I know my Julia. She’s a girly girl but she LOVES helping outside, finding bugs, getting dirty, and driving grandpa’s lawnmower. So when birthday time rolled around what could be better than her own set of wheels for grandma and grandpa’s land?

I considered a pink 4-wheeler. I considered a pink Barbie jeep. Knowing how she likes to help around the yard and help with the real tractor and the real trailer and dumping sticks a leaves and all that country-ish stuff I set my sights on the Peg Pérego John Deere Gator HPX.

The scene of the gift

I had it out of sight in the back yard. We had cake, opened a few things and then “let’s go out in the back yard”.

She looked at me with a sly smile and then her eyes kind of widened with disbelief like THIIIISSS IS FOR MEEEEEE?????? When I said “Wellll? Open it!”, she went crazy on the paper.

0.1 Second

0.2 Second

0.3 Second

It was so awesome watched her explore that thing. She reminded me quite a bit of myself. If I’ve ever been in your car with you you’ll see what I mean. I tend to push buttons, turn knobs, and open and close things and say “what’s this do?” an awful lot.

I also knew I made the right choice when she disappeared around the other side of the house and was gone just long enough for me to think “hmmm, she’s been gone and awfully long time” which immediately put me into panic mode. DID SHE CRASH? DID SHE DRIVE IN THE WOODS? DID SHE JUST DRIVE DOWN THE ROAD? I olympic speed-walked around the house in the opposite direction to find her doing this:

Unpiling a log pile.

Log transporter

The main specs

• Dumping cargo bed
• Working tailgate
• 4.5 MPH top speed (that’s an olympic speed walk speed)
• Ages 3-8
• 2 speeds
• Reverse
• Adjustable seat
• Around $360 at Walmart
• Awesomely green

The review

So far it’s kid approved. I would doubt that an 8-year old could play comfortably on it because the leg room is not that great. My bean is 3’5″ tall and her knees almost bump the dash in the furthest back seat position.

It’s pretty quick. 4.5 MPH doesn’t sound like much but if you’ve ever stood on a treadmill and pumped it up to 4.5 on the speedometer you’ll be hard-pressed to keep up with it without a tiny half-jog walk manuever.

Out of the box there’s a restrictor tab on the gear shifter that keeps it in 1st gear (the lower speed). I got pissed that it was so slow, started poking around, I ripped that tab off and BOOM, 2nd gear and some speed.

It’s super powerful but almost too powerful cause on a slight uphill the wheels spin out like crazy. I’ve been concocting ways to customize the wheels for better traction already. I smell a new post.

The instructions were a little lacking. It’s not impossible. Don’t trust the people online who cry about it. If you have a couple of screw drivers and some common sense you really don’t need the instructions. There are a couple of poor illustrations showing how pieces fit but you can figure it out. Also there were steps in the instructions that already seemed to be done so either I got one that had been returned (doubtful) or they originally meant for people to do all the steps but at some point made it part of the manufacturing process but never changed the instructions.

I didn’t put all the decals on it because I didn’t feel like it. I don’t know why I’d put that in a review, but I did.

How can you argue with these pics of happiness?

Does this look like a catalog image or what?

Cruising