Honda announced the release of the 2016 Honda Pioneer this past July, and all specs are in: this is possibly the best side-by-sde made to date. After the release of the Big Red in 2009, Honda has been pushing efforts to join the side-by-side market, and since then they have released the Pioneer 700 and 700-4 models and the Pioneer 500 last year.
At the 2016 Honda Pioneer 1000 press launch, Powersports Marketing and Communications Manager Lee Edmunds declared that the 2016 Honda Pioneer 1000 will be the most important powersports vehicle that Honda has produced in over a decade, and they plan to take the market by storm.
The Focus is on the Engine
The new 2016 Honda Pioneer 1000 comes with a 999cc engine, which is powerful for a car of this kind. This will provide high-performance capability and good torque and pulling power. The engine can produce up to 74 horsepower and has a Unicam design to keep the engine safe. Air is fed to the parallel twin through a 44mm throttle body.
The engine is rubber mounted to reduce vibration in the cabin and the 999cc powerplant is surrounded by roller rockers to reduce friction and wear. This guarantees ideal weight distribution and eliminates right angles in the driveline for better delivering power to the ground. According to test drivers, seat-shake is minimal even in Sport mode.
The 2016 Honda Pioneer 1000 is the first to incorporate dual-clutch transmission
The 2016 Honda Pioneer 1000 is also the first side-by-side to incorporate dual-clutch transmission. The six-speed transmission is what Honda calls ‘advanced shift logic’, and it monitors throttle position and input as well as engine RPM, speed and brake input. For an off-road vehicle, this provides less maintenance requirements and better durability.
The 2016 Honda Pioneer 1000 has a chassis that was modeled around the off-road vehicle, with a three person and five person capacity. Maximum weight clocks in at around 1,000 lbs and towing limit gets up to 2,000 pounds.
The off-road vehicle will come without electronic power steering, but spin off versions of the 2016 Honda Pioneer 1000 including the Pioneer 1000 EPS, 1000-5 and 1000-5 Deluxe will all come with EPS already integrated.
All In All, It Makes for Great Work Car or Leisure Ride
The car toggles as a great automatic car for work off-road and for a fun ride. The 1000-5 model starts at $17,1999 and test drivers it’s the best pick to get the best out of the vehicle. All in all, this is a great side-by-side that will surely give all others a run for its money.
