Why won't my Cat idle?

[Smokey]

2006 Arctic Cat 400LE automatic, it has a carb with the automatic choke. The machine has about 90 miles on it, yes 90.

Seems to start OK, and will idle OK for about 30 seconds or so, and then cuts out. I can re-start it, but it will continue to cut out every 5-10 seconds until it gets Very Warmed Up, then it seems to idle better, although it will never last more than about a minute or two before it dies. At driving speeds it seems fine, this summer I learned to drive it a couple of miles before putting it to work (short trips pulling a trailer) and it seemed to idle better, but now with the cooler weather that trick doesn't seem to work as well.

To the best of my knowledge, this machine has had this problem from day one, although I drove it so little then that it was hard to tell.

I have always used Stabil or Seafoam in the gas because I knew that I wasn't going to be driving it much. This weekend I tried draining the carb float in case there was condensation in it and also pulled the plug and cleaned it, no difference in symptoms. The plug looked like it might be running a little rich, black and a little wet on the end.

I could just take it to the dealer, but that's a hassle since the wheeler, dealer, and I all reside at different locations. Plus I am somewhat cheap. So I am putting this out here to see if anyone has any ideas, I am suspecting that the automatic choke is not working correctly?

I have heard stories that "Arctic Cats" are in fact "Fairly Warm Cats", and I am OK with starting it up and letting it idle to warm up for 5-10 minutes before plowing snow. The problem is that it won't. I must baby sit the thing with one thumb on the throttle and the other on the starter button.

The only piece of advice I don't need is "sell it and buy a ___", because this was my once in a lifetime ATV purchase.

[cold one sd]

Mine is a bit cold blooded also, but not nearly as much as yours seems to be. When I start it when it is cold I usually take the adjustment barrel on the throttle cable next to the throttle and turn it until it adles fairly fast for a few minutes. It warms up faster this way and when I'm ready to use it I turn the adjustment back to where it was so it will idle down. In the summer I turn the key on for a couple minutes before I start it because it turns the electric choke off and will start and idle better. The only time I have any problem with mine idling after I start it is when it has been sitting for a couple of months. It always starts in the winter months although if it has been sitting for quite a while I do need to prime it at the carburetor. If it has been run recently it will start right up in winter. There is also an idle adjustment on the carburetor that will adjust your idle up if it is idling too slow which is what your problem sounds like to me

[Ryan_V]

Nothing wrong with a cat!!! I have one and love it!! my only suggestion would be to take out the automatic choke and install a manual one... Mine is fuel injected, but when I did have a carb one (was a yammy) it was also cold blooded and had to choke it for several minutes to keep it running.

[Fredd]

I've got a '04 with auto choke and mine fires right up and stays running. I had to actually turn my idle down because it would idle too high until warmed up to allow me to engage the tranny. I would question the lack of use on yours if you only have 90 miles, but it sounds like you took all the right precautions. I would adjust the idle control (black knob under the right hand side on my '04) and see if that does the trick for you. I love my cat and I think you will when you get this figured out. For giggles last year I pull started my 500 when it was -15 and she fired right up on the second pull w/o me needing to hit the aux primer or me having to play with the throttle.

[Fredd]

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[TheBender]

You have a plugged pilot jet in your carb. I too have an AC 2006 400 and have experienced this same problem over and over again.

The only solution to the problem is to take the carb apart and clean it. I have my dealer do it for me since I don't know how myself. The pilot jet is a very small jet located high up in the carb. If you don't run the engine very often,the gas level in the carb drops to the level of the pilot jet and gums it up. When your automatic choke shuts down as the engine warms, not enough gas gets through to keep it idling. The reason it idles better when the engine is really warmed up (from driving a few miles) is because the engine needs less gas when warm to idle properly.

Using seafoam, stabil or turning the idle up will not help at this point. Using stabil will help prevent the problem from returning after you get it fixed. Running the engine frequently and keeping fresh gas in the tank also helps. Another thing I had my dealer do is install an in-line fuel filter to keep crud from the gas tank from getting into the carb.

It doesn't help that Cat puts such a large gas tank on these machines. If you fill it up and don't use it much, the gas in the tank gets old and that also gums up the carb.

Good luck getting it fixed and I hope this helps...

[Smokey]

Thanks for all of the replies, it sounds like a gunked up carb is my problem. I have disassembled and cleaned a couple of lawn mower carbs, but nothing on a piece of equipment this expensive. I will try cleaning the carb first, then if I wreck it, I can still take it in to the dealer.

[CaptainMusky]

Thanks for all of the replies, it sounds like a gunked up carb is my problem. I have disassembled and cleaned a couple of lawn mower carbs, but nothing on a piece of equipment this expensive. I will try cleaning the carb first, then if I wreck it, I can still take it in to the dealer.

Smokey, if you have done lawnmowers, you are a seasoned vet. LOL

It really isnt a whole lot different, just pay attention how it comes apart and lay all the parts on a rag or something. Even if you can see light through some of the jets and ports, still blow air through there as many times they are partially clogged. I took a carb off an outboard this spring and almost didnt do this and after I did I was amazed to see that it was at least 75% clogged. This too was the pilot jet.

In my experience Seafoam is far superior to Stabil for multiple reasons, it cleans and stabilizes fuel. Stabil will only stabilize the fuel.

So once you get it clean, have put an in-line filter in place, continue to use sea foam. You need to enjoy that thing more! :-)

I try to at least start mine every couple weeks if it has been a while since riding. My dad has 27,000 miles on his Arctic Cat so yes, they can go a long way. His is a 2007 so it doesnt sit idle for long. LOL

Good luck. [NOTE FROM ADMIN: edited. Please read forum policy before posting again. Thank You] There are some neat tricks to get more performance out of you machine that are free. One you could do while you are cleaning the carb. It is called the "Carb Slide Mod". You basically drill out the orifice in the slide in the carb and it increases your throttle response considerably.

[Fredd]

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[CaptainMusky]

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[Smokey]

Well I took the carb off this weekend, took out the 3 jets and the idle mixture screw and blasted them with spray carb cleaner. I did not have my air compressor available this weekend (another story). Everything "looked" clean. I put it all back together, the good news is that it still starts and runs, the bad news is it seems only marginally better.

While I was pulling the carb off of the engine (which is a bigger job than cleaning it IMO) I noticed that a rubber hose that runs from the top of the crankcase to the bottom of the air filter had cracks in it where it connects at each end. I think this is a crankcase breather of some sort? Could the cracked hose be causing some problem at idle?

At this point I'm thinking that the problem may be one of 3 things:

1) I didn't get things perfectly clean due to lack of an air compressor.

2) The cracked up crankcase breather hose is causing problems.

3) Perhaps the idle mixture screw needs to be fiddled with a bit, however, I do not currently have a screwdriver that will fit up in there when the carb is mounted on the engine. If you have one of these machines you will see that the starter is RIGHT beneath that adjustment screw, but if I find the right tool maybe I can angle it in from the cylinder head side.

???

[CaptainMusky]

Smokey, if the breather has cracks in it that could definitely be the problem. Also, to adjust the carburetor, you should be able to tilt it to the side and get access to the adjustment screws while it is idling.

An air compressor definitely helps, even if it looks open, it could still be partially clogged which was an issue when I tore down an outboard this Spring.