CanAm or Jeep

Hi. We have a place on the East Beach side near Santo Tomas. We are looking to purchase either a CanAm/Razor or Jeep and would like some opinions as to what is better for the sand. We are looking for something to run on the beach side primarily. Last year we saw quite a few groups drive by the house on the weekends and it was a pretty good mix of UTV's, Jeeps, and trucks. Our main goals in this order are: Seat a minimum of 4, not as likely to get stuck, durability, fun, comfort ....Any opinions would be great. Thanks in advance

A lot of factors to consider in making the choice between the two. Four seater, durability, not getting stuck, the UTV for sure. But if your going to be using it a night too, an enclosure makes a difference. Next, is it going to be kept it at your place or trailer back and forth. If something breaks, how hard is it to find repair parts in RP. I have both, and it works pretty well. The Jeep, an old Suzuki Side Kick I got in Phoenix I keep at my place in Cholla. The UTV I trailer back and forth, as I use it in the states as well. The thing is, is that neither of them were that expensive and have held up pretty well with minimum maintenance. If I had to choose between the two, I'd go with the UTV. Chances are you'd be using more during the day.

Thank you Bob, great info. We would be leaving whatever vehicle procured in Mexico at the house. Probably not a lot of night driving if any really.

If you're planning on leaving the toy in Mex. Fuel additive Sta-bil for storage is your friend. Use it in every drop of gas you put in the vehicle.

JEEP Air Conditioning!!!!!!!!

EastBeachFamily said:

Hi. We have a place on the East Beach side near Santo Tomas. We are looking to purchase either a CanAm/Razor or Jeep and would like some opinions as to what is better for the sand. We are looking for something to run on the beach side primarily. Last year we saw quite a few groups drive by the house on the weekends and it was a pretty good mix of UTV's, Jeeps, and trucks. Our main goals in this order are: Seat a minimum of 4, not as likely to get stuck, durability, fun, comfort ....Any opinions would be great. Thanks in advance

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Soooo many variables... Give us some of your must haves or important things to consider. 4x4 is a must. UTV less likely to get stuck in sand although you can certainly get them stuck. Especially if you don't have much experience driving in sand and or your head is constantly up your ass. You definitely need to put thought into how you park ANY vehicle in sand. I thought the UTV's were almost impossible to get stuck until I saw it a couple of times during the Boo Bar Poker Run over the last 3 years. People parking up hill. Takes a little thinking but if you know what you're doing you can drive 2wd in sand. Now with that being said, UTV is less likely to get stuck in sand. UTV power to weight ratio make them extremely fun to drive. What kind of driving will you be doing? Aggressive?? If it's just a people mover to the beach then it may not be worth it. UTV imho is for more aggressive driving, jumping, sliding, straight HOONING. Sand up your ass the entire time. No AC so if you're down in ST in July might be kind of hot. They are the price of a new car and that doesn't include all the crap you need to put on there to be "good" to go. Total investment for a nice 4 door UTV is $30-40k. The reliability argument is still out. Reliability is relative. How good your upkeep is on the vehicle whether it be a UTV or SUV/TRUCK is what determines reliability. The number one concern for UTV is BELTS break constantly. It's pry the number one reason people get stranded. The power train is belt driven. UTV doesn't have as much ability to haul crap to the beach either.

4x4 truck/suv/jeep would have working AC, windows, windshield, heat... If you go this route you'd pry want to make sure that you have FRONT and REAR diff lockers. NO OPEN DIFF. Some nice 35"x 12.5 tires would work well when you air down that 12.5 inches becomes 15 and now you're straight FLOATING! Takes a DEEP hole to get a 35" buried. 4 seats easy, most pry have bench in back so 5 if you needed it. Rear cargo area for all your beach crap. Roof rack up top for kayaks. With lockers and 35's you'd NEVER get stuck. Quote me. I personally think if I had a house in ST with a garage and this is for going to the beach and or exploring the surrounding area and you're NOT trying to drive fast and aggressive then a 4x4 Toyota 4 Runner/LandCruiser/Tacoma 4 door would be a good starting point. Lockers and 35's. Of course you have to get the truck a little higher for the 35's so maybe you go with the biggest metric size tire (more narrow) that you can fit if you don't want to lift the vehicle. If you do decide to lift the vehicle there's absolutely no better way than to go with a stock replacement KING COILOVER shock. Lift up the front 2 inches with the adjustable collars and you're good to go. You can also run a dual battery set up on the vehicle to ensure you always have cranking power. The second battery runs your music and other systems if you have them. Pry be smart to have air compressor on board. Things to consider. Either way you'll have fun. Just depends more on your personality type.