Lifted vehicles always get people’s attention and they’re common in the off-road world. Jeeps are lifted, trucks are lifted and so are ATVs & Side x Sides. There are two big reasons for lifting your ride; a macho, ready for anything style, and trail function. Lifting a vehicle gets about as much attention as anything else you can do, and huge tires, bead lock wheels, and a custom paint job always draws a crowd, especially when combined with a throaty sounding exhaust. It’s performance that counts most though.
One of the biggest reasons for installing a lift kit is for extra ground clearance. Remember the log, rock, or ditch that you got hung up on last time? That won’t be a problem anymore. A lift kit will give you steeper ascent or descent angles thanks to the higher ground clearance, and can even help you slog through deeper mud. This means you’ll likely be perched up on a taller obstacle the next time though, but you’ll look great doing it. The tradeoff is your vehicles center of gravity is now higher affecting handling, and the higher you go, the less stable your vehicle will be around corners. However, you’ll quickly adjust to the new handling after a few rides. A third benefit of lift kits is you’ll now be able to run larger tires, which can make the ride smoother as well. If you do opt for larger tires though, don’t go crazy on the biggest tires you can get with a gigantic, deep lug pattern to match or you may end up popping CV joints and need suspension upgrades. You want to tailor your lift to the territory you normally ride. Many of the places we ride have a lot of rocks, and although we had installed EMP skid plates on our Polaris RZR 800, extra ground clearance would be a welcome change. SUPERATV had just what we needed!
Kit Install
Like many aftermarket parts suppliers, SUPERATV began with a humble start and only a few parts and modifications, but today their cavernous warehouse is fully stocked with parts of every type, and for just about every ATV and Side x Side ever built. It’s always a little disappointing when you attempt to order a part only to find out it is not in stock. With SUPERATVs enormous inventory though, that is a rarity. What was one of their first products? Lift kits, and they still sell a long line of lift kits today. A quick call to their Madison, Indiana warehouse had their RZR 800 kit coming, (They have free shipping to the lower 48) and when installed we would gain from 1.5" to 3" over the stock Polaris height.
Whenever a new part arrives we like to inspect it for how it’s made. The SUPERATV lift is cut on CNC equipment, primarily by laser, then formed (bent) and machined as needed. All of the parts were free from any burrs or sharp edges, and a tough, powdercoat finish provides corrosion protection. It was time to get to work.
We like how a detailed set of instructions and assembly tips is included with the kit, and there are pictures to make it even easier. SUPERATV even shrink wraps the fasteners and hardware in individual packages so there is no question about whether you have all the bolts, washers, and nuts needed to complete the job. They also match their fasteners to the type already on the vehicle, so if your machine comes with metric fasteners like our Polaris you’ll be in familiar territory and not mixing from metric to standard, which is always an unnecessary pain. For installation of this kit we grabbed our 3/8” cordless impact, a few sockets and box end wrenches, and an alignment tool (or drift pin) to help get the holes perfectly lined up for installing bolts. A drift isn’t completely necessary but it helps. The first thing you’ll need though is to get your RZR off the floor, and to do that we used a floor jack and lift stands. With our RZR now suspended we popped off the wheels and removed the shock bolts along with the sway bar bolts.
It was simple enough to install the new parts which basically relocate the shock mounts, and the amount your machine is lifted depends on which hole you put the shock in. It’s always nice to have options! Since the kit we chose doesn’t make drastic changes to suspension or drive line geometry there was no need for longer drive shafts or different shocks. Experience has showed that using Rhino brand axles for the rear on the standard RZR has proven to be a more durable option than stock Polaris rear axles though. It’s an option you may want to consider.
With all the parts from the kit installed on our RZR we reattached the sway bar and shocks, double checked to make sure we had tightened each bolt, and reinstalled our wheels. Total assembly time from lift-off to back on all four wheels was a little under two hours, but it could be done a little quicker if we hadn’t been taking pictures along the way. Overall though, if you can get your machine off the ground and you’ve got a few tools and enough mechanical skill to change the oil you can install the SUPERATV lift kit.
Super Kit
There are countless modifications you can do to your ATV and Side x Side, some for function, and some just for looks. The SUPERATV lift kit meets the needs of both, and it’s easy to install with no cutting, welding, or requiring any other task likely to bring forth a torrent of words that would make mothers cover young children’s ears. Best of all, it works! Our Polaris RZR now has the extra ground clearance we were looking for, and since we only raised it three inches, handling was barely any different. We can now climb through the rocks and over downed timber easier, and we’re less likely to get hung up in the mud. Great kit! We like it!
www.superatv.com phone: 812.574.7777
740B Clifty Drive
Madison, IN 47250
POLARIS RZR ADJUSTABLE LIFT KIT - 1.5" to 3" over stock.
Item #: LK-P-RZR-1-3ADJ
msrp: $ 159.95
Models - Polaris RZR: 2008-2009, Polaris RZR: 2010+
This product is backed by a Super ATV lifetime warranty.
This kit will not work with dual exhaust or Walker Evans shocks.
Free shipping on orders to lower 48
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