New Honda Pioneer 1000 ticks all the boxes

[ultrarunner]

I know Dual Clutch has been a nightmare for some manufacturers... when it works it's great... expensive to repair when there are problems...

98% of the time you will never find me being an early adopter of anything... it's the engineer in me that wants to go with proven reliable technology and willing to pay extra for quality.

I'm confident there will be a purchase on the horizon... still keep looking for the sleeper of a deal used... just don't live in the area for such.

The local Dealer has 70 off road vehicles with half Side X Sides and only are 3 Honda... a 500, 700 and 1000-5.

He said they simply don't sell... Polaris is their number one seller with Can Am and then Kawasaki

Ask why he bothers with Honda and said they are required to stock one of each model... no 1000-3 for me to view.

 

[rmk700]

I saw a Pioneer 500 base model today with paddle shifters.

It seems very complicated compared to a hydro or CV drive.

I know I can repair/replace a CV drive belt for $60 cost of the belt...

Wonder what it costs to repair a Paddle Honda 500 or 1000?

Belts are more than $60 anymore.

The P 500 tranny is a typical manual which is merely bullet proof.

I have a 2005 Honda Rubicon with an automatic/manual and it has been flawless. Zero tranny maintenance other than oil change. The Rubicon tranny (called hondamatic) was no question the best tranny, durable, unbelievable engine braking, and first low gear that is a tractor crawl, however for some odd reason they done away with it and went with DCT (dual clutch transmission).

So far the new DCT has been doing excellent in my Pioneer 1000-5 but time will tell on how reliable it will be. I have been very rough testing its durability before warranty expires too. I've been watching this new tranny and there has been a few Pioneer 1000 owners having trouble with one of the clutches (clutch for 1st, 3rd, and 5th) slipping. Sometimes an oil change fixes it. Worst case, a few have been taken back to dealer with clutch replaced at no charge.

They are still trying to pin point the exact problem. Its very new and Honda will get it resolved. The 3 speed auto tranny in the Honda Rincon has proved to be super reliable too and it had a few bugs at first as well.

BTW, just because you can fix a CVT belt on your own, does that mean all your cars trucks and tractors should be CVT's too? I have many vehicle with no CVT but my snowmobiles do have CVT's and those are the only trannies I have to maintain regularly.

 

[ultrarunner]

BTW, just because you can fix a CVT belt on your own, does that mean all your cars trucks and tractors should be CVT's too? I have many vehicle with no CVT but my snowmobiles do have CVT's and those are the only trannies I have to maintain regularly.

When Mom's car was stolen her rental Corolla had a CVT transmission... it was OK... when it came time to buy a replacement for her I purposely went for a low mileage 2011 Corolla that did not have a CVT.

Guess I'm a throwback... Model A Ford is the first car I bought... then a drove an 72 Plymouth slant 6 for 20 years and even my f150 had a 6 with a 5spd.

 

[s219]

I definitely wouldn't rank a CVT unit higher just because belts are cheap. To me the Honda transmission has some real advantages over the others.

The other thing I wouldn't do is extrapolate anything from sales/inventory numbers at a dealer. You never know what their market really is like. I forget what the top seller was at my local dealer -- they sell Can Am, Honda, Kawasaki, and Yamaha -- but the sales guy showed me the model and it was basically one of the cheapest one they had. He said it was good for first time buyers but they'd often trade up within a year or two.

My neighbor really did his homework before buying a Pioneer recently, and noticed many of the same things I did comparing all the brands a couple months earlier (though I went with a Kubota RTV-X instead). He had to travel about 70 miles out of the area to find one in stock. They were hard to come by at local dealers.

 

[DK35vince]

I know some don't like CVT on an ATV or side by side.
But I do.
Always in the right gear. I seldom have problems with one, and if I do I can fix it myself vs the need for a dealer to repair.

 

[coolnick73]

Any updates on how the Pioneer 1000 is working out? I have a 93 Honda Fourtrax four-wheeler that has been pretty reliable. I also like duel clutch transmission vs a CVT, but would rather have a manual.

 

[blackdog2086]

My Pioneer has been a great machine so far. I got it for the dual role work/play aspect, but so far it has been strictly a work machine. The majority has been hauling firewood rounds out of the woods and dumping them to be split and stacked. I have not babied it at all, and am guessing that I have exceeded the max GCWR numerous occasions and it carries it all (usually uphill) without complaint. The self leveling suspension kicks in after a short distance and although I thought it was just a gimmick, actually works.

The trans does a great job of picking the right gear, but sometimes I'll up or downshift manually probably just because I can. You don't have to switch to manual mode, just tap whichever paddle you want to get the desired gear. I've got work to do right now, but I'll try to post some pics later.