If no satisfaction, try writing the actual plant in SC. As long as its professional, and factual it will most definitely bend a lot of ears. It will bring the attention to a level of the top cadre of not only management, but the Eng team that servs under them. Most of the time with several complaints they will send out a liaison to meet with you and the dealer. Hope this helps. Sorry for the trouble.
Rut roh. Sounds like a rash of them. Hopefully they get it figured out soon. Kind of ironic that the tranny was supposed to be the big selling point over a belt drive for longevity.
x2 we've had to do that with Cummins more than once in our Peterbilts and they finally started sending engineers out.
Are they geared too high or just a clutch issue? If clutch issue maybe enough to warrant recall for a modification. I'm still not sold on this transmission or the yami YXZ, for extreme trails. My cvt has 2000 miles on same belt. Wonder if too keep cost down the OEM short cut some on unproven or lower cost outside supplier?
JACKAL
Ancient Honda fanboi
Moderator
Lifetime Member
Supporting Member
Club Contributor
Although anything mechanical can fail, I personally know people who can seemingly destroy an anvil with a rubber mallet, and rarely does the facts come out how they accomplished such a feat just that the anvil was faulty. With all the technologies poured into these new machines it is imperative that owners ensure the oil levels are full with the proper fluids and the shifting cables are adjusted correctly to ensure smooth transitions from P/R/N/H/L positions and positive engagement for the sub-transmission.
It also hard to criticize a Dealer if you tell him you are going out of town for a few weeks and not is a big hurry to come back and not much happened, let alone threaten to put it on a trailer with a sign saying 3 weeks no wrench turned that will not get it fixed any quicker, the most likely issue is the machine is so new even the mechanics are not used to what if any systemic issues these machines may or may not have.
It also hard to criticize a Dealer if you tell him you are going out of town for a few weeks and not is a big hurry to come back and not much happened, let alone threaten to put it on a trailer with a sign saying 3 weeks no wrench turned that will not get it fixed any quicker, the most likely issue is the machine is so new even the mechanics are not used to what if any systemic issues these machines may or may not have.
Delton
Honda Fanboy
Vendor
Lifetime Member
Club Contributor
100% in agreement. While I admit I'm a little paranoid, not enough fact has surfaced to warrant full scale panic attack.
I agree mostly with what you are saying and perhaps part of the problem with all the interest is that typically someone posts a problem on a forum and they have an answer within 2 minutes. When an explanation is not known people start think that there is a problem. It may not be right but it's the world we live in. I don't think the issues is anything serious because Honda do their homework and as I said before I will still be making a purchase, this thread has not swayed my decision in the slightest but the suspence is killing me!!!
I've got 800 miles on mine, half cruising around, half working it hard dragging logs, pulling brush and honeysuckle out. I'm glad I bought mine before reading this thread. I might have been scared off, as it is this is my favorite tool/toy 
I think I am going to stop reading this thread until something goes wrong with mine.
I'm the one who started this thread to get info out. I'm also the one that told the dealer that I would be out of town for a few weeks. It was another member who said that they will hang a sign, though yes, honda is taking a while. Honda doesn't know I'm out of town working, and I'd be willing to bet, they just replace the clutch. They may work out a fix, but I bet it won't happen until late this year or next year if they choose to even address the high low/reverse.
Now, I do not wish to sound like I'm going off on you about this as I wish to only set the record straight.
I've read from brand loyal morons on Facebook stating that the reason my clutch went out is because I don't know how to drive, when they wouldn't be so quick to defend can am or polaris if they read a new sxs they released had a clutch issue (even if there were only 1 like in this case when it started.) I am not a brand loyal person and have never understood the mentality of why anyone would defend a brand because they own that same brand.
My dealer is small and have been very upfront about it. For the record, I am not upset at the time frame from honda/dealer on my end. If I may have sounded that way in an earlier post, I apologize. When I get home and it takes them 2 to 4 more weeks, then yes, that is definitely unacceptable.
advertisement
The hanging a sign was more a joke than anything.. I drive mine on trails that my salesman said the ride could handle.. Even avoiding some of the bigger holes just to make sure I didn't mess anything up... My problem started on steeper inclines .. Yes I was in low gear... The dealership has told me they don't see a issue with fixing this... They say honda wants to see the issues to find a proper fix... I honestly just the issue resolved fast because I paid a lot of money. As did you... I was barely out of the break in period when it started shuttering in LOW and high gears ... To soon for a sxs to have this problem... I post to this thread to make sure that if someone else is having problems to bring it in to be looked at so honda knows there are issues... Anyway it's to early in the morning for this .. I run a mechanic shop and know that there is no way my customers would wait this long to fix something and I wouldn't make them
So far there are two first hand accounts of clutch problems with members on the forum. In addition to that there are 3 2nd hand reports of units in the shop with clutch problems. So worst case there are 5 units with clutch problems. Not a huge number, but still enough to justify some concern. I suspect there is a defective part that is failing internally causing the clutch to fail and not an overall design issue or it would be much more widespread and the machine would never have made it past honda product testing. Maybe a manufacturing defect in the actuator that only affects a few units...hopefully we know something soon.
I wonder if Honda designed this power plant for the Pioneer or the African Twin motorcycle? Same power plant with the cycle having more hp but a third of the weight. Maybe a fully loaded Pioneer going up inclines is too much for these clutches if they were designed for a lightweight cycle.
Just my 2 cents. I do a lot of work at the desk and I need to get a lot done through municipalities and bureaucracies. The power of the pen is mighty indeed. Now is the time to carefully document what your issue was, when you brought it in for service and the response time and put it in writing to your dealer. Let that marinate for a few days. When you don't receive an acceptable resolution or even an acceptable reason for the time delay, start kicking it upstairs with the CC feature. Can't tell you how fast people start moving once you get their bosses involved.
Case in point: The property I manage abuts the freeway and we were having a large homeless problem. Well, due to laws and regulations nobody wanted to touch the issue. I am all for the rights of all humans but at some point someone has to take responsibility. My calls were falling on deaf ears, lots of "we're doing the best we can". Well after carefully penning the situation in an email to the appropriate manager I still received a tepid response. I then followed up on the email inquiring about the status of my ongoing issue (where there had now been 3 fires and a death from overdose in a week!) and CC'd their boss, and their boss's boss, and THEIR boss's boss (who happens to be the Governor of California). Wouldn't you know it, I had a 10 PERSON TEAM onsite the very next morning with several phone calls from the regional director.
Way off topic I know. Just saying, sometimes you can get a whole lot done by being calm and writing everything down. It just needs to get in the right hands. Don't forget to mention the awesome online community you are a part of that is starting to get really concerned.
I wonder if we were to add a bit more power if it would stop the lugging and clutch slippage. I plan on seeing if the heads are different on the africa twin or what all is different period.
I totally agree, I had an issue with my new car over a year ago. My issue was creaking noise coming from the dash, after multiple attempts to fix including removing the dash they could not find the issue. The service manager told me that they would not replace the car because it's not a safety issue. I sent emails to the owners who passed it on to the manufacturer. The manufacturer offered me a couple of thousand dollars as the car was then already a year old by the time we got to that point. I persisted with emails that were very professional and never caused offence. The dealer replaced my car with a new one and I never had to threaten legal action. The dealer told me that because I was very professional and never got their back up they footed the bill for the remainder of the cash needed to get me a new car and it was the next model year that was much improved.
In person talks or phone calls are fine but always back up your discussions with an email. Ask for written reports on what the issue is and time lines on the repairs. Always keep it professional. If your dealer is saying that it's in the hands of Honda then ask for an email of the Honda manager dealing with the issue and include them. You could start off by saying that you know it's a new design and they may not have answers right away but what are their thoughts. Ask if they need any info from you regarding what happened.
They will appreciate an understanding customer more and in turn will be far more accommodating. Don't be afraid to ask for another machine to use in the mean time especially if you are making payments.
One thing to remember is that all communication between the dealer and Honda is done via email most probably with an internal server when it comes to warranty issues. You could ask for a copy of the first email noting the warranty claim. This will let you know if the dealer has sent it in.
H
hondabob
Well-Known Member
Lifetime Member
Got over 1,700 miles on mine. I make sure I get it moving right away, same on my RZR 900 as per the RZR owners manual. Reverse is a bit high but I don't back up much and try to keep it above 3 mph for a long back up. One clutch is for 1st, 3rd, and 5th, the other is for 2nd, 4th, ant 6th. Not sure which one operates reverse. These clutches are swapping as the gears shift. There may be a defective part causing this failure or a software problem. I get a slight shudder taking off in reverse and its about the same with my 28 inch tires. My top speed on my GPS is 68.8 mph with 28 inch tires. Running large tires or inching along at a low speed at or under 2 mph will probably cause excessive slipping and overheat the clutch. Honda warns owners not to use the throttle to hold it on a hill. That would burn a belt or a wet clutch on a belt drive model too. I think Honda will fix these failures under warranty and do it quickly. Honda should have Sport models with this engine - trans package and it will have way more hp and probably use the same parts except for hot cams and a sport exhaust system.
Got the word today that honda is going to tear down the clutch and take pictures to send to corporate... I had to give approval to do this because it will cost me 220 to break it down plus parts if honda deems it my fault...so keep me informed if you get a different response
Today I found out from my dealer who has two in for clutch's that a piece in the clutch was miss placed on the assembly line. Honda is at the plant inSC now locating the problem.
advertisement
Similar threads
P1000
Clutches overheating
- FloridaPath
- General Pioneer 1000 Discussion 2 3 4
