"A cvt auto machine with plenty of power doesn't need 5 gears."
IMO this is the factor that makes Honda a step behind with their jerky shift models.
A CVT is always in the right gear. Your wife will like a CVT (you will too).

 

$7000 for a 28hp 475cc seems steep. I would look at the new 48hp 708cc Kodiak as well.

 

New Hondas always seem to be overpriced unless you get a leftover model with less features. I saw a new 2014 manual shift foreman 500 listed at a local dealer's website for $5500, no power steering of course. But yeah, the Kodiak has way more power. If you ride both, there is no way you will want to pick the Honda. Trust me, you'll pick the machine with more power and that will be the Kodiak by a wide margin. But it is controllable power so if you want to putt around slowly it can do that just as easily. I bet your wife will prefer the Kodiak as well. Yamaha's independent rear suspension makes for a nice plush ride. You both will appreciate that after a long ride.

 

For $7000 it has no IRS? Now that sucks.

 

Thanks for everyone's opinions about Honda and other brands/models.

What I want to know is - how much room does a Honda dealer have?

If you can tell me another brand/model will discount "X%", that would be great too! Then I can weigh your other suggestions.

Thanks again.

 

From what I have seen locally, the Honda dealers won't deal much lower than any incentives Honda has publicized unless it is a leftover. A lot depends on the dealer and how they operate though, as there are a few mega dealers in the general area that advertise better prices (although plan on adding dealer prep and delivery, etc.)

The north american brands tend to be more aggressive with incentives and percent off msrp. There are some good reasons to pick Honda over those brands, such as those lower hp Honda engines will go decades between rebuilds provided you keep fresh oil and a clean air filter in them at all times.

 

Dealers and manufacturers keep fairly quiet about the markup the franchise dealer gets. I work for an independent dealer and don't know myself. Car main dealers in the UK used to get about 25%. Like I wrote earlier, if the dealer can sell all they can get hold of at list price, why should they discount?

 

The only way to really know if you're getting a good deal or not is to shop around. Some dealers will be willing to discount more to make sales while some will hold firm on their prices. There is usually some wiggle room. I would estimate usually around $1000 off msrp is common. Much below that and the dealer doesn't make much money off the machine. I have seen advertised prices lower than that but its usually for leftover models from the previous year. Especially if there is a model change and the leftover models aren't selling. Like in 2014 for instance, Polaris released the Sportsman 570. I bet a lot of people got great deals on 2013 Sportsman 500 models as the 570 was a big step up in power. When a better new model is available, the old models don't look so desirable anymore. I bet the same situation might be happening in Yamaha dealers now. With the new 2016 Kodiak and Grizzly models, any leftover 2014 and 2015 Grizzly 550 and 700 models left are probably being discounted to make room for the new models. I would check and see if this is the case, might be able to get a good deal on a new 550 or 700. For instance, I just looked at a local dealer's website and they have listed new 2014 Grizzly 550 models with eps for $6799. They were selling the non-eps 550's for $5999 but it appears they are all gone. Still, not too bad. A few 2015 Grizzly 700 models as well, $7899 for eps or $7399 without eps.

 

Go look at a 2015 Polaris Sportsman ETX or the new 2016 Polaris Sportsman 450. Even the 570 will be a lot cheaper than what you're looking at. Polaris is offering up to $1000 rebates and 2.99% financing. I've seen the 15 ETX for around $4800 out the door.

 

The 570 would be a good choice. I just checked and you can get a $600 rebate on the 570 with eps. The ETX is a bit underpowered, its only 330cc but a claimed 30 hp for that displacement isn't bad. The 570 is 45 hp and costs about $1000 more. That's actually slightly more power than a Grizzly 660 has. The 570 would be the best "bang for the buck", no doubt about that. The Can am outlander 500L and Yamaha Kodiak 700 will both be noticeably more expensive, as well as any Honda Foreman or Rubicon models.