I know this doesn’t matter for most folks who buy utility-specific side-by-sides, but one of the chief things that tends to tire you out on a long day of using them around your house, ranch, or in the field when scouting, hunting or whatever, is that damn thing’s noise. Most of the class is basically 20-year-old farm equipment that still has the possibility of tinutus after prolonged exposure, the same things I used to use when I was a fresh-faced 16-year-old working for my city’s local parks department.
It wasn’t the whacky Park and Recs crew, but we definitely had a Tammy 1 who worked in the office.
Yet, even with all the modernity that’s been pushed into the segment, i.e. Apple CarPlay, connected services, adaptive suspension, strut-assisted beds, and all manner of off-road and work modes for the engine, not much has been done in the service of saving your ears from long-term damage. You just get in and either slap on some ear protection as if you’re going to shoot some guns, or grin and bear it, only for your ears to be ringing all night long when the work is done. It sucks, and that’s coming from someone who has had bad tinnitus for far too long for being so relatively young. Fine, fine, fine, for someone that’s semi-old.
That, however, was what I noticed had changed the most when going from the previous Can-Am Defender HD10 to the all-new, 2026 Can-Am Defender HD11, as well as some of the others I’ve been fortunate to test within the segment. It's so quiet. And not just on the outside, where a good muffler can do a lot to, well, muffle. But from the inside with an insulated cab, too, where sound doesn’t have anywhere to hide. It ain’t a Rolls-Royce cloister, not much is. But the fact that you can hold a conversation with your passenger without screaming or using sign language is cause for celebration, as like the rest of the new Defender family, it ups the ante in terms of sophistication to modern truck levels yet to be seen in the utility side-by-side market.
Luckily for you and me, all that newly-added quiet, the boost in horsepower and torque, the near-infinite customization through the brand’s accessories, and the beefed-up everything else doesn’t come with a massive price increase compared to the outgoing model. It’s slightly more than last year’s, but hell, it’s still one of the best bargains in the industry, and it absolutely deserves your attention for all your utility needs.
I wonder if I can get my Roofnest on top of it?
For our introduction of the all-new Defender HD11, we were spirited to the Eastern Seaboard, along the state lines that bridge Connecticut, New York, and Vermont at Backyard Adventures, one of BRP's Uncharted Society partners. It’s a massive private parcel of some 3,000 acres of prime East Coast trails, all with a limestone base. It’s dusty, covered in thick old-growth forests, covered in moss and lichen, and the humidity sucks the life out of you whenever you’re away from anything with air conditioning, a fan, or something to shield you from its oppressiveness.
I feel like I lost a few pounds while just walking to and from the side-by-sides as we traded from Limited to X mr to regular XT models, or while queuing up the next song to play through the JL Audio speakers—myself and Outdoor Life’s Derek Horner had the most fun of the group.
All that’s to say is that whereas I’d normally put it through its paces while out in the wilds of Utah, climbing mountains, and throwing kids or dogs or logs or frogs into its bed, the Backyard Adventures farm was almost more abusive than my normal loops and chores. And that’s the point, as Can-Am’s goal with the new Defender—and its litany of upgrades throughout—are meant to dominate the class, and become the go-to workhorse model for anyone that wants, or rather needs, basically a truck without the worry of maintenance, and fright of wanton abandon of the driver’s mechanical sympathy. It’s designed to be the Garmin of the side-by-side world, complete with thick-ass, nearly half-inch skidplates, which is exactly what folks demand from these vehicles.
The side-by-side is powered by a naturally aspirated 999cc Rotax Ace three-cylinder engine that puts out more horsepower and torque than its predecessor—95 horsepower, and 70 pound-feet, to be exact. Power was bumped largely thanks to a new air intake system, as well as a cooling system, but was done not just because customers demanded more power, but to coincide with some added strengthening—which bumped up its weight—as well as larger payload and towing capacities compared to both its predecessor and the competition. Towing is pegged at 2,500 pounds, with a standard 2-inch receiver, while payload is 1,500 usable pounds. Oh, and in that strengthening, Can-Am also strengthened the load-bearing of the Defender’s tailgate, which, on the prior Defender HD10, would bend slightly in the middle. It wouldn’t break, but while the overall weight limit hasn’t changed according to the brand, the new Defender’s gate didn’t budge an inch when I sat my 190-pound frame right smack dab in the middle of it.
I even gave it a few slight hops up and down just to make sure I was being thorough. So folks who use these to tailgate, or just crack a beer at the end of a long day to watch a gorgeous Connecticut sunset, you can absolutely sit down without concern.
With that horsepower jump, as well as strengthening and slightly increased weight, the Defender HD11’s CVT had to be beefed up, too. There’s a new, stronger belt, along with both a new primary and secondary clutch. Both of which are aimed at better longevity, increased aptitude, and easier maintenance—the latter of which I’ll get to in a second. But in building a new clutch, Can-Am sought to kill one of the most annoying features of the prior model, and that was the side-by-side’s shifter.
Again, prior models and UTVs in this space don’t really feel all that different from the John Deere Gator I drove 20 years ago. They’re agricultural in their fit, finish, and feel. Tractors, but somewhat more sophisticated than those used to mow lawns, plow fields, or used to harvest corn. You’d best believe they’d work if you drove them off an embankment and into a creek—find me one day, and I’ll tell you the tale of Captain Ron (no, seriously)—but they did little to make you want to drive them long-term, and you’d end up using the truck you garaged when you bought the side-by-side and swore you’d leave for highway towing or trips to Home Depot.
Not so anymore, as the Defender’s shifter is so much more buttery smooth in its engagements than the prior model. Where you’d previously hope you’d yank the shifter into High or Low or Reverse without passing the detent, there are more natural stops at each gear. I never missed High and slotted into low throughout the three days we rode through the terrain.
And the CVT itself is smooth, too, even under load, as in one particular test put on by the brand, we loaded up a small horse trailer with hay bales, hooked up the 2-inch receiver, and then went for a rip around the corn fields on the property, plowing our way through the silty sand and rocky outcroppings that litter the trails. Never once did I feel the transmission want to disengage, even when letting off the gas. I will say that, like most other side-by-sides, the throttle pedal at low speeds can be, at times, imprecise. There’s a very small dead spot from your first push until it begins to apply power and torque to the wheels. It’s less than an inch of travel, but it can catch you out at first go or when you’re playing the game of who can get the hitch receiver into the trailer ball head without getting out of the side-by-side.
That might only be a game weirdo writers, or those like me who literally learned to drive using Ford F-250 and F-450s with big-ass trailers holding countless thousands of pounds of mowing equipment, but I can’t be alone in wanting to know that.
But the true benefit, one that outweights the better suspension, improved brakes, more power and torque, 200-plus accessories, and a CVS list of other new features that are almost too numerous to mention—our briefing of all the newness was nearly 2 hours long, followed by an hour walk around the following day—is the new cab that’s featured on the Limited and Lone Star models. Again, there’s no more fear of going deaf, having to wear active shooting earmuffs like my Walkers, or headphones like my Cardo PackTalk ORVs. You can just talk, at a normal voice, all in the comfort of a fully enclosed cab with icy-cold air conditioning, and supposedly awesome heating.
Like hell I was going to test the heater in 94% humidity and a thermometer that read 91 degrees—a sauna, this was.
What I was able to test, however, were some of the brand’s new accessories, including the accessory lighting, which lit up the darkened, oak-lined forests, the JL Audio speakers—a host of options to which are available, including a 2, 4, and up to 9 speaker setup—two sets of heavy-duty bumpers complete with standard winches, 12V in-bed outlet integration, a number of the brand’s LinQ system accessories, including one of the platforms, the optional roof (which took my entire body weight), and a couple wheel and tire packages that let you go from the backwoods trails to the swampy wetlands used to duck hunt. I didn’t really find fault with any of them, but this was my first taste-test.
I will say that we rode through a stream, causing a bit of a wake along a predetermined crossing, and while Derek and I got absolutely soaked in one of the open-air Defender HD11s, nothing faultered as we went through and came out the other side—and we did it twice.
But as with anything these days, with every successive generation and new model, there’s a slight increase in price, and the new 2026 Can-Am Defender HD11 is no different.
Now, the price increase is going to depend on the model and accessories package you get from your local dealership. Being that I have three kids, a loving and understanding wife who puts up with me, and a dog that only wants to go on adventures, my brain went immediately to the Max four-door versions of the Defender. Specifically, the Defender Max Limited HD11, which comes with a starting price of $37,799. That’s about $3,500 more than the outgoing model. And that’s largely true about the rest of the lineup. All, however, have the newly enacted tariff prices baked into those MSRPs.
However, Can-Am knows that not everyone is going to want a spec’d-up Defender HD11, so the starting price for the new side-by-side starts at a more reasonable $22,999 for the two-door HD11, and $25,199 for the four-door. Yet, the brand also said that it would continue a number of its HD7, HD9, and HD10 models with even lower prices for those more budget-conscious consumers.
And in this economy, that’s hella appreciated, especially for those who utilize these machines for what they were built for. For getting jobs done. Getting out into the backcountry to explore our public lands. Going camping. Or using them on the ranch, farm, or in the fields. And given they’re way quieter than the previous models, you’ll find yourself doing more and running out of daylight more so than you ran out of the ability to hear anything but the ringing in your ears.
