Kawasaki Mule

[poppythedog]

We're thinking of changing the quad/trailer for a diesel Mule, anyone had any experience of them good or bad?

[webber]

Make sure that the mule is 4x4, I seem to remember that the one which we tried was not. I suppose that it depends how off road you want the vehicle.

 

webber

[poppythedog]

We do need 4x4, we looked at one at the CLA, it looks like a versatile vehicle but as i'm going to be responsible for maintaining it reliability is important!

[potshot]

WE have used one on the shoot for the last two years - they are brilliant. Firstly the paylaod is mich bigger than a quad. Secondly when picking up you can get more people/dogs loaded and aget them to where they need to go easliy. Thirdly with a bit on imaginantion and metal work they make an excellent game cart with the added advantage of still being able to carry people.

 

All round, can't beleive how we managed without one. The shoot is in Devon - so you can guess what the terrain is like. Must have the 4x4

 

Potshot

[Quercus]

We use a couple of the diesel mules, the oldest is about four years old.

 

On the plus side they are very versatile machines, it's handy to have the integral load area and space for a passenger. They are very good off road even with a load. As potshot said they can be made into a good small game cart and are excellent lamping vehicles. On red diesel they are very cheap to run when compared to a petrol quad. They are a lot cleaner to drive in the winter than a Quad/trailer combo.

 

On the negative side ours each cost at least four grand a year in parts and labour . Torque converters last a maximum of two years (£1200). You're lucky if the drive belt lasts six months, although I hear that they have sorted this with the newer models. They eat wheel bearings and U.Js. Parts are expensive and some take an age to get hold of, although this may just be our dealer :blink: . The mechanic who works on our machines tells me that our problems are by no means unusual.

 

If you want reliability and excellent parts availability I'd go for a manual shift Honda quad, thats what we will be doing shortly.

 

Q B)

[barrie0]

When I worked at the local golf course I used a kawasaki mule every day for 2 years (2-3 hours a day) .Had it stuck twice but they were deep ruts at the tip , but it was a 2 wheel drive version diesel,manual gears .It was already 2 years old when i started there and nothing had been done to it ,fuel consumption was very good , only problem we had was the thing kept overheating even with a new radiator ,and with the thermostat taken out ,in the end it was wired so the electric fan was on all the time .