first polaris i've owned.... lots of questions!

[Mountain Home]

1997 polaris scrambler 400 4x4 w/ counter balance
sorry so many questions, but i don't know much about this quad!

1. clutch cover rubs when at idle... took it off and it has almost rubed its way through. when i took it to the dealer he said when they get older they do that sometimes... how can i fix this? tried sticking something between the inner cover and the engine, but it didn't work.

2. if it smokes way too much and feels like it is cutting out at low speeds could it be the spark plug? when i got it full throtle it runs great but still smokes. dealer said it was normal, i think he's full of it!

3. when i'm at a complete stop and then hit the gas it feels like it kinda studers at first then picks up. what could cause this?

4. does clutch kit improve hp? or acceleration? or both?

5. what brand of pipe should i look into to quiet the bike down and gain some hp?

6. hand brake works good, but foot brake don't work at all. maybe a broken cable?

7. should i just get a new wheeler?? :)

thankyou!

[plkmonster2]

This is a two stroke right? Something is wrong with the clutch if it rubbing. I'd torque the center nut down. It could be loose, and coming apart. I'd change the spark plug. What oil ratio are you running? Your pilot could be a tad large. Turn the pilot screw in if it is fuel, but I think it is an air circuit, so turn it out. Number 3 is hard to determine. I seems rich to me. Does it smoke a lot, or none? If it's a manual clutch, a heavy duty clutch keeps the clutch from slipping. No gain in hp or acceleration. In an auto clutch, the stall speed it higher, so acceleration upon take-off is faster. If it is the stock pipe, and you want to quiet it, while gaining power, good luck, unless the baffle was taken out. Look for a better expansion chamber if it is a two stroke. Bleed your rear brakes if they are hydraulic, or tighten, or get a new cable. If you have the money, you could get a new 4 wheeler if you wanted to.

[400exrider707]

Originally posted by Mountain Home
1997 polaris scrambler 400 4x4 w/ counter balance
sorry so many questions, but i don't know much about this quad!

1. clutch cover rubs when at idle... took it off and it has almost rubed its way through. when i took it to the dealer he said when they get older they do that sometimes... how can i fix this? tried sticking something between the inner cover and the engine, but it didn't work.

2. if it smokes way too much and feels like it is cutting out at low speeds could it be the spark plug? when i got it full throtle it runs great but still smokes. dealer said it was normal, i think he's full of it!

3. when i'm at a complete stop and then hit the gas it feels like it kinda studers at first then picks up. what could cause this?

4. does clutch kit improve hp? or acceleration? or both?

5. what brand of pipe should i look into to quiet the bike down and gain some hp?

6. hand brake works good, but foot brake don't work at all. maybe a broken cable?

7. should i just get a new wheeler?? :)

thankyou!

1) Not too sure about that one, try posting a pic so we can see what your talking about.

2)I doubt it's a spark plug problem, but try it cause its cheap fix, if its smoking a lot you could have bad rings and your jetting might need some tuning.

3)Need more info about the machine, did it sit for a while? Try cleaning the filter or replacing it, and clean the carb and all fuel lines.

4)acceleration, a clutch will not yield more horsepower.

5) whats on it now? aftermarket? stock? Aftermarket pipes do two things. Make your bike louder, and give it more power. If you want it quieter then put it back to stock(dont forget to rejet) Your only other option is to look into a quiet aftermarket silencer or one of the more sound friendly ones. (not too sure whats out there for the 400's) Check out hot seat maybe.

6) maybe, take a look at it and find out, could very well just be stretched.

7) Thats for you to decide, and dont let anybody else tell you that you should of bought this or that, buy what you want.

[Mountain Home]

it is oil injected... could something be wrong with the injection?

[400exrider707]

Originally posted by plkmonster2
This is a two stroke right? Something is wrong with the clutch if it rubbing. I'd torque the center nut down. It could be loose, and coming apart. I'd change the spark plug. What oil ratio are you running? Your pilot could be a tad large. Turn the pilot screw in if it is fuel, but I think it is an air circuit, so turn it out. Number 3 is hard to determine. I seems rich to me. Does it smoke a lot, or none? If it's a manual clutch, a heavy duty clutch keeps the clutch from slipping. No gain in hp or acceleration. In an auto clutch, the stall speed it higher, so acceleration upon take-off is faster. If it is the stock pipe, and you want to quiet it, while gaining power, good luck, unless the baffle was taken out. Look for a better expansion chamber if it is a two stroke. Bleed your rear brakes if they are hydraulic, or tighten, or get a new cable. If you have the money, you could get a new 4 wheeler if you wanted to.


2 stroke automatic clutch, and I believe oil injected so thats not the problem.

[bradrenea]

The clutch cover is a fairly common problem. If it is bothering you, change out the motor mounts.

The smoking is normal, its a two stroke. That's what they do. Is the oil injector still hooked up, or are you mixing the gas? Some two stroke oil smokes more than others. If the smoke is bothering you, you might try a different oil.

If you put in an aftermarket clutch it will raise the stall speed, which will help with the stutter off idle. It will essentially raise the engine RPM so that it is farther into the powerband when the clutch engages.

As far as the cutting out at low speeds, its pretty common among two strokes, as long as its just a small amount. It just means that the jetting is not perfect. Check the air filter and make sure that its clean. If it is dirty it will cause a rich condition, wich will make it run poor and smoke more than normal.

The brake is a common problem. I have owned several Polaris ATV's and all of them have done the same thing within a few hours use. The foot brake is meant as an auxillary brake, the hand brake works both front and rear. There is no cable to break, but some have an adjustment on the caliper. If there is no adjustment, you will have to replace the rear brake pads to cure it.

As far as noise, repack your silencer if it is serviceable. If it is not, replace it with an aftermaket one that is serviceable, and repack it on a regular basis. The packing will burn out fairly quickly and the noise level will raise considerably.

Hope that helps. And by the way, sounds like your dealer was shooting you straight, he's not full of it!

[fastlain]

I good resource for the Scrambler models is gen3usa.com. This is a forum specific to the Trailblazer, Scrambler, and sport models of Polaris. The brakes on these are acually seperate. I have a 99 Scrambler 500. The hand brake controls only the front. The rear is a hydraulic brake control by the foot. Some polaris are like one member posted. The foot brake on those is mechanical in the event the hydraulic brake system fails. They do require constant adjustment. The oiling system on the polaris two strokes are also mechanical. The shaft on the oil pump sometimes get a little build up which will cause them not to close completely. In that case at idle it is overoiling causing it to load up. This is what is causing the excessive smoke. A new clutch cover will cure the rubbing. They fatigue over time. A clutch kit is only going to change the counterweighs and spring. It will not do anything to increase HP. You can make the clutch system more efficient with things like a roller secondary and get more of the power you have to the ground. HP increase by doing an airbox mod and getting an exhaust system. If you want to more in depth then you get into porting and head work.

[krt400ex]

Originally posted by Mountain Home
1997 polaris scrambler 400 4x4 w/ counter balance
sorry so many questions, but i don't know much about this quad!

1. clutch cover rubs when at idle... took it off and it has almost rubed its way through. when i took it to the dealer he said when they get older they do that sometimes... how can i fix this? tried sticking something between the inner cover and the engine, but it didn't work.

2. if it smokes way too much and feels like it is cutting out at low speeds could it be the spark plug? when i got it full throtle it runs great but still smokes. dealer said it was normal, i think he's full of it!

3. when i'm at a complete stop and then hit the gas it feels like it kinda studers at first then picks up. what could cause this?

4. does clutch kit improve hp? or acceleration? or both?

5. what brand of pipe should i look into to quiet the bike down and gain some hp?

6. hand brake works good, but foot brake don't work at all. maybe a broken cable?

7. should i just get a new wheeler?? :)

thankyou!


this bike is an automatic, right?

[fastlain]

I miss spoken on the front brake of the Polaris. The hand brake does control all four wheels. The rear caliper on the gen 3 models is acually located on the axle. The foot brake has its own master cylinder to control the rear caliper on it own.

Yes, the Polaris Scrambler ia an automatic transmission. It is different than the utility models in the fact that there is only high range. Some owners have put an Xplorer 400 trans in there Scrammy to give it the low range capability.

[krt400ex]

then it sounds like the pulley system is way out of wack. there is no way that what ur discribing is normal

[PolarisRider]

www.gen3usa.com

If anyone can answer your questions they can. They know therr Polaris's inside and out.