JACKAL
Ancient Honda fanboi
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Mind you nothing will dissuade someone who desires new paint, if that's the case I definitely would not go Polaris route, yes they have great marketing, and tick all the boxes to SELL machines, but many tens of thousands regret the true cost of ownership and down time of repairs and maintenance after the sale.
From your use description, sounds like you bought the right machine but like several of us didn't choose the correct accessories to give the best experience. I will try to address your primary disappointments as an early adopter of the 2016 Pioneer 1000-5 as well. Many of us have learned a lot since the P1k rolled out 5 years ago.
Heat- Nothing like the OG P1k with a roof and full fixed windshield coupled with a mid panel to trap in the heat at slow to moderate speeds. Honda addressed part of the issue in later part of 2017 with a rubber barrier and padding during production, many of us came up with our own solutions using firewall insulation material that is inexpensive and very effective especially if used in conjunction with a 4" bilge fan mounted under the seat blowing back onto exhaust headers. Both these fixes can be done for about $50 and two hours of your time. However the single biggest improvement in heat reduction is a SuperATV Flip up hardcoat windshield, it allows plenty of fresh air in nice weather keeping you cool and dust free, but can be closed for comfort in wet and cold weather. These cost about $450 and about 2 hours of your time to install and adjust for correct fit. The results of the above alone solve the heat & dust issues almost completely. Here is some pictures of my 2016 heat barrier being installed that works great. Note the white bilge fan mounted in first photo on seat crossmember before any barrier is installed. The silver material is 2000 degrees rated automotive firewall insulation cost about $25.
Storage- Honda offers a few OEM accessories albeit expensive for what they are that do actually work very well in adding in cab storage for small items. They come standard on the LE model P1k as does the Fox QS3 shocks I will address next. There is a storage area under drivers seat that can be added very quickly for items you don't need immediate access to. There is an under dash tray with netting that goes all the way across that is very convenient and I use constantly for gloves, phone, wallet, keys, etc. Also adding the in door cup holders is useful. As already mentioned there are a few DIY in door storage tricks for the back doors that offer considerable quick access storage, very ingenious actually, not a simple add on but worth the effort to employ.
Ride- On the LE models they come with FOX QS3 adjustable shocks that offer a noticeably improved ride, they fit all P1K models and can be swapped out in an hour. They would cost between $1400-$1600 for all 4 depending upon where you get them. Definitely worth the money and time invested. I'm going on nearly 7,000 miles on mine they work great.
Rear seat comfort- this is a simple $40 fix. KOLPIN sells a Rak Pad made for ATV rear racks as a seat. It is over 3" thick attaches with sewn on velcro straps in 2 minutes. This makes a world of difference in adult comfort for medium to longer rides.
So you can address these issues with your current machine for about $3000 dollars and a day or two work or you can buy your way into them by upgrading to the Honda Pioneer 1000 LE model that already has everything but a flip up windshield and rear door storage.
You mentioned full skids, if you don't have any and ride in rocky or rutted terrain you cannot go wrong with Factory UTV ultimate UHMW skid set.
If you have decided you are done with Honda, I would have to seriously consider the Yamaha RMAX 1000 as an alternative machine, but I personally would never go to a CVT machine.
Hope some of this information helps and good luck with what you decide to do.
