Coolant Loss / Over Heating

[Mowertrash]

Mild trail riding .I am losing coolant .If I am pulling a mower for about 30 min. I start to over heat and lose coolant out of the bottle.Most times the fan is on.I dont see any coolant leaking or dripping.Oil is not looking funky or over filled.Also I dont notice any thing smoking out of the exhaust.4-6 oz. of coolant is lost when just tearing around.A guy up the road from me seems to think it is in the water pump.Where do I begin to pin point before I have to take it in and get ram rodded at the repair shop? 2001 500 RSE ,is there a parts list that I can download to see what I am up against?

[kaw700vforce]

First check the fins of the radiator for mud & dirt build up . That is the first point that most miss.. after that check circulation issues.

Good luck..

[MarGinJoey]

Fan shouldnt be on too often.... Clean radiator per Todd. Good starting point. Also, a few other Polaris' here have had overheating issues, check this section, keep your eyes open for GOTDIRT and MUDSMYNAME for some additonal Polaris advice!

MGJ

[tucktom2]

clean the bike well to see if you can see a leak also check to see if the exsasted has a sweet odder if it does it a head gasket i have a 2004 predator and my fan runs a lot they are on a timer after you shut them down the fan should stay on from 3 to 5 min my buddy also has a predator and his run alot aswell they will run longer than most manufactures

[MarGinJoey]

Whats a sweet odder?





MGJ

[tucktom2]

when antifreeze burns it leaves distict odder best described is sweet

[chmackdriver]

www.haydensoutdoorsports.com - great site for Polaris parts - also Polaris website has online parts manuals - would start with cleaning machine to see if you can find where coolant is going

[20 Fan]

Sweet "odor" ?

[rpyfz450]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (20 Fan @ May 19 2007, 02:13 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

My husband, MGJ, thinks he owns MY 2004 Yamaha Kodiak 450 4x4, forgets it's in my name.[/b]

I think you should get it back from him before he breaks it. Oops, too late!

[Polaris rules]

You must first ensure that the radiator is not clogged. This is a big problem with machines overheating. Even if you think it is not clogged, you should run plenty of water through the radiator at low pressure. If its clogged, you will surely overheat. The radiator does not need to be fully clogged for a machine to overhear either. Flush the fins with plenty of water using a garden hose, but don't use any extreme force spray as this may damage the radiator fins. Also, the waterpump on certain Polaris AtV's have been problematic. I own a 2006 Sportsman 700 and the seal at the waterpump went bad on mine twice. (You may want to run your machine over a piece of cardboard and see if you notice any antifreeze leaks.... you may have to run it for a long period of time where the fan cycles on an off)~do this after you check/clean the radiator.