Upgrading to a yamaha rhino long travel kit is easily the most transformative thing you can do for an older UTV that still has plenty of life left in it. If you've spent any time behind the wheel of a stock Rhino, you know the drill: it's a workhorse, it's reliable, but the suspension can feel a bit like riding a pogo stick through a rock garden once you start pushing the pace. The wheelbase is narrow, the travel is limited, and the center of gravity feels a little twitchy when you're side-hilling or taking a corner with any kind of speed.
That's where the long travel magic comes in. By widening the stance and increasing the amount of vertical movement your wheels can handle, you're basically turning a vintage utility machine into something that can actually hold its own against newer, more expensive rigs on the trail.
Why bother with long travel anyway?
Let's be real for a second. The Yamaha Rhino is the OG of the side-by-side world. It paved the way for everything we see today, from the RZRs to the Mavericks. But by modern standards, its stock suspension is pretty "vintage." You're usually looking at about 7 or 8 inches of travel, which gets eaten up real fast when you hit a series of whoops or a hidden ledge.
A yamaha rhino long travel kit usually bumps that wheel travel up significantly—often into the 12 to 14-inch range, depending on the kit and the shocks you choose. It also widens the machine by about 3 to 6 inches per side. That extra width is a total game-changer for stability. Suddenly, those off-camber turns that used to make your heart race don't feel so sketchy anymore. You feel planted. You feel like you're actually in the machine rather than sitting on top of a tipping hazard.
What's actually in the box?
When you finally pull the trigger and order a kit, you aren't just getting some fancy metal bars. A proper setup is a whole ecosystem of parts that have to work together. Usually, you're looking at four new A-arms (top and bottom for both sides), longer axle shafts, and extended tie rods.
The A-arms are the stars of the show. Most high-quality kits use boxed-style arms or heavy-duty tubular steel. They're built to take a beating that would snap the stock ones like twigs. But here's the thing people sometimes forget: you can't just stretch the arms out and call it a day. You need the axles to match that new width. Most kits come with 4340 chromoly axle shafts that you'll have to swap into your stock CV joints. It's a messy job involving a lot of grease, but it's the only way to get power to the wheels once they're sitting six inches further out.
The shock factor
Here is where a lot of people try to cut corners, and honestly, don't do it. You cannot run your stock shocks with a yamaha rhino long travel kit. Well, technically you could with some weird brackets, but it would ride like absolute garbage.
Long travel kits are designed around long-travel shocks. These shocks have a longer stroke and are valved specifically for the increased leverage that longer A-arms put on the suspension. If you use cheap shocks or try to shim your old ones, you're wasting the money you spent on the kit. Most guys go with something like Fox, King, or Elka. Yes, they're expensive, but that's where the "cloud-like" ride quality actually comes from.
The installation headache (and how to survive it)
I'm not going to sugarcoat it: installing a full long travel kit in your garage is a weekend-long project, and that's if everything goes right. If your Rhino has seen a lot of mud and water, those pivot bolts are probably seized inside the bushings. You're going to want a big can of PB Blaster, a heavy-duty mallet, and maybe a torch for the stubborn bits.
One thing to watch out for is the brake lines. When you push the hubs out that far, your stock rubber lines aren't going to reach. Most good kits include extended stainless steel braided lines. If yours didn't, stop what you're doing and order some. Don't try to "re-route" the stock ones to make them fit; you'll just end up snapping a line when the suspension fully drops out.
Also, pay attention to the ball joints. Some kits require you to press out your old ones and reuse them, but if you're already in there, just buy new ones. It's cheap insurance against a mechanical failure three miles into a deep trail.
How it changes the ride
The first time you take a Rhino out after installing a yamaha rhino long travel kit, it's going to feel like a completely different vehicle. The "chatter" from small rocks and washboard roads just kind of disappears. You'll find yourself hitting obstacles at 30 mph that used to make you crawl at 5 mph.
But there is a trade-off. Your Rhino is now significantly wider. If you ride on tight, wooded trails that were specifically cut for 50-inch ATVs, you're going to be rubbing trees. You might even find yourself stuck between two oaks that you used to breeze through. You've got to measure your trailer, too. I've seen more than one person build a beautiful long-travel Rhino only to realize it doesn't fit between the wheel wells of their hauling trailer anymore.
Maintenance is a bit different now
Once you're running a wider setup, you're putting more leverage on your frame tabs. It's a good idea to check your mounting points for any signs of cracking or ovaling out. Some people even weld on "gusset kits" to reinforce the frame where the A-arms attach. It sounds like overkill, but the Rhino frame wasn't originally designed for the kind of forces a long travel kit can generate when you're sending it off a dune.
You also need to stay on top of your CV boots. Since the axles are at more extreme angles, the boots are under more stress. A tiny tear will let sand in and kill your CV joint in a single afternoon. Get into the habit of doing a quick visual check after every ride.
Is the investment worth it?
Let's talk numbers. A decent yamaha rhino long travel kit plus a set of four high-end shocks is going to set you back a couple thousand bucks, easy. For some people, that's more than the Rhino is worth on paper.
But if you love the platform—if you like the simplicity of the 660 or 700 engine and the reliability of the Yamaha drivetrain—then it's the best money you can spend. It's way cheaper than buying a new RZR or X3, and you get the satisfaction of building something yourself. Plus, there's just something cool about an "old" Rhino keeping up with the modern turbo cars because its suspension is dialed in perfectly.
At the end of the day, it's about how you use the machine. If you're just putting around a farm or using it for hunting, you don't need this. But if you're hitting the dunes, desert racing, or high-speed trail riding, the long travel kit isn't just a luxury—it's the upgrade that finally lets the Rhino be the beast it was always meant to be. Just make sure you've got a good set of tires to go with it, because you're going to be carrying a lot more speed into the corners than you used to.