the manufacturing powerhouse of Polaris and the EV innovators at Zero motorcycles. As a machine, it is incredibly capable, and the 110 HP Zero-sourced electric motor is just a part of the reason why.

Let’s talk about the XP Kinetic’s battery. Or, more to the point, batteries – there are two. On the “Premium” model, you get a 15 kWh battery, while the pricier “Ultimate” version comes in with nearly double that, at 29.8 kWh. Both operate on a 100V electrical system, with a separate 12V system that powers accessories – that’s critical for both the aftermarket and existing Ranger customers, wince it means that the accessories they currently have on their ICE Ranger will almost all work perfectly with the XP Kinetic version.

The battery charges on a level 2 system, which is great, since nearly every hobby farmer or dune blaster will already have a 220/240V outlet in their barn/garage to charge from. The charging port – a standard J1772-style – means it can share a charger with other electric cars or tractors you may have, also.

Read more: Tested: 110 HP, All Electric Polaris Ranger XP Kinetic UTV