FuelATV / FuelUTV / Fuel SXS

XmF Long Travel Review

Posted by Chad Nelson on 30th Apr 2011

A few months ago, www.teryxforums.net held the Long Travel Shootout at the Superstition riding area. This was my first true experience of what a SideXside long travel suspension was capable of. Although they were not in attendance, Scott Mears and Jimmy Owens of XmF offer a complete +5 kit for the Teryx. I had been in contact with them for a while and they offered up a kit for review, so I plan to review their latest offering to the sideXside market. Their kit has an adjustable camber and +o forward on the front arms allows this kit to corner with ease. XmF claims 15.5” of wheel travel front and rear and use the Walker Evans 16 way adjustable remote reservoir shocks. I loaded up the Teryx and headed out to Phoenix for the install. The rain was racing me to the shop, but I reached the shop just in time to avoid the rain delays that can lock down the freeways of Phoenix. I have only talked with Scott on the phone about his products and the various possibilities of a full fabrication shop, to which he could answer any and all questions. Jimmy Owens, co-owner of the shop, was also on hand to help with the install. I pulled the car off the trailer and into the shop, right up onto jack stands and we were in business! We pulled the tires, spacers and were ready to tear into the stock sport suspension. Next, we pulled the front brake calipers off. When it was time to pull the front spindles, the driver side front axle nut was so tight that their impact wrench wouldn’t even budge it. Scott broke out the old torch and, after some more persuasion, he coaxed the nut off. The rest of the install went smoothly, and, other than the axle nut and the greasy mess that the axles make, the entire install was textbook. We broke for lunch and went to a local pizza joint for a slice. Chatting with the guys, they said they started business in 2004 manufacturing tubing benders. With the mass influx of the SideXside market they decided to build some Long travel kits for the Yamaha Rhino, which was successful enough to bring us to today and the XmF we all know and most of us have at least one piece of their Billet somewhere on our cars. “The most popular item we sell is the Billet aluminum panoramic mirror,” Scott said. I can attest to this as I have one on my car and it is a great mirror. Back at the shop we buttoned up the install, bleeding the breaks and setting the ride height we were in business. By now it was raining cats and dogs, so we did not do a test ride, which would have to wait for the following morning at the Buttercup Sand Dunes. It was a pleasure meeting and working on the car with Jimmy and Scott, and I look forward to giving their suspension a workout.
Specifications:
Arms are 5” wider than stock per side
Wheelbase - + 0” forward + 1 1/4” back
Camber adjustable - up to 2 degrees in the front arms
Wheel travel 15.5” Front and Rear
Shocks - Walker Evan remote reservoir 16 way adjustable
Billet aluminum reservoir mounts
Axles - XMF 4340 Heat Treated center less ground and powder coated
Recommended tire size is 25” with Aftermarket 12” wheel with 5-2 offset