– 2016 Pioneer 1000 First Drive Review! | Fastest Honda Side by Side ATV –

Side by Side 》2016 Models 》 Pioneer 1000 Drive Review

The time has finally come! The Pioneer 1000 models have started to release so we can get our hands on them and actually see how “awesome” this new 1000 cc SxS / UTV is from Honda.

Is it all it’s cracked up to be? Is the Pioneer 1000 vs Pioneer 700 truly a better machine all the way around or is it just faster? Those are just a few of the questions that everybody seems to have when inquiring about the new Pioneer 1000 & 1000-5 models.

When you first walk up to the Pioneer 1000-5 it’s obvious that it’s not only a larger machine but a more stout machine too. Everything seems to be thicker when it comes to materials used. When you first open up the door, you’ll find the 1000-5 has a lot more weight to it which just feels sturdier. You have a lot more pronounced clunk when you shut the doors whether it be a front door or rear door. Not that the 700 models have flimsy doors by any means. I’m sure you’re familiar with the comparison as in some automobiles you’ll find that certain cars have a different feel and or sound when shutting the door. Another huge difference you’ll find between the 1000 & 700 models is the sound once you turn the key and fire it up. The 1000 has a lot throatier exhaust note while not being louder – I actually think it’s a touch quieter too but don’t have a decibel meter to say positively. The Pioneer 700 models have less vibrations than majority of the competition out there that I have hopped in and taken for a drive but let’s be honest. The 700 models do have some slight vibrations to them and it’s understandable since you do have a lot of plastics parts. Now, turn the key over on the 1000-5 and you’ll find that those vibrations from the 700 are gone!

Is the Pioneer 1000-5 more comfortable than the 700-4? Oh yes! Not only is the seat more comfortable but you also have quite a bit more leg room up front when in the drives position of the 1000 compared to the 700. I’m 6’2 and I can drive the Pioneer 700 models comfortably but over time I do find it difficult to truly be comfortable which leads to me constantly changing my leg / feet position. Since the 1000 does have more leg room front to back and side to side, you’ll find it’s noticeably more comfortable. Take the extra leg room and add in the tilt steering wheel and it’s a lot easier for many different sizes of people to get comfortable whether you’re vertically challenged or over 6-foot tall. How’s the leg-room in the passenger seats of the 1000-5 Pioneer vs the 700-4? It’s slightly larger in the foot-well but you also have more knee room too which makes a big difference if you’re going to be in the back seat for more than just a few minutes. My favorite addition to the rear passenger area of the 1000-5 vs the 700-4 though is that now the passengers have a handle to hold onto similar to what you have on a roller-coaster. With the 77 horsepower this 1000 cc engine makes, the passengers definitely need something to hold onto so they aren’t flung around entire too much. Torque numbers for the Pioneer 1000 haven’t been released from Honda and that’s something we probably won’t see concrete details on until someone throws a Pioneer 1000 on the dyno. This thing has gobs of torque, even in high-gear, the Pioneer 1000 will throw your head back when you mat the throttle partially. I didn’t “dog” this Pioneer out as it isn’t my machine and I have enough respect for the owner to take it easy but like I mentioned even with partial throttle it blows the Pioneer 700 out of the water. I will have some Pioneer 1000 vs 700 drag race videos up soon to show the performance difference when comparing these two models. Below, you’ll see a video of the Pioneer 1000 vs Polaris XP 900 racing to give you an idea of the acceleration the new Pioneer packs.

Pioneer 1000-5 Deluxe 0-40 MPH (Automatic / Sport Mode)

( 2016 Honda Pioneer 1000 vs Polaris Ranger 900 XP Race )

Now, you’ve started the engine up and you’re ready to go for a drive. If you’re used to driving the Pioneer 700 you’ll automatically start searching for the emergency brake to release it. After you search for a minute or two. You’ll find that the Pioneer 1000 models do not have an emergency brake to fool with. All you have to do is slide the drive mode selector into H for “High” or L for “Low” and put your foot on the gas and you’re moving along. When you’re ready to park it etc – you just slide the drive selector into P for “Park” and that’s it. While sitting there you also find that the gauge display or meter as some call it – is the best display Honda has put on an off-road vehicle to date! It has every single piece of information you would want to and or need to see while out on the trails. I won’t bore you with talking about the display any longer though as pictures can show you better than words.

When you’re driving the Pioneer 1000 or 1000-5. You have the option of selecting AT for “Auto” or MT for “Manual” thanks to the very high-tech Dual Clutch Transmission as well as a “Sport” mode. It’s pretty self-explanatory as when you’re in the Auto mode all you have to do is hit the gas and go and the Pioneer will shift through it’s 6-speed transmission all by itself. Don’t want to use the Auto mode? Click the button and take advantage of the paddle-shifter to click-through the 6-speed manual transmission. I’d almost bet money the Auto mode is faster in a drag race than the Manual mode as the speed at which the computer shifts through the gears is ridiculous. When in Manual mode, you risk the chance of messing up by shifting too early or bouncing it off the rev limiter etc. Your transmission options don’t end there as you also have the Sport mode which holds the gears out a little longer and closer to red-line etc if you’re a more aggressive driver or are just in the mood to sling a little mud. A nice feature too that I really liked is that if you’re in Manual mode and forget to down-shift as you slow down the computer kicks in and automatically down-shifts for you. If you’re cruising through the trails in Automatic mode but think you need a lower gear, click the paddle-shifter down and it will hold that lower gear for you and then it will automatically return to Automatic mode for you with no extra input needed. You also have the option of using your High or Low sub-transmission for a 43% gear reduction as well as a turf mode if you’re going to be driving it on sensitive grounds that you don’t want to tear up like a typical machine in two-wheel drive would when it’s rear differential is always locked. All of these transmission options are what you get for your extra hard-earned cash if you buy the Pioneer 1000 vs the Pioneer 700. One last key-point on the 1000 Pioneer model lineup is that you also get the differential so you can lock the front and rear differentials together to dig yourself out of any mud pit you can think of or that massive hill / rock etc.

( Pioneer 1000 Videos Reviewing Features & Specs from Honda )

How do I feel about the Pioneer 1000 DCT 6-speed transmission? I can’t find a single flaw about it! It’s crazy just how fast this transmission shifts through the gears. Super smooth shifts with absolutely no delay or lag like you experience with a typical automatic transmission similar to the Pioneer 700 or most auto car transmissions etc. The only other SxS manufacturer to experiment with using something else than the typical CVT belt driven transmission as seen in the Polaris RAZR, Artic Cat, Kawasaki and Yamaha etc offerings is the new sport model YXZ-1000R from Yamaha with its sequential gear box. The CVT belt driven setup in all of these side by side models insuperior in every shape form and fashion when compared to the DCT transmission. You have no belts to burn through, no belt maintenance, no belts slipping and or getting too hot etc. There’s a reason why so many of the all the high-end sports cars and super-cars etc have migrated to DCT / Dual Clutch Transmissions… They are superior when it comes to an automatic transmission and when comparing to manual transmissions this DCT transmission in Honda’s new SxS will shift faster than almost any individual with a clutch and manual transmission could.

The Pioneer 1000-5 Deluxe model has EPS which is Honda’s Electronic Power Steering. When driving the Pioneer 700 models – I’ve always thought to myself “We don’t need EPS, it turns easy enough”. Well… That was the case majority of the time but if you’re in the woods cranking the steering wheel back and forth or have the front diff-locked it will wear you out. I’m not sure I could own a SxS now without it having EPS! It’s crazy how much of a difference there is. Example, I’ve got a video I’ll upload where I am sitting at a dead stop and use my palm to turn the steering wheel lock to lock without any effort at all. I’m a scrawny guy (weakling, I’ll admit) and it’s not the easiest thing to do when it comes to sitting in the Pioneer 700’s for me with just my palm on the wheel like you can in a car etc. I won’t linger too long on the EPS topic but it is definitely one thing that really stuck with me after some low-speed maneuvering in our warehouse and outside.

How does the QuikFlip seating in the Pioneer 1000-5 compared to that of the Pioneer 700-4 for the passenger seats? This goes back to what I mentioned in the first paragraph about the quality of little pieces and the way that they shut, feel to the touch etc. The latch on the rear passenger seats of the Pioneer 1000 are in the exact same location as the 700-4 so if you’re familiar with the Pioneer models and the QuickFlip it will be second nature. If you’ve never used this feature in the past then you’ll be delighted to see that it takes all of maybe 3 seconds and the lever is in a natural position too. It doesn’t take any weird reaches or mile-long arms etc to reach the position. All you have to do is fold the bottom pad up, slide the clip to keep it attached up top and then flip the lever with your right hand to release the seat and down folds the seat. Repeat on the other side and within 20 seconds including walking to the other side and you’ve got both of the rear passenger seats folded down and your bed is ready to load with cargo. Of course you do not have to fold both seats down should you need to use one of the back seats while still having some cargo room. With both seats folded down you have quite a large bed with the dimensions coming in at 36.1″ x 55.2″ x 10.8″ which is larger some of the competitors on the market that don’t have the option of seats in the rear to fold down so that’s a win win. Now that you have all of this cargo space, you can take advantage of the 1,000 lb bed capacity with the hydraulic dump-bed should you need it. Don’t forget, you also have a 2,000 lb tow rating on the Pioneer 1000 so you can really put this side by side through its paces if you need a true workhorse.

Both of the Pioneer 1000-5 models have electronically load leveling adjustable rear suspension too which is a first for the Pioneer model lineup. What are the upsides to this? If you’ve got a 200lb passenger in the back seat on one side, you don’t have to worry about that extra weight affecting the handling and it leaning over to one side more than the other. You can also take advantage of that hefty bed capacity rating when working and hauling a load. No worries about one side being weighed down more than the other to where you would normally have a machine that would have its normal handling characteristics altered quite negatively when hauling any sort of heavy material.

Honda put a lot of thought into people liking to keep their side by sides looking good down the road after you have put some time in off-road. Also, people want to change things up from time to time and may want to change colors if they get bored down the road from the original color purchased. Naturally, she’s going to get roughed up and scarred up with scratches, dents, dings etc. The colored body panels on the Pioneer 1000 are easily replaced and it’s not too pricey to do either. With past Honda SxS / ATV models if you wanted to do a color change or replace the plastics for any reason at all it was quite the task. Not only expensive but you had better set aside quite a few hours to remove everything needed to replace the colored panels / plastics. On the Pioneer 1000 & 1000-5 Honda has made your life a lot easier compared to the past. Let’s all give Honda a big “thank you” on that one.

(2016 Pioneer 1000-5 Deluxe Video Review of Specs & Features + Short Test Drive)

Pioneer 1000 vs Pioneer 700 – Is it worth the extra $4,300 for the base model 1000-5 (5-seater) or $5,300 more for the “Cadillac” Deluxe model 1000-5 over the 700-4? Oh yes! I won’t draw this out much longer as I’m not the best in the world at putting all of my thoughts into words. The new 1000 cc Honda SxS / UTV / Side by Side ATV Pioneer is 10-times the machine as the 700 cc Pioneer. I’m not just referring to it being better because the Pioneer 1000 makes double the horsepower as the 700 Pioneer either. This is considering the entire package. The only way for you to be able to compare them though and for you to see just how much more of a machine the Pioneer 1000 is – you HAVE to get behind the wheel and drive one! If a dealer won’t let you demo a Pioneer 1000 or 1000-5. Walk out the door. These machines are too expensive to buy blindly without getting behind the wheel and seeing if it is truly worth the extra $4-$5,000 over the 700 Pioneer. The ride in the Pioneer 1000-5 for me has personally sold me on the machine. I was on the fence with spending this kind of money for an off-road toy but now I am officially sold and will be buying one myself.

Pioneer 1000-5 Deluxe vs Pioneer 1000-5 base model differences. Is the Deluxe worth the extra $1,000 when comparing price tags? Both of the 1000-5 models are going to drive almost identically to each other as almost all the options are aesthetics or “bling” as some would say. The LED lights are beautiful when it comes to the styling but to some that doesn’t matter as they could care less with how cool they look. The LED lights will be brighter but many won’t be taking advantage of them during night riding. Another difference is that the Deluxe offers you color matched body panels on the front and rear doors. Another aesthetic feature that some may not care about as they are going to get scratched up off-road. If you’re using it solely for work then obviously that’s going to be something low on your list of useful features. Last but not least of Deluxe vs base model differences on the 1000-5 is that you get aluminum 14″ wheels versus the standard 12″ steel wheels. If you’re going to go with larger aftermarket tires and or wheels for your Pioneer 1000-5 then it may be in your best interest to save the extra cost of the Deluxe and put it towards the wheels and rubber you want to toss on it. To me, the extra $1,000 is worth it but it’s going to be different for everyone and that’s the nice part about Honda offering multiple variations of the Pioneer 1000.

When comparing the differences between the Pioneer 1000-5 and 700-4 you also have some dimensions that set them apart. The Pioneer 1000 & 1000-5 models are larger in every category than its smaller brothers, the 700 & 700-4. Some good and some bad depending on what you’ll be using your Pioneer side by side for exactly. You can check out the 2016 Honda Pioneer 700-4 dimensions in detail here and the Pioneer 1000-5 dimensions here.

Is the Pioneer 1000-5 perfect? No. I can’t think of a single side by side on the market that is perfect and will check off every box as to the features etc you want and not have any flaws or things you would change. Honda nor any manufacturer can build a perfect machine to fit every single individuals needs and or wants. If you want a UTV that will haul the entire family or a few friends while also having the ability to do some work if need be. The Pioneer 1000 isn’t the fastest side by side ATV on the market but that’s not what it was built for and that’s why it’s called a Utility Vehicle. With the Pioneer 1000 top speed exceeding 65 mph, I’d say it’ll fill most people’s needs in the performance department especially considering this is a bone-stock machine. Once Pioneer 1000 aftermarket performance parts start rolling in it’s going to be interesting to see what kind of performance increases are possible.

2016 Honda Pioneer 1000-5 Details Review of Features & Specs – Click Here. I didn’t touch on every Pioneer 1000 feature in their entirety in this post as I’ve covered all of those fine details here.

⇒ Please click “”Like” and or Share if you enjoyed checking out my short review on the Pioneer 1000-5, Pictures, etc. That lets me know you’d like to see more details and posts on the 2016 Honda side by side model lineup. Thanks guys!

Have you gotten the chance to demo / test drive the Pioneer 1000 or 1000-5 yet? Have you already bought a Pioneer? What did and or do you think about?

2016 Honda Pioneer 1000 Model Lineup & Pricing:

• Honda Pioneer 1000 | MSRP Price $13,999
• Honda Pioneer 1000 EPS | MSRP Price $15,199
• Honda Pioneer 1000-5 | MSRP Price $16,199
• Honda Pioneer 1000-5 Deluxe | MSRP Price $17,199

* Phantom Camo color option add $600

How does the Pioneer 1000 model pricing lineup with the other 2016 Honda Side by Side / SxS / UTV models?

• 2016 Honda Pioneer 700-4 | MSRP $11,899

– $4,300 MSRP Price difference between comparable Pioneer 700-4 / Four-Seater and Pioneer 1000-5 / Five-Seater (base model)

• 2016 Honda Pioneer 700 | MSRP $10,299

– $3,700 MSRP Price difference between comparable Pioneer 700 / Two-Seater and Pioneer 1000 / Three-Seater (base model)

• 2016 Honda Pioneer 500 | MSRP $8,499

* Phantom Camo color option add $600

2016 Honda Pioneer 1000 & 1000-5 Warranty: All models come with a one-year manufacturers warranty with unlimited mileage & hours covering parts and labor. Fully transferable if you should sell the unit.

2016 Honda Pioneer 1000 & 1000-5 Extended Warranty / Honda Protection Plan: Honda offers an extended warranty directly through them that covers everything the original factory warranty does including parts and labor etc. The HPP (Honda Protection Plan) is available in 12 / 24 / 36 month extensions in addition to your 12 month factory warranty.

Can the extended warranty be purchased after you buy your Pioneer 1000 from another dealer? Yes, it can. To save some money on a Pioneer 1000 extended warranty price Click Here.

Do you have to pay Honda Pioneer 1000 dealer fees? No, you do not. It is up to each and every dealer if they want to charge you Misc freight, prep, setup, documentation and destination fees. If you do not want to pay those dealer fees. You can contact me via email and I can offer you some assistance and possible save you some money on your Pioneer 1000 or 1000-5 purchase price.

2016 Honda Pioneer 1000 / 1000-5 Link Index

Honda Pioneer 1000 & 1000-5 pages detailing Spec Sheets, Features, Horsepower and more:

• 2016 Pioneer 1000 / 1000-5 Spec Sheet, Dimensions, Weight, Height, Width – Click Here
• 2016 Pioneer 1000 / 1000-5 Detailed Frame, Engine, Interior Pictures – Click Here
• 2016 Pioneer 1000 / 1000-5 Horsepower – Click Here
• 2016 Pioneer 1000 vs 700 vs 500 Horsepower | Power-to-Weight Ratio / Performance Comparison

Honda Pioneer 1000 & 1000-5 Model Pricing and Release Dates:

• 2016 Pioneer 1000 / 1000-5 MSRP Price List – Click Here
• 2016 Pioneer 1000 / 1000-5 Release Date Update – Click Here

Honda Pioneer 1000 & 1000-5 Part & Accessory Information:

• 2016 Pioneer 1000 Accessories Overview / Pictures – Click Here
• 2016 Pioneer 1000 Custom Accessory Packages – Click Here
• 2016 Pioneer 1000 Accessories Price List – Click Here

Misc Honda Pioneer 1000 & 1000-5 Information:

• 2016 Pioneer 1000-5 Patent Application Documents – Click Here
• 2016 Pioneer 1000-5 Demo Ride Pictures – Click Here
• Custom 2016 Pioneer 1000 BAJA / SEMA Pictures – Click Here
• 2016 Pioneer 1000 Acceleration Video / MPH – Click Here

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