New Pioneer 500 owner

M

montanakeith

New Member
Jun 3, 2016
5
2
3
Montana
Ownership

  1. 500
Hi all. I am a new owner of a red Pioneer 500 and I am excited about what is ahead. The mountains we have here in Montana will be covered in Honda red very soon. I needed something to carry me and my camera equipment and my wife convinced me that a CR650 wouldn't be very comfortable with me and about 45 pounds of camera equipment. As usual, she is right. I am sure I will be bugging you all for bits of wisdom as I blunder my way through life. Thanks all in advance.
 
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Carleton

Carleton

Active Member
Nov 28, 2014
150
133
43
Utah
Ownership

  1. 500

  2. 1000-5
Hi all. I am a new owner of a red Pioneer 500 and I am excited about what is ahead. The mountains we have here in Montana will be covered in Honda red very soon. I needed something to carry me and my camera equipment and my wife convinced me that a CR650 wouldn't be very comfortable with me and about 45 pounds of camera equipment. As usual, she is right. I am sure I will be bugging you all for bits of wisdom as I blunder my way through life. Thanks all in advance.


Congrats and I hope you enjoy it. Coming off a larger side by side with more suspension, I have to admit that the P500 was a little different initially. Now after having it and realizing its strengths and weaknesses, I will say it is an awesome machine that is very sporty and fun to drive.

Accessories are fun on a side by side. During the summer when its hot and sunny, the roof has been my favorite accessory. During the winter a windshield or half windshield is nice, but they will cause more dust problems when dusty in summer. Two of the best modifications I have done were 26" tires on 12" rims that are offset a little more and removing the anti sway bar. The tires give way better clearance and a little wider track. I felt like this helped with stability and side to side shaking on bumps. It helped it ride a little smoother (probably because the tires are quite a bit larger). I was skeptical about removing the anti sway bar but after reading that many had done so I figured I would give it a try. The stock suspension is so stiff and little travel that it can't really dive in corners anyways. After removed it rides better and makes it way more enjoyable on rocky trails. The suspension articulates a bit better (although still rough) and makes me enjoy owning the machine more. It also gets better traction up rocky trails because the wheels stay on the ground better.
 
500oneer

500oneer

15,000 mile club
Lifetime Member
Aug 30, 2014
419
1,044
93
Central PA
Ownership

  1. 500
Hi all. I am a new owner of a red Pioneer 500 and I am excited about what is ahead. The mountains we have here in Montana will be covered in Honda red very soon. I needed something to carry me and my camera equipment and my wife convinced me that a CR650 wouldn't be very comfortable with me and about 45 pounds of camera equipment. As usual, she is right. I am sure I will be bugging you all for bits of wisdom as I blunder my way through life. Thanks all in advance.
Welcome! Now post some cool pictures!
 
JACKAL

JACKAL

Ancient Honda fanboi
Moderator
Lifetime Member
Supporting Member
Club Contributor
Jun 11, 2015
39,303
266,566
113
Pioneer, TN
Ownership

  1. Other Brand

  2. 1000-5
Hi all. I am a new owner of a red Pioneer 500 and I am excited about what is ahead. The mountains we have here in Montana will be covered in Honda red very soon. I needed something to carry me and my camera equipment and my wife convinced me that a CR650 wouldn't be very comfortable with me and about 45 pounds of camera equipment. As usual, she is right. I am sure I will be bugging you all for bits of wisdom as I blunder my way through life. Thanks all in advance.

Welcome to the club. Congrats on the P500, it is a very versatile and capable machine.
 
M

montanakeith

New Member
Jun 3, 2016
5
2
3
Montana
Ownership

  1. 500
Congrats and I hope you enjoy it. Coming off a larger side by side w ith more suspension, I have to admit that the P500 was a little different initially. Now after having it and realizing its strengths and weaknesses, I will say it is an awesome machine that is very sporty and fun to drive.

Accessories are fun on a side by side. During the summer when its hot and sunny, the roof has been my favorite accessory. During the winter a windshield or half windshield is nice, but they will cause more dust problems when dusty in summer. Two of the best modifications I have done were 26" tires on 12" rims that are offset a little more and removing the anti sway bar. The tires give way better clearance and a little wider track. I felt like this helped with stability and side to side shaking on bumps. It helped it ride a little smoother (probably because the tires are quite a bit larger). I was skeptical about removing the anti sway bar but after reading that many had done so I figured I would give it a try. The stock suspension is so stiff and little travel that it can't really dive in corners anyways. After removed it rides better and makes it way more enjoyable on rocky trails. The suspension articulates a bit better (although still rough) and makes me enjoy owning the machine more. It also gets better traction up rocky trails because the wheels stay on the ground better.

Thanks, Carleton. I appreciate the advice. And I look forward to changing a few things on it. Maybe a turbo and nitrous for the engine
... ;o)
 
M

montanakeith

New Member
Jun 3, 2016
5
2
3
Montana
Ownership

  1. 500
Welcome to the club. Congrats on the P500, it is a very versatile and capable machine.
Thanks, Jackal. Yes, I think that up here in Montana I am going to be glad I got a Honda.
 
D

Dasmoeturhead

Guest
Welcome, and congrats on the P 500. She's definitely right! :)
 
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