2015 Pioneer 500 review

[Dyrty]

I originally posted this on FB and ran across this forum this morning. Thought I would share.

Review: 2015 Honda Pioneer 500 (P500)
Options: 12” IPT bead locks with 26” IPT Blackwater Evolutions
Test Ground: Camp Ridge Point (Eddiceton, MS)
Date: August/September 2014

Well after 4 weekends at camp and now about 130 miles on the P500 (Belle as my wife calls her) all I can say she is a beast, a safe beast. She was purchased for my wife to ride and have fun on with safety first. I can say safely that she loves it and has had a lot of fun on her with more to come.
First, if you’re looking for speed and just awesome power you need to just move on. Top speed I have seen has been about 32 mph with a little more to go. I didn’t buy it for speed.
Comfort is a little lacking with the bench seats but it’s not really that uncomfortable. We originally had folded back the safety nets on the doors but I put them back up when I took my dog for a ride so he didn’t have a “squirrel moment”. Left them up after Debbie took over and she actually said she didn’t notice they were there. A little bit of safety is good helping keeping arms inside.
Sand riding, forget it, Belle does not like plain sand. Hates it. River riding is rough, may be shock settings to smooth it out once she is broke in but still a rough ride on the sand bars. Sand? Hates it but I hear that for lots of rides and probably more in line with the tires we use.
No glove box or anywhere else to store “stuff”. Drink holder, LOL works great unless you want a coozie on your drink. Then it’s a fight to “store your can”.
Paddle shifter is fun, keep it in the power band and I think this puppy could go about anywhere.
Great for two, could squeeze three in but you would really have to like them.
Good power for such a small package, most of the mud trails just put it in second and goes where you tell it. It has a low gear but only needed going down a hill to stay in control.
All in all, we love it. Debbie feels comfortable. I feel comfortable with her in it and it does what we want.


Also a friend posted this in response.
" The biggest tire you can run on the 500 is a 28, anything larger will hit the inner frame. The inner frame has to be trimmed to fit the 28 inch tires. I purchased the P500 for my wife, I really enjoy driving it myself with the shifting paddles and the turning radius is great. I think it is a great machine for tooling around and having fun. "

 

[Hondasxs]

Welcome to the community.
Good review. I agree with you 100%. Need speed and pure out of control power look elsewhere. Want to get back to camp.. buy a Pioneer. Lol.

Sand is always tricky with any machine. Knowing the sand and how to recover is the key. A better set of tires helps also.

All in all, the P5 seems to be a great machine.

You got Belle looking there. Have fun and see you around.
Thanks.

 

[stbecker]

Nice review. You stated it was comfortable. I am 6'3 and weigh 200 #. Would you think I could squeeze in and be comfortable? This will be my first ATV. I use to ride dirt bikes in the 70's and still ride road bikes. My ATV of yesteryear was a chopped down 1947 Chevy my dad made for me to ride the logging trails in upstate NY. So, now you know my age. I am looking for fun not speed and a machine easy to transport. Thanks, Steve

 

[cattaco]

I saw 42 on my speedo and with 26" tires that should be 45 mph.

 

[Crookedcreek]

Nice review. You stated it was comfortable. I am 6'3 and weigh 200 #. Would you think I could squeeze in and be comfortable? This will be my first ATV. I use to ride dirt bikes in the 70's and still ride road bikes. My ATV of yesteryear was a chopped down 1947 Chevy my dad made for me to ride the logging trails in upstate NY. So, now you know my age. I am looking for fun not speed and a machine easy to transport. Thanks, Steve

I'm 6' 0", 270 # and I fit in mine just fine. But, I wear 30" pant leg and have my "length" in my torso. If your 6' 3" results from long legs, you might want to find a P500 on a showroom floor and get in and out of it several times.
BTW, I'm 67 years old, so I don't exactly "jump through the door" getting in and out, but it works just fine and I couldn't be happier with my P500.

 

[doolin64]

Thank you for the review!

I finally got to drive one at the dealer. It was just tooling around in the parking lot. It was better than nothing. I was very surprised how torquey it was in low gear. I'm 6'2 255lbs and thought the left floorboard seemed tight for my size 14 shoes. Once I hopped in an drove I didn't feel it was tight at all and I had the sales guy with me.

Two things I'm still not 100% on...paddle shifting and overall power. Top speed doesn't worry me. Realistically, I ride on tight trails and rarely see speeds above 25mph. So I think the P500 would fit nicely. I could buy a different animal for similar money...2011 Commander X. A used one popped up locally for similar money as new P500 that I will have to outfit with a plow and winch. The Commander is all set up.

On the flip side, one of the P500's most endearing traits is the overall size. I love how little space this would take up and where I could fit with it.


Decisions.....

 

[rjdavis10]

brand new..and comes with a warranty. does the used one come with that while it's all set up?

 

[JACKAL]

@Dyrty Thanks for sharing your experience with the P500

 

[Christian92]

Nice review. You stated it was comfortable. I am 6'3 and weigh 200 #. Would you think I could squeeze in and be comfortable? This will be my first ATV. I use to ride dirt bikes in the 70's and still ride road bikes. My ATV of yesteryear was a chopped down 1947 Chevy my dad made for me to ride the logging trails in upstate NY. So, now you know my age. I am looking for fun not speed and a machine easy to transport. Thanks, Steve

I'm 6' 4" 220# and I have no problem @ ALL

 

[p500fan]

Nice review. You stated it was comfortable. I am 6'3 and weigh 200 #. Would you think I could squeeze in and be comfortable? This will be my first ATV. I use to ride dirt bikes in the 70's and still ride road bikes. My ATV of yesteryear was a chopped down 1947 Chevy my dad made for me to ride the logging trails in upstate NY. So, now you know my age. I am looking for fun not speed and a machine easy to transport. Thanks, Steve

I'm 6'3", weigh closer to 325, and I have no problems with the P500. You would have to be quite rotund to have problems getting into, or out of the rig. The only problem I've ever had was catching my holster on the side roll bar while exiting in a bit of a hurry. I've had the same problem with the seat belts in full-size pick-ups, so I don't really feel that is is much of an issue.

 

[CBC89]

I originally posted this on FB and ran across this forum this morning. Thought I would share.

Review: 2015 Honda Pioneer 500 (P500)
Options: 12” IPT bead locks with 26” IPT Blackwater Evolutions
Test Ground: Camp Ridge Point (Eddiceton, MS)
Date: August/September 2014

Well after 4 weekends at camp and now about 130 miles on the P500 (Belle as my wife calls her) all I can say she is a beast, a safe beast. She was purchased for my wife to ride and have fun on with safety first. I can say safely that she loves it and has had a lot of fun on her with more to come.
First, if you’re looking for speed and just awesome power you need to just move on. Top speed I have seen has been about 32 mph with a little more to go. I didn’t buy it for speed.
Comfort is a little lacking with the bench seats but it’s not really that uncomfortable. We originally had folded back the safety nets on the doors but I put them back up when I took my dog for a ride so he didn’t have a “squirrel moment”. Left them up after Debbie took over and she actually said she didn’t notice they were there. A little bit of safety is good helping keeping arms inside.
Sand riding, forget it, Belle does not like plain sand. Hates it. River riding is rough, may be shock settings to smooth it out once she is broke in but still a rough ride on the sand bars. Sand? Hates it but I hear that for lots of rides and probably more in line with the tires we use.
No glove box or anywhere else to store “stuff”. Drink holder, LOL works great unless you want a coozie on your drink. Then it’s a fight to “store your can”.
Paddle shifter is fun, keep it in the power band and I think this puppy could go about anywhere.
Great for two, could squeeze three in but you would really have to like them.
Good power for such a small package, most of the mud trails just put it in second and goes where you tell it. It has a low gear but only needed going down a hill to stay in control.
All in all, we love it. Debbie feels comfortable. I feel comfortable with her in it and it does what we want.


Also a friend posted this in response.
" The biggest tire you can run on the 500 is a 28, anything larger will hit the inner frame. The inner frame has to be trimmed to fit the 28 inch tires. I purchased the P500 for my wife, I really enjoy driving it myself with the shifting paddles and the turning radius is great. I think it is a great machine for tooling around and having fun. "

I like the Stereo setup you have, is that the boss system for atv's? How low does it hang in the cab? Do you see it getting in the way?