If you love the outdoors and you’ve got a craving for adventure, there’s no doubt that you probably already own a Utility Terrain Vehicle (UTV) that you are proud to call your own. No matter if it’s a Polaris, a Can-Am, or a Kawasaki, there’s one thing that all these side by sides have in common. They need a good cleaning at the end of the day.
In this sense, your SxS isn’t too different from your main car or truck that you drive around with on the highways. The biggest difference, however, is that since your SxS is going to be going off-road a lot more often than your traditional car is. So it’s going to get dirty and grimy much faster than you might expect. Here are some of the best ways you can clean off your UTV, SxS, or other off-roading vehicle.
How To Clean Your Side By Side
Diving right into cleaning your machine could seem like a daunting task. But it doesn’t have to be. With the proper tools at your disposal, cleaning your side by side could be more satisfying than a chore. The best 3 tools to use to clean your SxS are:
- A Hose
- Pressure Washer
- Foam Cannon/Gun
Hose
Your hose is going to likely be your easiest, cheapest, and most accessible option when it comes to cleaning your side by side. When it comes to the type of cleaning product for your off-roading vehicle, you can basically use the same type of car wash products as ones that you might consider for your main car. There are, however, specialty soaps and scrubbers used specifically for off-road vehicles. We would only recommend using those products on your side by side.
Pressure Washer
If you’re dealing with a ton of seriously caked on mud and debris that just refuses to budge, you might want to consider using a pressure washer. These high-powered washers are incredibly powerful when used properly, but they are also extremely dangerous if mishandled. So it’s critical that you either learn how to use one properly or get help from someone with power-washer experience.
In addition, you need to make sure that you are using just enough pressure to remove the dirt and debris; otherwise you may risk damaging the side by side’s paint and/or other parts of the vehicle. That being said, it’s incredibly satisfying to watch your power-washer just completely obliterate the dirt off of your vehicle.
Foam Cannon/Gun
A safer option and oftentimes one that can work even better would be the use of a foam cannon or gun. For this method, imagine it as a combination of traditional hose washing and using a power-washer. It can be a nice in-between if you aren’t quite sure what you want to do.
Scrubbing & Brushing
For more delicate parts of the vehicle, like the interior or the windshield, it’s recommended that you clean these areas by hand with a microfiber cloth rag and a bucket of car or UTV soap. Since these areas can be more prone to damage, it’s best to hand-clean the more questionable parts of your vehicle.
Of course, you shouldn’t feel limited to just one of these options. If you’re serious about keeping your vehicles nice and presentable, you might want to consider purchasing one or more of these tools.
That’s going to do it for this blog post. There are of course other effective ways to clean your side-by-side vehicles, but this should at the very least be a great place for you to get started.
If you thought this post on the best ways to clean your side by side was helpful, check out our other blog posts about side by sides here.
