Your Honda Pioneer lives off-road most of the time. When you’re cruising around your property, it’ll chew through rough terrain no problem. But before you take it on the road, you need to know if you can actually go the speed limit. Otherwise, you’ll be the person leading a long line of angry motorists just waiting their turn to pass you with a few choice words.
We’re taking a quick look at the Honda Pioneer 1000’s top speed and seeing how it compares to the Pioneer 700 and 500. Even if the Honda Pioneer and all its iterations aren’t designed to be the fastest vehicles on four wheels, top speed is a valuable spec, and one we know you’re curious about.
The top speed of a side-by-side is limited by its performance, so you might be tempted to look at just the horsepower and declare that more horsepower equals more better.
While more horsepower is certainly an important performance indicator, it’s just one of several. The three features that work together to define any vehicle’s top speed are:
The drivetrain plays a super important role in your UTV’s ability to get going, but it’s really tough to define. You’d have to look at every gear reduction, every inefficiency, and all the spinning weight to really understand how it affects your top speed.
So let’s look at the quick and dirty performance info we get from weight and horsepower specs. By looking at the horsepower-to-weight ratio, you get a decent sense of any vehicle’s performance—the lower the ratio, the better.
Here are the horsepower-to-weight ratios of the Honda Pioneer 1000, 700, and 500.
So, just by looking at the horsepower-to-weight ratio, we should expect the 1000 to be the fastest. And even though the 500 has a lot less horsepower than the 700, they have a virtually identical ratio. Will they have the same top speed? Let’s find out.
The Honda Pioneer 1000’s top speed is 67 MPH. That’s a pretty useful speed—it’s higher than the maximum speed limit in 9 states and just 3 MPH slower than the maximum speed (70 MPH) in another 22.
If your Pioneer 1000 is street legal where you live, you’ll likely have plenty of speed to get around on and off the trail.
That being said, running your Pioneer at highway speeds for a long period of time can wear it out quickly. It’s built for off-road action more than long-haul traveling.
The Honda Pioneer 700’s top speed is 45 MPH. It won’t keep up on every road out there, but it’s no slouch either. It’s fast enough to make short work of chores and rip through trails if that’s your thing.
Plus, it’ll get you down most roads without causing a traffic jam.
The Honda Pioneer 500’s top speed is 40 MPH. But wait a minute. Didn’t we say that the Pioneer 500 and 700 had the same horsepower-to-weight ratio? Does the difference in top speed come from the drivetrain?
In this case, the top speed of both the Pioneer 500 and 700 is limited by the speed limiter on the machine. Both machines are capable of going faster, but their speed is capped by the ECU—the onboard computer that controls every aspect of your UTV.
Even if they didn’t have a limiter, they wouldn’t reach the Pioneer 1000’s 67 MPH. They just don’t have the power to get there.
All the extra horsepower the Honda Pioneer 1000’s bigger engine puts out gives it the edge over the 500 and 700. Even though it weighs more, the Pioneer 1000’s top speed isn’t limited by the ECU and it has a better horsepower-to-weight ratio.
Put it all together and the Honda Pioneer 1000 wins on speed. If that’s all you need out of your Pioneer, then you’re good to go.
After you get the perfect Pioneer for you, check out our guide on how to get more out of your Honda Pioneer.
20 Comments
I would like to know the price for a 500 and a 700 unit. If I purchase one, what is the delivery time? How long to deliver one ?
Hi Mary, we actually do not sell machines—only aftermarket parts and accessories for the machines. However, I have attached some links to Honda’s website showcasing each vehicle: https://powersports.honda.com/sxs/recutility/pioneer-500 & https://powersports.honda.com/sxs/recutility/pioneer-700. If you’re hoping to buy used, we have a guide on the best way to do that as well: https://www.superatv.com/offroad-atlas/what-to-look-for-when-buying-a-used-utv/ Thanks for tuning in!
We own a pioneer 1000. It has had many recalls. Recently, we bought the Pioneer 700 Deluxe brand new, one week later while driving 10 mph the drive shaft disconnected. We have been waiting 2 months for the part and are being told that the earliest we can expect is have it fixed is another 1 and 1/2 months from now. We own many other Honda ATVs and have never had a problem, but after this one I don’t think we will ever buy one again. If it takes a minimum of 3 1/2 months to get it fixed when their is a warranty issue, then I would advise against buying
Hey Liz. We’re sorry to hear about the troubles. It could be an issue with part shortages. Check out this article we wrote this week giving the lowdown on what a lot of companies are facing right now: https://www.superatv.com/offroad-atlas/supply-pain-whats-causing-the-off-road-vehicle-shortage/ Hopefully they’re able to get you taken care of soon!
I have a 2018 pioneer 700 and the top speed is only 35 mph
My 2o2o 700 pioneer has been a life saver. Plowing snow, pulling away downed trees, dumping debris. My top speed is 42 mph. It’s not speedy, but has plenty of power and torque for the utility I need. I
Thanks for sharing, Jeff! The Honda Pioneer is definitely the ultimate workhorse!
I have a 2021 700-4 Deluxe Camo. It is a very nice machine and would climb a tree if I tried. BUT it is not a RZR or other extreme mud machine. It is a good utility for work, fun and trail riding. It is NOT for throwing mud 20 feet in the air or racing.
My 2018 Honda pioneer 700 deluxe I’ve got 28 in tires top speed is 44 mph it is a beast on trails in east Tennessee love it
That’s awesome to hear, James! Thanks for tuning in with us.
Could be the speedometer was not calibrated. Bigger tires equals fewer rotation, math happens, and you’re not going the speed you think you are.
Is there any way to bypass the ECU in computer that regulates the speed on Honda pioneer 700?
Hey Steve! An ECU tuner would do the trick. Unfortunately, We don’t currently have any tunes for this machine. But we’ll likely have them in the near future. Stay tuned (no pun intended). ;) https://www.superatv.com/categories/ecutuners
top speed has notheing to do with wieght
The one thing I don’t like is that the 500 has a five speed n the 1000 has a six speed tranny why in hell would they give the 700 a threes speed , I want a five or six speed for my 700 cc pioneer
That is bizarre. I can’t wrap my head around it either. Obviously, it’s geared the way they want it to be, but it’s still so weird to only give you 3 gears when they have much more versatile options available. Oh well. Maybe they’ll update the 700 eventually.
So true, I have a 2021 700 deluxe and the 3 speeds lags badly because on long graded roads the Honda feels like a rattle trap that desperately wants to shift into a higher gear….Honda choked with the 3 speed and hope it can eventually be fixed. I would also like to see more power and performance upgrades readily available for this machine like hi-flow exhaust, air-filter and good fuel management and tuning, it’s very sporadic to find and seems much more power is available with this engine.
I agree with Micheal Johnson. I have the 700=4 Deluxe and at the very least it needs 1 more gear. My top speed is 43 and is way too wound up going anything over 35. This bike definitely needs more gears. Is there a replacement transmission that can be purchased to replace the 3 speed?
Hey Richard, I haven’t seen any transmission like that for the Pioneer 700. A less ideal, but potentially cheaper and easier solution would be to put a high gear set in your transmission. It doesn’t look like those are very common for the 700 either, but if you did find a set (or get a custom-made set), you would sacrifice a little low-end power to gain a little top-end speed with running out of gears so quickly. I went ahead and passed your issue along to our product guys too. Good luck!
Right now I am looking to buying a pioneer 700 hundred deluxe. My only drawback is the 3 speed tranny. I have an older rubicon 500 love the transmission able to shift or just cruise ,but three gears come on whose idea was this. Automobiles quit using 3 speeds along time ago. Give at least 5 speeds and high/low range would be nice.