2025 Honda Pioneer 500/520 Buyer’s Guide

Honda reliability and build quality; decent capability for budget rigs; 50-inch width small enough to fit in a full-size pickup.

The definition of “basic”; no power steering; no locking diffs; 500 doesn’t have a dump bed; engine placement makes some maintenance tasks a hassle; you need to bring or buy storage space.

You want a horse for help and fun around your property but have no place to board it. The Pioneer 500 or 520 is the next best thing. It’s only half as luxurious as a horse; on the other hand, you’ll save a ton on vet bills.

There are jobs to do on a homestead or ranch, and there are chores. The Pioneer 500 and 520 are made for the latter. Honda’s most basic and bite-sized utility rigs possess basic and bite-sized capability. There are no creature comforts in either, no power steering, and no storage space. And because the 500 puts a cargo rack behind the cockpit, it’s suited only to the most relaxed kind of chores.

The Pioneer 520 could be compared to the Kawasaki Mule SX 4x4. The Pioneer’s slightly higher price pays for 33% more cargo capacity, technology like disc brakes instead of drums, and nearly double the suspension travel. And both Pioneers shift via an automatic transmission, not a CVT.

The Pioneer 520 makes a case for itself as a light, durable runabout with just enough muscle to get out of its own way, plus the ability to haul the equivalent of 10 bags of concrete mix in its dump bed. Even so, the $10,499 MSRP seems like a pricey Honda premium when a 2025 Can-Am Defender with three times the 520′s capability is only $2,500 more.

None.

2025 Honda Pioneer 500 MSRP: $8,999

2025 Honda Pioneer 520 MSRP: $10,499

These prices don’t include a $885 destination charge or any taxes and dealer fees. TrueTimber Atera Camo for the 520 costs $600.

Paint is the only option for either rig, so we’d have the Pioneer 520 for its proper dump bed and marginally higher horsepower.

Both rigs use the same fuel-injected, single-cylinder, four-stroke engine in different displacements. The Pioneer 500 gets a 475cc variant, the Pioneer 520 expands the bore to 518cc. Both shift through a five-speed true automatic transmission with a manual mode via paddle shifters.

Drive modes are 2WD and 4WD.

Independent double wishbones hold the body aloft at all corners. Gas-charged coilovers provide just under six inches of travel front and back, the rear shocks with adjustable preload.

The hydraulic system works on two 200mm rotors on the front axle with dual-piston calipers, and a single 170mm rotor in back with a one-piston caliper.

The seats are padded, there are two cupholders in the dash. You want more, visit Honda Accessories.

Honda rates the 500 and 520 to carry 450 pounds behind the seats. They’re both also rated to pull 1,000 pounds with the help of a 1-1/4-inch receiver that accepts a drawbar—and yes, you have to buy that drawbar separately. The 520 makes hauling and unloading anything not wider than the rig itself a vastly simpler proposition because of its dump bed.

A small multifunction display in the center of the dash shows a speedometer, tachometer, odometer, trip- and hourmeters, fuel, gear position, clock, 4x4 indicator, and diagnostic warnings.

Two halogen headlights combine to emit a feeble 75 watts. Taillights are LED units.

Honda recommends a break-in period of 15 miles, then an initial service at 100 miles or 20 hours, whichever comes first. Regular maintenance should happen every 100 hours or 600 miles thereafter.

Honda backs every Pioneer with a one-year transferable limited warranty, but buyers can extend coverage with a HondaCare Protection Plan.

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