First Drive
2013 Polaris Brutus: The New Multi-Tool of UTVs
Some 20 years ago I bought a Forrest Tool Company MAX multipurpose tool to keep in my 4x4s along side the winch accessory kit. The fiberglass-handled MAX can be changed in seconds from axe/sledge, to Mattock, pick, shovel, hoe or rake.
One tool. Multiple accessories. It’s built to last and easy to carry. I’ll probably have it around for another 20 years.
Polaris has their own “multi-tool” but it’s in the form of their venerable Ranger XP900 side-by-side. It’s called the Brutus, and it’s a new machine for 2013.
The Brutus is a co-partnership development with Bobcat.
Polaris provided the basic chassis, body, diesel engine and suspension, while Bobcat helped incorporate their hydrostatic drive and PTO system that’s used in their equipment line. (The Bobcat 3600 UTV and Bobcat 3650 4×4 is the same machine but with different bodywork.)
The result is a versatile, efficient, easy to operate, multi-purpose, all-wheel-drive UTV that can handle a multitude of tasks just by changing out the attachments.
Polaris’ lock-on attachments can be swapped in less than 2 minutes, while the hydraulic attachments, which include a sweeper and snow blower, can be changed in less than 5 minutes according to Steve Schiebel, who manages the Brutus line.
2013 Polaris Brutus can do multiple tasks year-around by changing out the attachments.
“The Brutus helps keep a business owner’s capital investment low, while maximizing the ROI,” says Schiebel. “Now the landscaper, for example, can trailer one machine with multiple tools to the jobsite where one person can handle multiple tasks over the course of a day.”
I had the opportunity to spend a few minutes running a top-level Brutus HDPTO model complete with electric wipers, power windows, tilt wheel, electric power steering, heat and A/C.
The hydrostatic drive’s tredle pedal setup makes moving from forward to reverse and back fast and effortless. No shifting of gears or taking your hands off the steering wheel.
The 24hp Yanmar 3-cylincde diesel, which Polaris has offered on the Ranger line for years, is loud inside the cab, but it has plenty of power to run the hydraulics and the 90-amp alternator that handles any electrical needs.
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A simple push/pull knob engages the HD PTO while an adjustable throttle lever, also on the center console, allows you to pick your engine rpm to control the PTO.
Brutus also comes with a 1,250-pound capacity electric dump bed that’s large enough to hold a pallet with the tailgate up.
PTO allows the use of Bobcat-sourced snow blowers and other attachments.
With 10 inches of ground clearance and on-demand all-wheel-drive, the Brutus can get around just about anywhere on a jobsite, too.
Although it doesn’t have the subtleness of the Ranger XP900 side-by-side, Polaris’ two-passenger Brutus offers far more operator amenities and far more versatility; in the spring and summer you can be pushing a finish mower across a lot, the next sweeping the parking lot, and the next using the blade or bucket to move debris, or towing a 2,000 pound trailer.
In the winter, put on the blade or attach the snow blower to move ice and snow with comfort and ease.
Prices range from the non-cab base model at $15,199 to the top of the line Brutus HDPTO full cab model loaded cab model lists for $23,999. Accessories not included.
Coupled with Bobcat’s reputation for hydrostatic-drive know-how and attachments, it’s easy to see why Schiebel feels the Brutus is going to be the new multi-tool for a lot of different businesses.
