For years, enclosed-cab side-by-sides have had one dealbreaker: the noise. These off-road machines push their engines to brutal RPMs on technical terrain, so the cabin fills with a relentless whine — one reviewer likened it to a car stuck in second gear at 40mph. Owners have responded with after-market soundproofing or, more often, ear plugs. Polaris thinks it has fixed that.
The company's new Xpedition, tested over several hours of rain- and hail-battered 4WD tracks in South Dakota's Black Hills National Forest, debuts the NUMATIX Controlled CVT transmission. It uses air pressure to manage the clutch, and Polaris claims it cuts cabin noise by 40 percent versus previous models. Drivers can toggle between Comfort mode (NUMATIX engaged) and Sport mode (disengaged), and the reviewer found the difference immediately obvious at cruising speed — enough to hold a conversation, play music through the Bluetooth speakers, or listen to an audiobook, which was pointless in earlier models.
The quieting doesn't come at the cost of capability. The Xpedition runs a 999cc engine with 114 horsepower and 14 inches of ground clearance, plenty for rock crawling and deep mud. For comparison, the race-focused Polaris RZR Pro R4 matches the horsepower in a bigger 1997cc engine with 16 inches of clearance — so this isn't a Baja 1000 rig, but it will go where a 4Runner or Jeep can't.
The tested ADV5 seats five (or four plus a dog) and has an enclosed rear cargo area measuring 36 by 47 by 13 inches, room for a cooler and camping kit, plus hitch and roof rack options. The range starts at $40,499 for the two-seat XP, so this is a serious purchase rather than an impulse toy — though in states where side-by-sides are street legal, like Utah and Arizona, some owners use them as daily drivers. The reviewer has hauled rooftop tents into Grand Canyon backcountry on narrow tracks he wouldn't dream of taking a regular 4WD down.
Why it matters for travellers: side-by-sides have become the access tool of choice for backcountry camping, and comfort was the last barrier. If you're renting or buying a machine for a trip into places like the Black Hills, Moab, or Arizona canyon country, a quieter cabin changes the experience from an endurance test into something you'd happily spend a full day in. And for less experienced drivers, the point-and-go nature of a side-by-side makes gnarly terrain far less intimidating than tackling it in a truck.
The verdict from the test: not minivan-quiet, but a clear leap ahead of every other side-by-side out there — and enough to change sceptics' minds.
Review first published by Outside Online.