
When I shut the door, I really feel like I’m in an automobile,” he says, adding that simple features like cup holders also make a big difference. Mark also appreciates the creature comforts of the new Gator. “The best two features are the air conditioning and the cooler,” she explains. While she’s survived without it before, Kim says that the air conditioning is a must. In comparison, this is like a Cadillac,” says Kim. “Our older Gator didn’t have a cab or air conditioning. Last year, the Bakers got an upgrade: a 2019 John Deere Gator XUV865R. “We used it twice a day, every day, and it’s just been a good, durable machine for us,” says Mark Baker, who runs an operation that includes grain, hemp, and a dairy with his wife, Kim, and their two sons, Zach and Chad. Mark and Kim Baker with the 2019 John Deere Gator XUV865R. That was probably the biggest thing I didn’t care for.” “I figured out real quick that I had to have one foot on the brake and one on the accelerator to try and smooth that out. That was kind of an issue when I was backing up and somebody was trying to hook up,” he says. “When I first put the Sidekick in gear and stepped on the accelerator, there was a slight lunge. While putting the Sidekick in gear was easy, Heineman’s one complaint on the machine was how jerky it was. It was also easy to shift back and forth and put into four-wheel drive.” “The doors worked well, so I could slide right in, and the machine started well. This is one of the areas where the Sidekick stands out from the other models in the Kubota lineup (most max out at 25 mph).Įquipped with power steering, the Sidekick was “really comfortable to drive,” says Heineman.
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The top speed for the Sidekick is 40 mph, which was plenty fast for Heineman to zip from field to field. If he could have added one more accessory, it would be a rearview mirror. “The Sidekick had very good lights on the front, so I could see at night when I was working,” he says.īeyond the lights, the Sidekick also came equipped with a windshield and radio, which Heineman says were nice features to have on the machine. Heineman’s other favorite feature: the lights. The machine can pull quite a bit, and the four-wheel drive worked well,” he adds. “We hooked the corn heads up to the Sidekick to pull them up to the shop to fix them or to clean them.



The Sidekick’s hardiness also extended into towing. It handled the load really well, and the suspension worked very well on this machine.” “The Sidekick was very solid and when I loaded it up with some rocks, they got pretty heavy pretty quickly. It made it really easy to dump,” says Heineman. “This was really nice when I picked up a rock or two or five. One of the most useful features on the UTV was the electric dump box. “It’s a very functional machine, easy to drive, easy to haul things in, and easy to get in and out of,” says the corn and soybean farmer from Ogden, Iowa. When asked what he liked about the Kubota Sidekick, Paul Heineman says, “It’s probably easier to say what I didn’t like.” As you’ll see, the list of features he enjoyed is long. Paul Heineman, along with his brother, Craig nephew, Brett and sons, Andrew and Marcus, used the Sidekick for a number of chores, including fixing fences, checking the moisture of corn and soybeans before heading to the field during harvest, and hauling rocks out of fields. True to its name, the Kubota RTV-XG850 was a trusty sidekick for the Heineman family throughout the 2019 summer and harvest. LISTEN: Steel deals - Used utility vehiclesĢ019 Kubota RTV-XG850 Sidekick | 5 of 5 stars
