1999 Polaris XC Starting in the SUPER cold.

[LakeTahoe]

Ok, so I was up on Upper Red Last winter when it was seriously -30 below.

My brother has an 600 XC with a primer on it and his fired right up. I had to warm mine up with a sunflower for 30 minutes to get the block warmed THEN it started perfect... My question is, would adding a primer on my sled help with starting in COOOOLLLLDDD weather? If so are they easy to install?

Thanks all,

LT

[LakeTahoe]

Anyone have ANY thoughts? I am dumb when it comes to this stuff.

[Black_Bay]

Running synthetic oil will help. Some of the regular oils get really gooy at low temps. Another thing I know guys have done is add an engine block heater. My uncle did that on his 800 Polaris and it helped quite a bit. When all else fails a shot of magic start usually works.

[ccarlson]

Yes, adding the primer will solve your problem. I have a 98 xc 700 that had the primer added to it for the same reason. Now you prime 3 pumps, use full choke and it WILL start on the first pull.

Polaris added the primer as a standard I believe on these sleds a year or two later or maybe they were putting them on for guys under warranty that were having problems starting like you are. It was one of those two scenerios anyway and it does solve the problem.

(Don't use starting fluid!)

ccarlson

[MikeYager - Suzuki]

Above post correct. One thing that can help once your there and running is to choke it out at end of day. This will help start the next morning. Probably for the same reason priming does. Otherwise, I have never had a primer and have a couple of big block XC's. They are a bear but have always started. One old trick in a pinch is to pull the plugs and add a tiny bit of fuel. This will usually result in instant fire for a bit and hopefully enough to get things going.

[hanson]

Even when SUPER cold, a bigger engine sled with twin carbs should start no problem.

Obviously, what you need to get a sled to start is fuel in the combustion chamber. Thats it. To keep it running, you need a continuous supply of fuel. Sorry for making that obvious but its that simple.

Spark + Fuel Mixture + Compression = Running Sled.

If I were to guess on some possible problems, I would start with your carbs first, look at the fuel pump second, and than as a last resort checking compression.

If your carbs are dirty or haven't been thoroughly cleaned within a years period, I would guess that is the problem. Dirty carbs will lead to hard starting.

Assuming the sled runs fine once its going, take a look at the carbs.

Without getting into to many "what ifs", I would say to clean those carbs. I know some sleds are pickier than others but if you apply full choke, you should have a sled that turns over in 5-7 good pulls. My 91 EXT 550 starts in 4 pulls when it is 20 below. It'll usually kill, apply the choke again, and its good to go after running on half choke for a half a minute. The sled seriously starts better when it is colder out! I also know my maintenance schedule on my carburetors as well.

A primer will most definitely help, as its injecting fuel past the carbs into the intake ports. I wouldn't hesitate to install one if you wish but don't ignore a possible dirty carb situation if you have one and install a primer as a band-aid solution.

[NAMASafetyDirector]

Tahoe, this is not an uncommon deal with the 99's. They all started hard in the cold. It was strictly a carb calibration deal. You can do a few things...get yourself a primer and that should help your cold start issue or you can talk to your local dealer mechanic and get the carb specs for the 00' 01'model years and update to the newer carb. spec. (they fixed the calibration after 99') or you can really do yourself a favor and find some 40mm mikuni flat slid carbs from the 03' 700 and stick those on! (Easier throttle pull and better throttle response). Depends if you enjoy tuning a little. The quick fix would be to add the primer!