Another Polaris problem!

[Hitman54]

Any advise would be appreciated. I have always been a "Honda guy". After listening to people on this board talk about "all machines have there problems". And being told by Roofer to be "more open minded". I broke down and bought my kids a used 2002 Polaris 90 last fall. (Sept.) Well needless to say that Polaris lasted until late Oct. and the engine puked out! Well, I thought about it and figured that it was a used machine and I really didn't know how much abuse it had suffered prior to my ownership so I didn't "blame the brand."

The dealer where I took it into to look at it said he would give me $250 for it if I bought a new one he had in stock. Soooooo, I shelled out about $1,500 bucks and went home with a new 07 Polaris preadator 90cc. It ran fine for my kids for the month that they were able to use it and we cleaned it up good and put it in the back of the garage for winter. Well guess what? I tried to get it running for them this weekend and what do you think happens? I get it running and ideling fine, but the belt will not engage in either forward or reverse. It just sits there and blows 2cycle smoke!

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Should have shelled out the extra $$ and bought a Honda like I have with every other wheeler or motorcycle I have owned!

[Bjjams]

I wouldn't jump to conclusions until you figure out exactly why it isn't running right. Is the engine reving up fine just not engaging the wheels? Did you use fresh gas when you fired it up? Did the carb have leftover gas in it from last year? Are you able to put it on a lift to see if the wheels will spin? If you don't follow the right procedure for winter storage you'll have issues come spring wether it's a honda or popo or any other brand out there.

[rundrave]

 Originally Posted By: Hitman54

I get it running and ideling fine, but the belt will not engage in either forward or reverse. It just sits there and blows 2cycle smoke!

I thought the 2007 Polaris 90's were 4-strokes?

I dont beleive they made an 07 Predator 90, I thought it was the Outlaw 90?

They made a 50cc pred but that is also 4-stroke.

[Dave S]

Have you taken it apart to see what the cause might be?

If it was stored in the back of the garage for the winter as you mentioned, there is a good chance some mice might have gotten in there and either filled the clutch casing full of food/bedding or chewed the belt apart.

I was going to pull the grill out a couple weeks back to cook up some brats. I lit the grill and let it heat up. I went out a couple times to turn them. Man I was getting hungry. I couldn't hardly wait. When I went out to take them off the grill, I noticed something seemed a little strange. Upon furhter inspection, there was a pile of mouse poison in the corner of the grill. Half of it was cooked to ash and the rest was still the natural green pellets.

In the garbage they went. All 5 of them.

But I would look further into the problem if it ran fine prior to storing the machine and now the clutch doesn't engage. Strange things can happen during winter storage with mice being a big part of the problem.

[Hitman54]

Here is my situation. I have a large 3 stall, heated garage. One stall had three 4 wheelers in it and 1 dirt bike. All of them were stored the same way. Staybil in the tanks cleaned and lubed prior to storage. All 3 Hondas are fine. The Popo is the only one with a problem. I do have a correction to the first post. It is an '06 90cc popo predator 2 cycle. Not an 07, but bought new in OCT. of 07. I can take it apart and tinker with it. That is not the issue for me. My issue is when I spend my hard earned money for something new and it only has maybe 20 hours on it, I shouldn't have to! It is going back to the dealer this afternoon and they can deal with it.

[jltimm]

I feel for ya man! It gets under a guys skin when this type of thing happens. I still can't get over my expierience with popo's!

[Roofer]

Ok, so you blame it on the machine because it has a belt and mice got into it after you store it for months without starting it? Was the machine even broke in? If you don't want it, I'll give you the $250 for it and my nephew will blow by your kids on the Honda.

I know, I'm jumping to conclusions about the mice, but there has to be more to the story than you are telling us.

Sorry for getting so defensive, but you mentioned me and I don't see a reasonable explanation yet for your claim about 'Polaris' problems.

[Hooked On a Feeling]

Roofer, I agree this post is very fishy. First off, why wouldn't a guy just bring it back to the dealer for warranty work, afterall it is a new machine right. And why would a "honda guy" who had a previous problem with his last Polaris buy another one!

I've had 2 Polaris' with no problems. I'm sorry, but the post seems very odd. Not trying to offend anyone, just my opinion.

[Dave S]

Let's keep the tone in check here fella's. There's no need to heat it up more than it already is.

We need to give all sides the benefit of the doubt. Is it or was it mice that shredded the belt? We don't know until Hitman takes the machine in. I know I have found mouse nests in the airbox of past machines. We all know they can get almost anywhere. I tossed out the mouse idea only as a possibility.

I think Hitman posted Roofers name because he was willing to take someone's advice trusting their knowledge with other brands, not that he was intending to point blame to anyone.

Whatever the outcome here, it's never fun when our machines unexpectedly break down. It can and does happen to everyone.

I wish you the best of luck Hitman on whatever the issue is and hope the dealer will make this right for you.

Keep us posted on your findings.

[Roofer]

I'm interested in the outcome here. I doubt it was a Polaris problem.

For the record, I drive a Kawasaki, not a Polaris. I just don't like seeing problems that could possibly be avoided blamed on a specific brand.

I bought a brand new Polaris sportsman 500 for my wife last fall. It has 60 miles on it. I went to start it (in a heated garage at 45 degrees round the clock), and it did not start at first. Reason was, it sat just too long. I didn't blame it on Polaris or the dealer or whatever, It was my fault it sat there for so long. Now that I start it up weekly and ride it, it starts just fine. Not sure exactly what the problem was, but time will tell. With what I know right now, it was my fault.

Just saying that it won't start or won't drive doesn't mean a thing. What was the problem? What fixed it? Is it a problem we should know about? This is what we are after. For all we know right now, the hand brake could be locked in the parking position. J/K Hitman

I hope that you get your problem resolved whatever it is, and please report back.

[Dave S]

Thanks for the post Roofer.

That is what these forums are for. Helping out other riders and providing constructive information to all riders without bashing.

We all get frustrated from time to time with our machines. There's a lot of experience in the ATV forums here that someone is sure to have the ability to help us out.

[NAMASafetyDirector]

Hitman, if I had to guess, I would say that the mice prolly did you a favor and got into to the clutch cover and filled it up with something (corn, bedding, dog food, acorns etc) nothing you did wrong and probably nothing to do with whether or not its a Polaris or not, just one of those things. Please don't form a bad opinion about Polaris till you fiquire out exactly went wrong. I have owned about 10 Polaris's so far and have had only minimal problems if any with the lot of them, sleds and wheelers alike. Good luck and I hope you find a simple explanation to the problem with your little wheeler! Keep us posted.... NAMA

[aczr2k]

Those little machines really aren't Polaris, aren't they korean/chinese made with Polaris styled plastics and decals? Either way they should stand behind it.

[Dave]

Polaris youth machines may still be manufactured by ETON.

[Dave S]

the majority of the youth machines are made by manufacturers other than the name on the side such as ETON as Dave mentioned. I think many come from Taiwan.

I had a dealer tell me that Yamaha was the only one who makes their own youth models. Not 100% sure this is accurate though.

Some of the 250 models are built by "low cost" manufacturers like the Can Am DS 250 and the Arctic Cat DVX 250. They might actually be the same machine, just different plastic. The Polaris Phoenix is another one.

There's more, but I'm too tired after being up for the last 18 hours to get the details.

[Hitman54]

Roofer,

I sure didn't mean to offend you. I mentioned your name because you seem to freely share advice on this forum. When I wrote my original post I was very frustrated. As I said, no matter what machine I would have owned I would be upset if something only 5 months off of the showroom floor didn't work properly. I did take it in to the dealer on Wed. after work and hopefully I will here something today or tomorrow from them. I will report there findings when they get it fixed.

[spearchucker]

My guess is that the carb is clogged. You have to remember that these little machine have very small jets and it takes a lot less to plug up than a full sized machine. Make sure that the fuel used to store a machine doesn't have ethanol in it. Even Stabil or Seafoam doesn't prevent this from going bad. It will absorb water and turn to [PoorWordUsage] in a hurry.

[Roofer]

Sorry if I came off snappy toward you Hitman54. I hope you find the problem. I just get tired of the bashing with no facts to back anything up on here.

[NAMASafetyDirector]

AMEN Roofer!

[Hitman54]

Well here are the facts as I know them as of now. Just got off the phone with the dealer and they had to order a "switch" that is contained in the throttle body??? Don't ask me? I am not a Polaris mechanic. They are not sure if this is the only problem or not. They did take the belt cover off and their were no mice problems. Apparently this "switch" would not allow the machine to rev up enough to cause the belt to engage. I just hope it is all covered by the warranty!!!

[Dave S]

Thanks for the update Hitman45. Hopefully they make it right for you. Are they going to cover this under warranty since there are so few hours on the machine?

[Hitman54]

The machine is fixed. It was a switch in the throttle. It was all covered by the warranty so the only thing out of my pocket was the time to get it over there and back.

[Dave S]

Good deal. I bet the kids are happy.

[Roofer]

I'm glad it was something simple and they took care of it for you.

[walleyeaddict]

Now she'll run for 10 years on oil changes alone!