Can-Am fills more of our Mountain Home floor than any other make, and the Defender carries most of that weight. Cab units, MAX crew models and the new HD11 trims stand beside a few Maverick sport machines and a row of Outlander quads. A rancher from King Hill and a crew chief from the base end up in the same aisle, asking different questions.
Which Defender fits a place in Elmore County?
Start with the engine, because Can-Am builds the Defender in four: HD7, HD9, HD10 and HD11. The HD11 is the new one. BRP gave it a 999 cc Rotax ACE triple rated at 95 hp, with 2,500 lb of towing and a 1,000 lb cargo rating. The HD10 keeps the 82 hp V-twin that most of the used Defenders around here run.
If you feed cattle on a January morning or check water on the desert ground toward Grand View, the Defender DPS Cab HD10 earns its glass. The MAX adds a second row of seats for families who haul kids to the dunes as often as they haul hay.
Maverick or Commander for Bruneau and the Danskin country?
Bruneau Dunes sits forty minutes south of the store, and the sand there punishes an underpowered machine. The Maverick X3 in Turbo RR form makes 200 hp from a turbocharged Rotax triple. The Maverick R 999T DCT pushes that to 240 hp and pairs it with a dual-clutch gearbox instead of a belt.
Plenty of riders want less than that. The Commander keeps a cargo box behind the seats, so it can pull fence posts on Friday and climb rock in the Danskin area on Saturday. Tell us which of those two days you spend more of, and we will point you at the right one.
Which Outlander should a hunter buy?
The Outlander 500 and 700 share a 650 cc Rotax ACE single; BRP tunes the 500 to 40 hp and the 700 to 50. Hunters who ride the timber above Featherville and Pine with a loaded rack tend to want the V-twin models, where the 850 makes 82 hp and the 1000R makes 101. The Backcountry 1000R package adds the protection that country asks for. The Outlander PRO HD5 skips the trail extras and works a place.
Can-Am's line covers the youngest rider in the family too. The Renegade 110 EFI gives a kid a Can-Am of their own, so the whole garage runs through one parts counter. The dealer's own page puts the Outlander promise in Can-Am's words: "Built to work, made for adventure, and priced to win."
