Anyone have experience with both?

have owned multiple of both.

it's mule (pro if you can) and it isn't really close

TresPuertas said:

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have owned multiple of both.

it's mule (pro if you can) and it isn't really close

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We are looking at the "Ranch" edition. Is that what you are referring to?

Have had Mule, Polaris, Gator and Can Am on the ranch.
Mule by far surpassed the Polaris Ranger as far as reliability and service. I now have a Can Am HD10 Lonestar Edition. It's my second one.
I only picked it over the Mule Pro because it was quieter to my bad ears and seemed to ride a little better to my also bad back after a test ride in both…..and the dealer was one of my marine dealers as well. (He sold Can Am and Polaris and Yamaha)
I also have a Polaris Ranger EV only because of how quiet it was to hunt hogs and it was the only decent EV available at the time.
I have not looked at or ridden in a new Mule Pro (2026). …..but my choices now would be between the Mule Pro or the Can Am Lonestar. I think they are both higher quality than Polaris.
If I was choosing between the Mule Pro and Polaris Ranger…..hands down I'd chose the Mule.

We have had both at the ranch. The mule pro fxt is great but if you are using all the seats, the bed is really lacking. Folding up the rear seat gives plenty of room though. Just traded in the mule on a Can Am Defender Limited Max, looking forward to the AC this summer. We still have the ranger 1000XP, mostly use it for work and filling feeders, but have had zero issues with it.

If you don't need the full bed or to run more than 35-40mph, get the mule.

If you want the full bed, to be able to run like hell, or have a machine you can put whatever accessory you want on it, get the ranger.

If you don't take care of the machine and drive it like it an amphibious vehicle or a desert pre runner, it's going to break regardless of the brand.

Mule

I have owned and worked with Kawasaki, Honda, Yamaha, CanAm, Polaris and John Deere side by sides.

The only ones I have ever bought twice are Kawasaki and Honda.

The only one I swore I would never buy again was Polaris.

I live in very rough country and have owned Kawasaki, Can Am defenders, and Polaris Rangers. i purchased a 2025 Polaris 1500 XD in Feb of last year mainly for the heater and A/C.The ride is excellent .The dealership will very soon have it longer on their shop floor than it has been on the ranch. The steel drive transmission sucks and Polaris can"t keep replacements in stock, My CanAm defender 1000 is only OK( water pump problem), MY 2021 Mule is still the best vehicle I own. If I ever get the Ranger back it will be looking for a new home and I will shop for a new Mule

Appreciate the input guys, it is very helpful.

Just FYI. If you consider Can Am. They have the new HD11 engine which is a three cylinder in line. It replaces the old HD10 V-Twin engine.
I test drove a new 2026 Lonestar and it was very smooth running. Very quiet.
Based off the Rotax aviation engine they build. Noted for their reliability.

If Kawasaki would make a model with a bigger bed (when utilizing all six seats) and better seats it wouldn't even be a question. I'm probably getting a can am here in a few months for that reason alone.

I've had a 2021 Mule Pro FXT since new and it's bullet proof. It's never been broken, mine has the 820cc engine.

Kawasaki went to a 1000cc engine in 2024 (I believe) and it had a massive recall. I'd be mindful of that when buying a new one.

My 2026 Mule Pro FXT 1000 will run 65MPH…Maybe more, but that was enough.

Jv106 said:

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I've had a 2021 Mule Pro FXT since new and it's bullet proof. It's never been broken, mine has the 820cc engine.

Kawasaki went to a 1000cc engine in 2024 (I believe) and it had a massive recall. I'd be mindful of that when buying a new one.

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my 2020 Ranger 1000XP has been as well. I replaced the belt last year because I smoked it running 35 in L and then not slowing down to complete stop and shifting to H. That was my fault and was on a neighborhood road with cars behind me and just should've know better.

my 2000 mule finally crapped out and I am trying to decided if I try and get it fixed or upgrade to a new one.

Don't realize they run that fast now. I barely get over 40mph in my ranger and that is only on paved roads. No need to go much faster

SharkinAg said:

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If Kawasaki would make a model with a bigger bed (when utilizing all six seats) and better seats it wouldn't even be a question. I'm probably getting a can am here in a few months for that reason alone.

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This is why I only know of one guy that duck hunts with them… the lack of bed space is really limiting if you're actually going to use it.

The convertible bed is one of my favorite things about the mule. We use ours as a single row with a fairly large bed probably 80% of the time, but with the ability to add the other row of seating. I like the compactness of the machine with an option for more seating.

Now, if you need to seat six with a large cargo capacity, the mule falls short.

If I remember correctly, the mule is about 18" shorter than the CanAm putting the Defender close to 14' long. I really like the CanAm, but wanted a smaller machine. Just like boats, I suppose, everything is a compromise.

The Polaris is all show, no go. The Mule is all go, no show. If you want it for work, go with the Mule. If it's rarely going to be off the road and mainly for cruising and getting you from camp to the deer stand the Ranger is more comfortable and a great option.

I'm going on 5 years on my Mule with the only issue being flat tires and oil changes. Been rolled over once and used mainly for feeding cows, fixing fence and clearing pastures. Hasn't missed a beat. Not the most comfortable and not fancy like the CanAms and Polaris but just a solid, dependable side by side. Small bed is sometimes an issue if you need to use both seats but I rarely put it into work mode where I need the rear seat along with my tools I use around my place.

Polaris used to be the GOAT years back. Then they sat on their reputation and got passed up by Kawasaki and Can Am.
Friend of mine (and a fellow Ag) has an aerial animal capture business and had a fleet of 6 Polaris's. Granted he runs the crap out of them, but they were always breaking down.
He said Polaris customer service was horrible and parts were ridiculously high.
Don't think he owns any Polaris's anymore.
I bought my first Lonestar HD10 in 2019. It had a surging issue from 2500-3000 rpm range. Can Am could not figure the problem out. Issue was in the ICU. They ended up giving me a totally new machine. I didn't have any problems with that machine using it daily on the ranch. I ended buying another one and still have it. No problems at all with now 600 hours on it.
I bought a Polaris Ranger EV strictly for the quiet of it to hunt hogs….and my ears. Other than batteries and tires I've never replaced a single part on it. Have had it since 2019 as well and literally use it everyday on the ranch.
The Rotax engine that CA has a superb reputation in the light aviation industry and is considered the gold standard. Can Am has incorporated that into their ATV's and done well with them. Their sister company utilizes the same technology in the Sea-Doo PWC's.
They all have their strengths and weaknesses….at the end of the day it's just which one fits your needs the best.

Another vote for the mule. Have a 2024 Platinum king ranch fxt pro. Great suspension and work capacity. Agree with others on the bed issue, although I find it rare that I'm working with more than one other person, so the back seat is usually slid forward on mine. It's in hilly country, so I like the shorter wheelbase and turning radius, worth the trade off for my situation.

I've taken mine up to 55 no sweat, and that was plenty fast enough for me, it had more in it for sure.

Are there no aftermarket products to provide a bed extension for the Mule?

tmaggie50 said:

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Are there no aftermarket products to provide a bed extension for the Mule?

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That would kind of defeat the purpuse of the fold down back seat, woulnd't it?

I think everyone seems to be saying that when you are in the one row configuration, the bed is plenty big. It is just when you are in the two seat configuration that it is limited.

The turning radius is a big deal for me.

I understand the ability to lay down the back seat. I was asking for use in the 6 person configuration. A product that would take away the knock against the Mule bed length. They seem to be a better price and as or more reliable than their counterparts.

You could use a hitch mounted rack with a riser to give yourself more room / tie down points

Edit: Or buy this

https://www.sidebysidesource.com/mule-pro-fxt-bed-extension-ranch-armor-ks15-sss?sku=KS15-SSS&ep4p_ref=google_pla&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=ep4p&utm_term=&utm_content=&ep4p_ref=google&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=22336863277&gbraid=0AAAAAqIKP5QqzNyA0GWO4G8iyG06G8fQE&gclid=CjwKCAjwvqjOBhAGEiwAngeQndiJmPUt7QvguX51DH1cprLg6FijMSLvXu1Wfxv1ZpMaYM2drS80hBoCz1sQAvD_BwE

Yall must be horrible on equipment. My old 12 diesel Polaris is the sheetz. Has 11,000 hours on it, and just keeps on trucking. Did 2-3 TTT days at ranch every year while it was a thing, and my ranch hand grabs it every time the ranch Polaris and hinting trucks are dead. It's pulled too many trailers but doesn't fail me.

Edit to add that this was last year that these were made in Canada. The 12 gas models had moved to US manufacturing and were already a piece of crap fail with smaller wiring harness that threw codes about TBS when warm that shut it down in safe mode. Polaris did not stand behind that model fail and many experienced the issue.

Have had good luck with 19 ranger and 15 before that. Granted I have done a lot to it. Gullimen chip and clutch.i have a ton of hrs and drive it hard w no issues. Added a perko switch to keep from draining battery.

No experience w new mule

Cousin has a new cabbed canam - cold natured and sluggish. Lease manager has a new canam and it's the same. Wouldn't start during Jan freeze. Battery is about the size of a kids hot wheel. Took 2 jump boxes and a can of starting fluid to get started. Seats are amazing though.

That's really strange. Here in the Ozarks we have typical temps here in the winter of -5 with highs in the teens for quite a few days in Dec.-Feb and my Can Am HD10 starts fine in those temps.
Cab models are pretty popular up here because of the cold weather and snows. The ones I've been in with cabs and the HD10 or HD11 engines aren't sluggish at all.
Here is the battery that came OEM in my CA.
If your family member has that little battery you say he needs to take it back to the dealer and get the correct battery.

SharkinAg said:

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If Kawasaki would make a model with a bigger bed (when utilizing all six seats) and better seats it wouldn't even be a question. I'm probably getting a can am here in a few months for that reason alone.

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One of the best assets of the Mule PRO though is the fact that you can have a full sized bed without having a vehicle that is 20 feet long.

If you are constantly taking 6 people out and need to load enough stuff to fill up a full sized bed, then sure, it's probably not a good one for you. But most of the SxS models out there have very little capacity left to haul when you put 1500 lbs of people on the frame anyway so a huge bed isn't all that useful IMO.

We run our side by sides hard at our swamp lease. There is a reason that we have 5 Mule PRO's, 1 Mule 4010 and only 1 Polaris and 1 Yamaha.

tmaggie50 said:

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I understand the ability to lay down the back seat. I was asking for use in the 6 person configuration. A product that would take away the knock against the Mule bed length. They seem to be a better price and as or more reliable than their counterparts.

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The smaller bed is limiting, but even the bigger bed has limitations as well. They all do.

I've fit 10 bags of corn in my rig with the small bed. Took some careful stacking and I drove like an old man (which is my usual driving habits these days anyway). I've put 3 deer in the back with the little bed. I have an ice chest that fits in the back perfectly and still leaves me with 3/4 of the bed available even in the short configuration.

I have a small trailer at deer camp that I can hook up and use if I really need to move stuff. All side by sides have limitations and all are compromises for what you want to one degree or another. I have zero need to go 70+ mph on a crappy mud road that the cows have destroyed or think I can go that fast through 6" of water and a foot of mud. Even on paved roads I generally hit 30-35 and that's plenty good. Reliability and usefulness are more important to me personally than speed or whether I can get some doodad aftermarket this or that (which with a Mule PRO, you have plenty of aftermarket options for gizmos and addons).

I also added a front hitch and can add a carry basket, which made a huge difference in the rare occasions I run with both seats available. Like BrazosDog, I probably run in a single seat configuration 80% or more of the time anyway.

I'm against the majority here it seems but I had a 2023 mule pro fxt ranch edition that was a very nice machine. I bought a 2025 Polaris 1000 premium crew in November of 2024. I'll never go back to the mule, no way. The ranger is exponentially better than the mule for my use. The most obvious difference is the speed. The mule felt like I was in low range everywhere I went. Most of the time that wasn't a bad thing but when you need speed or acceleration, it sucked. For instance I was trying to cut my neighbors bull out of my heifers last night. Polaris has some get up and go and I could easily cut him off and push into my pens. No way in hell I could've done that with the mule. Next biggest difference is the bed of course but the most impactful one to me is the shifting. The mule will pull your shoulder out of socket if you have to do a bunch of shifting (forwards and reverse). The ranger is so smooth and shifts so easily, literally, my 2 year old son can do it. I've taken the ranger to broken bow and rode the forest for a whole week or just use the piss out of it on my little ranching operation. Spraying weeds, chasing cows and pigs or riding the family around. No issues whatsoever so far. I've got a 2012 ranger 800xp that I still do a bunch of spraying out of and the only thing I've ever done to it is change the wiring harness for the injectors. I guess other folks have bad luck with Polaris but of the 2 I own and the one I use on a different ranch, they've been damn good machines.

My Can Am Lonestar HD10 with larger bumpers is just at 13' 10" and The Polaris XP1000 Crew is 12' 8". The Mule Pro is 11' What machine are you looking at that is 20' long?

I guess put me in the same boat as Crosstimbers….. I've had 3 Polaris Rangers over the past 15 years. I don't baby them but don't abuse them either. They have done well for me. Currently in a '21 1000xp single cab. Had a double but it was too big for what I use it for. I like the single seat cabs. My next one will be fully enclosed cab.

Yes, there is a bed extender. Basically allows you to add the length of the tailgate to your bed. Easy to add and remove. But yes, bed is a little small. I added a rack for duck hunting.