Lets make on thing clear here and that is that Polaris and the dealer is in full support mode. I keep reading about Polaris or the dealer not giving 100% and that is not the fact, Polaris is sending tech guys to the some dealer ships to make sure that every issue is getting worked out. I also would like Err to chime in on how quick the response has been to try and fix the problem. Yes there was a hidden problem that has been found and the dealership and Polaris has replaced every part that has showed that is was failing. I hate to read that Polaris or a couple of there top dealer are not trying to fix a issue. I got my fingers crossed that your sled runs great and you finish the season on a high note.
I want to be careful here because the last thing I want is some sort of e-brawl over how we got to this situation. But let me weigh in on a couple points.
- The dealer helping me with this issue is doing a great job. They are a bunch of stand-up guys that have been working hard to keep me on the snow. I've deliberately kept their name out of this discussion because I wouldn't want blame to fall in their lap or be associated in any way with this debacle. I appreciate all of their efforts very much.
- Engineers have been onsite from Polaris and did spend a considerable amount of time riding my sled. I personally met a couple of them. Another industry expert at my dealership also gave considerable time. At "some" levels within Polaris and at all levels of my dealership there has been excellent engagement.
- The problem here is that it took 2 months, 300 miles, 7 trips to the shop worth of failures plus an internet rant to get the right people to step up and just start replacing parts. The fact that they found the needle in the haystack in the bottom of the 9th clouds the issue. I do give huge props to the tech and management structure who finally sat down and figured out this tricky issue. But the fact remains, I was drug through the mud for months leading up to this. How many times can you jump out of bed early on a Saturday morning, load up for an epic day of riding and spend an hour or more driving to the trail head only to have to limp your brand new sled back to the truck? Or not even get out of the parking lot...
- The how and why this all happened has been made very clear to me now. I had an electronics issue. For Polaris to warranty an issue of this nature, they want a root cause. Their mechanism for identifying root cause rests heavily on engine codes collected by the ECU. When the diagnostic computer is unable to accurately identify the failure through the codes it collects, well, you get stuck. Polaris' current business practice is prohibiting tearing into the sled and simply replacing "possible" problem parts. In lieu of replacing major components I've been enduring a "wiggle this wire and send him back out" approach. I'd agree that this makes some sense for the first trip or two to the shop. But, LONG before 2 months, 300 miles, 7 failures, etc, etc someone at Polaris should have stepped up and just replaced all relevant and potential failed components. That is what is happening now. Complete wiring harness, injectors, ECM, TPS, etc...
- I want to reiterate 1 more time that I don't fault the individuals in the trenches working hard to get me back on the snow. Some of the people involved have really put forth an outstanding effort. What we have here is simply a breakdown in the system. Bad policy and certain levels of support at Polaris that were not engaged enough to make sure things like this didn't happen. Hopefully my sled runs great after this and Polaris takes this opportunity to fix its support process.
Again, thanks to everyone involved who is helping me get through this.
