2014 Honda Pioneer

When Honda reached out to UTVUnderground.com with an invite to come to South Carolina to see their factory and learn more about the Honda Pioneer we jumped at the opportunity.  First off its Honda, just the name alone gets us excited being that they are arguably the most iconic name in the powersports industry. More importantly for us is that Honda, like Yamaha, is making a statement with their latest UTV release that they are here for the long haul when it comes to manufacturing SXS’s! Its rare for a manufacturer in this industry to open its doors and give media like UTVUnderground.com a chance to see just how a machine is built. Honda graciously opened their doors to us and did so on a day when the first full production Pioneer would roll off of the assembly line. This “roll off ceremony” was a special one to be a part of. Executives from Honda, state and government officials including the Governor of South Carolina as well as 2000 Honda employees were all on hand to witness the first full production Pioneer roll off the line. The ceremony was that of being excited for the new machine but also that of being proud to have this work done in the state of South Carolina. It was clear to see that the Pioneer is a big deal not just for Honda as a company or for our industry but also for a lot of local’s who have been employed by Honda to work on and assemble these machines. Honda with help from the State of South Carolina made a $25 million + investment to relocate Honda’s SXS manufacturing to South Carolina from Mexico.  This means more jobs in America for American’s, it also means that Honda can keep a closer eye on their SXS manufacturing and be able to make changes to their assembly on the fly. For us, it's a tell into the future that there is much more planned for Honda in the realm of UTV’s being manufactured as we just couldn’t see such a large investment being made for only one machine. The Honda South Carolina (HSC) manufacturing plant was great to see. The line itself uses many of the same tooling and processes that Honda Motor Company uses when manufacturing cars. The line was efficient and clean and having the chance to walk down the line and see a machine in every phase of assembly gave us a great idea of the quality that is being poured into this new UTV. Some things that really stood out to me were the fit and finish of every single component as well as the way they have over built things like the frame and brakes. While many of us die-hard UTV enthusiasts may say that the new Honda Pioneer lacks power, one thing they do not lack in is quality!! The machine was inspected at numerous points along the line and QC checks on parts are made throughout the entire process ensuring a solid machine each and every time! After we wrapped up with the factory tour we were led out to Honda’s private trail system, which is where they are able to run all of their ATV & UTV machines in real life trail situations. The system was routed through a tight wooded area and consisted of mud, dirt, logs and MESQUITOS! Here we were able to get our first taste of the Pioneer in both 2 seat and 4 seat configurations. After a brief tutorial on the ins and outs of the machine, how it operates and the features it posses we were set free to put the machine through its paces out on the trails. The first thing that stood out to me was the doors and how they open and close. They are constructed of heavy duty injected molded plastic and when closing you get the sense of shutting a car door. It’s sturdy and stable and when riding you don’t hear any rattling, which I really enjoyed. Seating position is comfortable and the ergonomics of the machine are nice. While Honda claims that power steering isn’t necessary on the Pioneer I tended to disagree. Once we began to rally through the trees I could really feel myself fighting the wheel and wishing for some EPS. With that said, its an easy machine to drive and while you can easily do without EPS, EPS would make for a nice addition in a follow up model year. Converting the Pioneer 4 seater to a 2 seater was a piece of cake. A couple of latches and you can easily go from a full dumping bed to an additional 2 rear seats. This is a solid feature for the Pioneer and an industry 1^st. John Deere has a similar set up allowing for the rear seats to fold down but this is the first machine that actually gives you back a dumping bed when converting. When riding with 4 people at speed you really do wish for another cylinder in that engine. Us power mongers are always wanting more but I will say this 700 engine has good pull and the automatic 3 speed transmission is by far my single favorite feature on the Pioneer. Feeling the engine up shift and down shift was extremely cool and unlike any other UTV. This is the first UTV to do away with a belt driven CVT and we like it A LOT! In the end we could nit pick or hype up just about every detail on the machine but overall we are really pleased with what Honda has brought to the table in replacement of the Big Red. Honda, while not giving us any ETA or innuendo for exactly what will come did make mention that there is much more in the works for UTV’s from the big red machine. They specifically kept us off of one of their test tracks for fear of us seeing something we weren’t supposed to see. Our hopes are set high for a full lineup of Honda SXS’s including a sport model at some point. Fingers crossed, we will see something new sooner than later! Until then, we will enjoy the Pioneer and patiently wait to see what’s next from Honda! UTVUnderground.com wants to thank Honda and all of their employees for all of their hospitality during our trip to South Carolina. We had a great time learning more about the company and getting to know those inside at Honda. It was a great time and we look forward to more exciting adventures with the Honda team! Words by Joey DiGiovanni // UTVUnderground.com  

2014 Honda Pioneer

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