Just another N/A UTV? 2020 Kawasaki TERYX KRX 1000

Engine:

As I suspected from the first teaser video’s soundtrack its rocking a parallel twin-cylinder engine. 999 cc with 75 ft pounds or torque to be exact. Wait, what? Where’s the horsepower figures? They didn’t mention the horsepower figures? Awwww bummer! From the announced torque figures, the bore and stroke I’ll ballpark it at 115 to 120 and call it a day.

What different? It’s got a dual 50 mm throttle bodies with ride by wire setup and that’s all there is to say for now.

Transmission and Drivetrain

Here’s where it gets interesting. The transmission is typical to Japanese UTVs with no park function, High, low, neutral and reverse but there’s the kicker. It’s got a centrifugal wet clutch system AND integrated belt temp sensor that is right smack the in the gauge cluster on top of the steering column. Will the wet clutch rob power? The only thing I’m going to mention here is that you probably won’t be changing belts as often as your riding buddies.

No three-wheel drive or awd drive that engages when it wants to here my friends, you’re getting a true electronically lockable front diff that paired to the wet clutch should make it quite a performer when rock crawling.

Suspension/Steering/Wheels and tires:

Double wishbone arched A-arms up front and four arched links on trailing arms makes the bulk of the suspension. Equipped with Fox 2.5 Podium LSC with preload, 24 positions damping adjustment with a whopping 18.6 inch front and 21.1 inch of travel front to rear is class leading in the N/A category. Ground clearance is set at 14.4 inches, almost half an inch higher than the RZR.

Another feature that makes the KRX stand out is wheelbase, all 99 inches of it. Compared to the RzR, the YXZ and the Talon, it’s got a 9-inch advantage. Is it an advantage? Really? Stability will be good that I can pretty much guarantee it but, will it make the handling suffer in tight trails? I’m on the fence on that point. It will depend on the turn radius and how the suspension copes with rapid inputs.

Steering is electrically is assisted and speed sensitive. Call it DPS or EPS, it should be okay on that side of things.

Wheels are cast aluminum with bead locks rocking some serious 31X10R15 Maxxis Carnivores which are all the rage right now. 31-inch rubber on a 15-inch rim? This is the biggest meat you’ll find on a stock machine in the business. I wonder how they will feel like… Hummm.

Body/Frame

First, I think it’s gorgeous. The short snout with fender extenders flows into half doors and then, the rear quarter panels to make a nice slick design. It sure looks the part. It doesn’t look flimsy and from the videos that are available at the time I’m writing this from dealers that were at the launch, I’m guessing it’s going to be good.

One item to note is the 8-point ROPS roll cage with arched pillars. The cage is an active part of the frame. The B-pillars are mounted at the exact angle of the rear shocks. Kawasaki claims that it increases frame rigidity and disperses high impact hits from both suspension and in case of rollover.

The bed can haul up to a 32-inch spare tire and wheel with a max capacity of 350 pounds.

NEXT Final thoughts: