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Tool Time - 2015 Polaris RZR XP-4 1000 Custom Build

Building a One-of-a-Kind Polaris
Written By: 
Story and Build By Kris Wedekind From KDUB Kustoms

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I grew up riding dirt bikes, 3 wheelers, quads and 4X4’s in the desert. As I got older, starting a marriage, a family, and two companies took all of my time and then some, but it was hard not to miss the riding and the dirt toys of youth. It was time to get back into the sport but with the current responsibilities to family and employees I would need the protection of a roll cage. A Polaris RZR would fit the bill perfectly and after briefly owning a 2014 RZR-4 1000, I traded up to the 2015 model for the project I had in mind.


Not every adventure goes according to plan, and on one trip to Ocotillo Wells deep in the Southern California desert, I was so proud of my new RZR 1000 I would let anyone in our group take it for a spin. That was a mistake and one driver rolled my brand new RZR several times. After 3 months in the shop and $8,500 in damages she was back together, but by now the season was over. This was the perfect time to start a project. 2015.polaris.rzr-xp4-1000custom.front-right.blue_.parked.on-grass.jpg


The HUNT for PARTS

Sometimes you find the parts you want, and sometimes you have to break out the tools and build them yourself. Being extremely busy I called in the help of a longtime friend, Erik Aiken. What started as a project to fabricate a couple doors quickly turned into much more, and I began to develop a plan for every area of the RZR.


SAFETY FIRST

My first goal was to fabricate upper door frames that would allow me to install windows and or racing nets. This turned out to be one back window frame, one front window frame, 4 fixed door frames and 4 door frames that open. Details of all safety items are:

  • All windows would be Lexan, with 1/4” smoked Lexan for the front, and 1/8” smoked Lexan side windows. For added safety PRP side nets were installed also.

  • DG Off Road Custom Roll Cage With Hard Lid Roof And Spare Tire Mount. A friend who is an Imperial Valley Sheriff recommended this after mentioning how many Side X Side’s he comes across that have been rolled and the stock cages completely smashed. This was all I needed to hear.

  • Rugged Radios Intercom and Mobile Radio. I purchased the Rugged Radios RRP660 Intercom and the VX220 50 Watt Car to Car Mobile Radio. The 2014 RZR has 2 press to talk buttons and 2 head seats. The 2015 RZR has 2 press to talk buttons and 4 head sets.

  • Lighting. The Stock lighting won’t cut it at night in the desert. The stock head lights on high beam give you 5K lumens of lighting. My 2015 RZR is now giving me 40K lumens of lighting in the front and 4K lumens of lighting in the rear. Even looking through a Smoked Lexan windshield the front end lights up the desert like day. I upgraded to the Polaris 35” LED Light Bar, Polaris 13” LED Light Bar, Heretic Studios Head Lights, (4) Heretic Studios 4” LED Cube Floods and (2) Heretic Studios 4” LED Cube Spots. The rear of the RZR got (2) Heretic Studios 4” LED Cube Floods

  • Dragon Fire Racing 4-point seat harness. This keeps your body snug against the seat with very little body movement.

  • CAMERA & MIRRORS: (2) External Rear View Mirrors, (1) Center Cab Rear View Mirror, (1) Rear View Camera, (1) Front View Camera, 7” Color Monitor. The cameras allow you to peer over steep ledges ahead, or back up safely. 2015.polaris.rzr-xp4-1000custom.front-left.blue_.parked.on-grass.jpg

  • FIRE EXTINGUISHER with quick release mount.


ENGINE and CHASSIS UPGRADES

No build is complete with updates to the engine and chassis. Erik and I made big upgrades to the Polaris cooling system, and to the suspension, but we also made sure all our electrical systems had plenty of juice. Here is what we added:

  • Dual Odyssey Extreme Series Batteries: If one battery dies you have a back-up.

  • Belt Temperature Gauge and Cooling Fan: It’s no secret the RZR can eat belts. To help eliminate this I installed the Alba Racing Belt Temperature Gauge and Cooling Fan. While normally set to kick on the fan at 170 degrees, I wanted complete control so I by-passed the auto sensor and ran it through a switch on the dash board. Now a red light still illuminates at 170 F, but I can start cooling the belt sooner when I am getting ready for some serious riding, climbing or jumping.

  • Gauges: I like the information from the Polaris Navigation System, but you have to take your eyes off the trail to see it. To get around this we fabricated five pod-type gauges on the A-Pillar for Belt temp, the DP Exhaust Tuner, EGT, Water Temperature, and Oil Pressure.

  • Relocated Engine and Clutch Air Intake. Nobody likes buying the Polaris belt for $200 each. While the belt temperature gauge helped a lot I wanted to get more air into the clutch housing and the engine. We ended up relocating engine and clutch air intakes to the sides of the RZR. My design not only forces air into these areas but the clutch housing now has (6) 2” tubes and the engine now has (4) 2” tubes allowing much more air flow. A new air intake housing was fabricated out of 3/16” PVC sheet. To filter the dirt from getting into the clutch and engine I used FrogZSkin. This is what Polaris uses on their stock design and it works very well.

  • Walker Evans Shocks. With the additional weight added to the RZR I had to do something about the suspension. I called Walker Evans and we ended up using the stock Walker Evans shocks and revalving them for the added load. Shock reservoir pressure is now at 200PSI, the new Eibach front springs are 0600.300.0300S tender spring, and the main is now 1200.300.0375S. The new Eibach rear springs are now 0800.300.0330S tender, and the main spring is a 1600.300.0350S

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HEAVY DUTY TOOL KIT – ON BOARD WELDER, COMPRESSOR, WINCH

Parts break in the desert, and when that happens you could be stuck for a very long time. Carrying basic tools is important, but I went one step further and installed a welder in the chassis. The Ready Welder hand held spool welder is very small and light. It runs on (2) 12V batteries and works great. I have not needed it for my RZR but we did use it on my bro’s Jeep when he broke his leaf springs perches. My extreme duty tool kit includes:

  • On Board Ready Welder

  • Quick Release System For The Welder And Jumper Cables: I added a quick connection point under the front driver’s side wheel well. This allows me to give or get a jump start, or to use my welder without having to remove any seats. . 2015.polaris.rzr-xp4-1000custom.welder.jpg

  • Quick Battery Tender Connection System: Dual onboard battery tenders are connected to a male 110V connection point under the rear driver’s side fender. Now when I want to charge the batteries all I have to do is run an extension cord to the RZR and plug it in.

  • On Board Compressor With (4) Quick Connection Points: A compressor is installed under the interior dash panel and there is a quick connection point at each of the 4 wheels. This allows me to carry a very short air hose. I still carry plenty of plugs, patches, and tire Slime.

  • Winch. Sooner or later you or a buddy will need and winch and I installed a winch at both ends for extreme maneuverability.

BELLS and WHISLTES – THE FUN PART of the BUILD

Any custom build features lots of electronic bells and whistles. This one really takes that to another level. Here is what we included.

  • Audio System - I installed the SSW 5 speaker system. Everything is designed for mounting in a Side x Side, but we modified it to fit inside our new window and door panels. Having a Blue Tooth audio connection, a hard wired audio connection, and an audio out from the PS3, I had to come up with an audio switching system so I purchased a 1X4 passive audio switcher but it only had hard button controls and it would not fit anywhere in the RZR. I took the switcher apart, removed the hard button controls and soldered wires to the circuit board to install switches for each input, then I installed the switches on the dashboard. This allowed me to hide the switcher under the dash. I also installed an I-touch on the dashboard.

  • Video System - With the front camera, rear camera, a PS3, and a 7” monitor I had to install a 1X4 passive video switcher. I connected them all exactly the same way as I did with the audio system switcher. With a little finesse I was able to get the PS3 mounted in the glove box. 2015.polaris.rzr-xp4-1000custom.close-up.gauges.jpg

  • Door Popping System - Adding windows and racing nets meant I lost the ability to open the doors. I found a door popping system on line that was intended for cars or trucks and I was able to adapt this system. Now I have a wireless remote on my keychain and I can pop open each of the 4 doors independently. In the event of complete power loss I have an Allen wrench that fits the ¼-20 stainless steel door screws on my keychain.

  • Accent Lighting - There is a blue LED light pod over each one of the 4 wheels and 4 blue LED pods recessed under the skid plate of the RZR. Several other blue LED strip lights act as dome lights, and as accent lights for the custom clutch and engine air intakes, as well as the hood.

  • Alarm System - With so much time and money invested in this build the last thing that I want is for someone to mess with it. I installed a car alarm system with 4 door contacts, a hood contact, ice chest contact, motion sensor, valet switch, and 2 blue LED flashing warning lights that illuminate when the alarm system is engaged. Since the RZR does not have any alarm wiring I called a friend of mine who owns a home alarm system company and we were able to find the parts required. I also installed a hidden switch for when the RZR is parked. In the event of the RZR being stolen the thief will only be able to get away at a top speed of 10MPH.

  • Switches - Having extensive knowledge in low voltage systems and the desire to really do something different, I added a total of 26 rocker switches. Nine switches are for the audio and video system, and one switch for the high and low beams for the Heretic Studios head lights. The remaining 14 rocker switches (located in the roof) control the navigation system, the audio and video switchers, the lights, and the relocated ignition. All of the rocker switches illuminate with a blue LED light. To accomplish all of this I had to run 2,500’ of low voltage wire through the RZR.

  • ACC Circuits - The 2015 RZR comes from the factory with 1 fused ACC circuit. To handle all of the additional electronics required a serious upgrade. I rewired the existing ACC circuit and changed from a 20 AWG wire to a 16 AWG wire. I also increased the fuse capacity from 15 amps to a 25-amp fuse, and then added 2 more ACC circuits. The 2015 RZR comes with 1 bus block and has 2 wires connected to it. I completely filled the first bus block, added a second, and then almost completely filled that one too.

  • Cab Air Flow System - With everything enclosed I had to get air flow through the cab. Two custom air flow ports are mounted under the windshield, one on each side of the custom hood. An additional port is underneath the rear window. All are filtered with FrogZSkin. Air is forced into the front and flows out the rear, and it’s very comfortable. I am currently working on an air conditioning system.

NUTS & BOLTS

Besides the major systems there were dozens of aftermarket parts installed with this build. Everything from GoPro camera mounts to the Polaris Ice chest was added to make our 2015 RZR-4 a one-of-a kind vehicle. To keep everything protected we once again chose something completely different and coated all parts most likely to take abuse with Line-X, and all the other parts were powder coated Cardinal BL05 blue.


WORTH IT? YOU BET!

Even though there will always be tinkering to do, (That’s half the fun) in the end I found what I had been looking for. You can still live those days of youth, and today the great times are even better. Thanks to our very custom RZR XP-4 1000 build I can now take family and friends out for weekend trips, making more memories along the way.


Kris Wedekind

KDUB Kustoms

Palm Desert CA 92211

Office(s): 760 778 8686 – 760 325 EAVS

Cell(s): 760 835 2608 – 760 835 6859

Email(s): kw@cht1usa.comkw@eavsusa.com

Web(s): cht1usa.com – eavsusa.com

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