97 500 Indy, stored 4 years, questions.

[sptitz]

Paid $100.00, ran when they stored it. Haven't tried to start it yet. So far I've siphoned almost all the gas. Should I just add gas and try it?

The oil tank is 3/4 full, will that be ok?

The book says to drain sediment , pull the plug on the hose's that come out the bottom of the carbs. I see hoses come out the bottom of carbs but can't see where they go, some where under the engine. Should I worry about that?

Appreciate any help!

[Scott Stein]

I'd take it somewhere or service the carbs yourself. The hoses that come from the bottom of the carbs are just breathers and dont do anything unless your float sticks then the gas will run out of them. It will probably run but probably not at its best. I'd at least clean the carbs and you should be good. Take the air box off,then loosen the band that holds the carb to the motor,and take one carb off at a time. Then take the bowl off the bottom and pull all the jets out one at a time and clean them with some carb cleaner. Do this to each one and run some sea-foam through the first tank of fresh gas and you should be set.

[BoxMN]

I did exactly what Scott mentioned to an 88 indy 400 that hadn't been run in a long time. It made a world of difference from the "preclean" to "postclean" running and idling and just the sound of it. The jets were so filled up before the cleaning they didn't even look the same after.

Use some wire ir a jet cleaner to make sure the jets get the gunk out of the hole as well. My neighbor has a actual jet file/cleaner set, so that was real helpful, but wire would work too.

Now the thing is starting on third or fourth pull in -15 weather, or second pull when warmer. Amazing how these things will just keep on running

[sptitz]

Thanks Guys! I'm going clean the carbs tonight.

[swedishpimple]

If the original needle and seats are in those carbs they will need to be replaced. Many Polaris sleds from about 1995 to 1999 had terrible carbs. I think they are lucky they did not get into a large law suit over it.

If the sled is parked with the track off the ground the slight incline will allow gas to pass through the seat and "flood" the motor....simple fix is turn the gas off when not in use....until you can reapir them.

[WingDing2]

That 97 500 is a good little trail sled. I would definetly clean the carbs and discard any old fuel. If you are not mechanically inclined you can get the job done professinally for about $125-$140 if you dont need any components replaced. If the motors OK it should run great after the carbs are clean. I'll give ya $200 for her the way she sits!

[sptitz]

The sled had a note on it to turn off the gas so it didn't leak gas out the carbs, so I'm going to get needle/seats and do the carbs this Sat. Thanks swedishpimp.

The oil in the drive chain case is sluge. I'm not so sure I want to attempt taking that apart, I'm sure I could get it apart but not so sure about putting it back together, not much room with the coolant hoses in the way.

[rmk600]

There might be a drain plug on the bottom of the chain case. Look under the sled right below the case. It will be a allen head plug.

[Black_Bay]

There might be a drain plug on the bottom of the chain case. Look under the sled right below the case. It will be a allen head plug.

There is a plug on the chaincase for that sled. I'm not sure if their is an access hole in the belly pan though. If not I'd just drill a 1/2" hole to gain access and a place for oil to drain through.

One thing that I'd be a bit leary about though is you didn't say if the sled was summerized.Not to scare you or anything but if it wasn't fogged I wonder about the condition of the crank bearings. It's possible that they have rusted unless the engine was properly fogged before it was put away. Unfortunately the only way to know is tearing down the motor or finding out after using it. Before you put it away for the summer I'd make sure you do a good job summerizing the sled.

[BoxMN]

Spitz, go and get yourself a new chaincase gasket ($8 about...) and you can do it yourself. If I can, anybody can Then you will know all is new and done and ready to go. That is my advice, anyway. It was easy on my '88 400.

[sptitz]

Thanks everyone for your help! It took me 2 hours to the clean the carbs and replace the needle/seats. Took 12 pulls to fire and another 3 to keep it running. Now it starts with one pull.

I drained the oil and changed the oil filter, making sure it's turned the correct way. It smoked alot when I first started it but now the oil light comes on. I haven't ran it since I saw the oil light on. I'm wondering if I have some air in the oil line. I'm thinking of putting some oil in the gas and letting it run awhile to see if the oil light goes off.

Let me know what you guys think. Thanks again for all your help!

[WingDing2]

I believe that year the oil light and the brake light are the same dummy light on the dash? My 97's are that way...

[rmk600]

The oil light is just a indicator of how much oil is in the oil tank, when you drained the oil the float might have stuck on the bottom. If you are worried about it, it will not hurt it to run some oil with the gas until you know that it is using oil out of the oil tank. More oil might cause plugs to fowl but they are cheaper then a rebuild.

Another quick thought make sure the the oil is full enough for the float to register, the float is set to give you more then enough time to get oil in it. I know some guys that have gone a half a tank of gas with the light on.

[sptitz]

DOH! Thanks RMK, I guess I should of read that manual a little closer. I added some more oil to the tank and just like that, the oil light went out.

[rmk600]

No Problem, Now all we need is snow and you will be ready