P1000 When do you use Low gear

Flgator_80

Flgator_80

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Went out on some trails for the first time yesterday and used mostly high with sport mode. When we got to some steep hills I dropped into low. Only the really steep ones needed it though. So is being in high going to cause any damage? I liked the sport might try some manual next time.
 
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Cheesedictator

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What about when driving with 4 passengers? So 5 people total, plus a cooler most likely. Would you guys recommend using mostly low gear for that situation?
 
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Adam490

Adam490

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What about when driving with 4 passengers? So 5 people total, plus a cooler most likely. Would you guys recommend using mostly low gear for that situation?
Depends on the terrain. If you're riding around your neighborhood, fire roads, fast trails, etc where you'll be going faster than 15-20mph or so High will be fine. If you're going up lots of inclines, crawling along a trail or through mud use Low. Like @ohanacreek mentioned, you can run up to 33mph in Low, so there's no harm in using it.
 
C

Cheesedictator

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Awesome thanks for the input! In arizona I’m mostly in sandy washes with mild hills and climbing so sounds like I’ll just keep it in low for sure with that many people. Just bought a 2016 P1K-5 deluxe and I’m itching bad to pick it up Thursday and take it out this weekend! It’s already had the clutch fix and I don’t like being hard on my vehicles so I’m feeling pretty good about it! Happy to have a Honda, cheers!
 
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mikiemanna

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Feb 4, 2021
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north bay ontario
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When you're on a snow covered lake do you have to stay in low gear? What if you can get up to 50km/hr can you just stay in high?...without damaging anything...

thanks
 
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nsmitch

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May 28, 2020
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I use it when gathering a little firewood for winter or when pulling out our moose.
IMG 1316
 
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tromano1706

tromano1706

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Jun 21, 2020
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I use low most of the time as trails around here are very slow and rocky. Running these trails in high will definitely smoke the clutches. I have heard that if you are planning on riding under 10 mph you should use low as the clutches fully engage around 3 mph instead of 5-7 mph in high. I also never leave it in auto as it shifts way too much for my liking. I like to bog it more especially since it has a lot of torque.
 
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Dlm456

Dlm456

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I have a 2018 LE, and low used to be annoying with all the shifts, and like most I would use manual, however once I got 1500 or so miles the shifts in both low and high became much smoother and less annoying. Does this seem normal? Anyone else experience the smoothing out of shifts? I worry about my clutch, it doesn't seem to ever slip and for the most part if I'm going under 20 I'm in low. I also run mobil 1 motorcycle oil.
 
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CID

CID

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When I'm lugging down, a steep climb for instance, I'll paddle down, if it doesn't have a lower gear, I should have been in Low range. I don't want the machine slipping the clutch to keep running. Generally, if I know speeds will be under 25 or so, I'll be in Low unless it's easy forest roads then I don't think it matters.
 
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TripleB

TripleB

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I have a 2018 LE, and low used to be annoying with all the shifts, and like most I would use manual, however once I got 1500 or so miles the shifts in both low and high became much smoother and less annoying. Does this seem normal? Anyone else experience the smoothing out of shifts? I worry about my clutch, it doesn't seem to ever slip and for the most part if I'm going under 20 I'm in low. I also run mobil 1 motorcycle oil.
When I used low I always had to be in manual for the reasons you stated. After over a year and maybe 2000 miles I tried it in auto while in low and it shifts mostly like I want. I just assumed the computer learns your driving style but idk. The only time I use manual in low now, is when I'm climbing steeps or hitting mudholes that have to be hit kinda hard. An untimely up shift in one of those scenarios can equal failure. I still constantly paddle shift while I'm in auto when I need to. Especially down hill for braking purposes.
 

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