"Wow, this machine has every...
"Wow, this machine has every bit of balls that you'd imagine it would have and then some."
So now that you got that bit of information you were pleading for, don't stop reading just yet. There is more! To me, it was not so much the top speed that impressed me, but rather the usable power that I experienced. When you first slam down the throttle, this motor almost feels a bit lazy for a slight second, but the Hemi combustion kicks in and the XTZ roars. This strong power really became most usable when climbing steep gnarly hills, trying to work your way out of sticky situations or even powering through fast, sweeping turns. When you need the power, you know it's there and available to be used. And when it came time to hit small jumps, this motor actually gave the Prowler the ability to raise its front end higher than any other UTV. You can bet that this new motor will easily get any job you need done-such as hauling items around your property, pulling your boat to the lake or just giving you a good old-fashioned thrill ride-done.
I was always on board with the idea of dropping the 1000cc motor into the Prowler, but not without conditions. For me, those conditions were simple: Improve the overall handling of the Prowler. And that's just what these guys did. I must admit that I was actually impressed with how the XTZ handled, even with the additional power. When powering through rough terrains, it seemed as if the Prowler hunkered down and soaked up everything with ease. If you got into the whoops, you could make it through several sets before the rear end began dancing around. We skied our unit on many occasions and hardly ever experienced harsh landings. And even during a few dicey situations where I was sure the outcome was not going to be good, I was surprised with how the shocks pulled us through without trouble. As for feeling a bit tipsy at times, the enormous Prowler still portrays that feeling, but it's been improved over previous models. My only major complaint is that things do begin to feel a bit sketchy at 60-plus mph and above.
Arctic Cat made sure that...
Arctic Cat made sure that the Prowler had plenty of storage space for drinks and other items that you'll need for a long day out on the trail.
One of the things that I really do like about the Prowler XTZ is that it possesses the ability to work hard for you when you need to get the job done and serves as a great high-performance recreational vehicle for the weekends. With 2-inch towing receivers on both the front and rear matched with plenty of storage and a massive engine, there are just no limits to what your XTZ could be used for. To me, it's the best of all worlds. Top it off with a trick set of wheels, a cool-looking hood scoop, a pretty good suspension setup and plenty of usable power, and this machine has done well with pleasing me. The only major disappointment for me is that Arctic Cat did not take safety issues as far as I would've liked. Yes, I praise AC for adding the shoulder belt to the safety harness. But maybe a set of doors or a net would have gone a long way in improving safety. Aside from that, Arctic Cat did an amazing job on its new Prowler XTZ.
The Verdict
Overall, I found the Prowler XTZ to be a great machine with the ability to satisfy many types of needs. I loved the power output by the 1000cc motor, but I would warn readers to be cautious at those higher speeds. For me, I loved the usability that this motor possessed as well as the suspension modifications that the engineers made for this new model. And to top it all off, it's a trick-looking machine. Now we just need to get it home and get a little long-term testing on it.