• Don't miss out on all the fun! Register on our forums to post and have added features! Membership levels include a FREE membership tier.

My Polaris Ownership Experience

assault66

Member
Lifetime Membership
Apr 30, 2009
46
5
8
34
my sled had similar symptoms to yours. i tried a number of different things and soon as i changed my injectors it has run flawlessly for 800 miles now.
 
P
Dec 7, 2007
456
331
63
49
Mill Creek, WA
First of all, major props to Err, for the eloquent, and articulate manner in which he outlined his experience. While I would imagine there is lots of negative emotions involved, I for one, believe he has done a marvelous job of keeping emotion out of this thread, and stuck strictly with documented facts. That can be hard to do, when you're all worked up about this kind of experience. I would hope I have the stones to conduct myself in this manner if I am ever in a similar situation.

My life has been turned upside-down, and I have two sleds in good shape, that could likely be sold and the results cover almost all of a new PRO. So, I'm thinking about it. And, I trust my dealer implicitly. I'm just not sure if I want to trust a first year sled from Polaris quite yet. So, I was interested to see what this thread had in it, and where it goes.

Thanks, Err, for sharing your story, and for doing it with class.

PE
 
E

Err

Well-known member
May 19, 2009
90
61
18
Thanks PE

The sled is back in my hands with a new harness and new injectors. 3 wires rubbed bare were identified in my old main harness and my symptoms were reproducible when rubbing them together. Looks like a smoking gun. Once again the staff at my dealer was kick @ss. Parts arrived just this morning and they managed to install them and the sled back to me in the same day. I'm all set to ride this weekend. Fingers crossed.
 
D

Daniel Boondocker

Well-known member
Dec 1, 2007
233
54
28
Idaho Falls
Many of us are anxious to hear how your ride went. Hope it was a great day. Snow in Island Park was ridiculous today. Only the skiers could claim the best snow on earth in Utah. :face-icon-small-win Ok next to Alaska anyway.
 
Last edited:

AKSNOWRIDER

Well-known member
Lifetime Membership
Dec 25, 2007
8,882
4,431
113
62
anchorage
First of all, major props to Err, for the eloquent, and articulate manner in which he outlined his experience. While I would imagine there is lots of negative emotions involved, I for one, believe he has done a marvelous job of keeping emotion out of this thread, and stuck strictly with documented facts. That can be hard to do, when you're all worked up about this kind of experience. I would hope I have the stones to conduct myself in this manner if I am ever in a similar situation.

My life has been turned upside-down, and I have two sleds in good shape, that could likely be sold and the results cover almost all of a new PRO. So, I'm thinking about it. And, I trust my dealer implicitly. I'm just not sure if I want to trust a first year sled from Polaris quite yet. So, I was interested to see what this thread had in it, and where it goes.

Thanks, Err, for sharing your story, and for doing it with class.

PE
Polar, go ride one..you wont be disappointed for sure...not even close to the dragons ......
 
A

aebsledder

Well-known member
Jan 16, 2008
1,512
858
113
Gallatin Valley
Wow

I am impressed with Err's patience and dilligence in dealing with his issues. I have had problems with a few of my sleds, and I can definitely sympathize with his pain. I think it is easy for people who have sleds that run well all the time to underestimate how truly frustrating it can be when your sled doesn't run. I think the true acid test is going to be what Polaris (or his dealership) does for him in the future. It is not like he bought a toaster or blender that doesn't work. I will play the devils advocate for a second and look at Polaris's side of the coin. I am sure they account for a few bad sleds off the line, it is probably inevitable given their production numbers. But, now that they clearly know about the problems he has gone through, it is time for Polaris to step up. How about an extra year or two of warranty? Or a waived sno-check fee on a future sled? I understand what's done is done, but righting a wrong that your company is responsible for should be the standard not for only sled manufacturers but for companies in general.
 
R
Mar 2, 2008
286
73
28
Kindred, ND
Polar, go ride one..you wont be disappointed for sure...not even close to the dragons ......

I read these posts too to try to find the good and bad in the sleds thanks to guys like Err for putting up posts like this with out emotion and brand bias.. all that being said and reading his posts I still am not afraid to snowcheck one, which is what I am going to do. Dad has a 2011 RMK 800 and I have put about 200 miles on it so far ZERO issues..like stated before you hear more horror stories than good stories about them.. If anyone is on the fence about getting a new poo after reading this don't be.
 
R

R44guy

Well-known member
Oct 8, 2008
676
360
63
MN
www.mnhelicopters.com
I have had plenty of expierence with lemon law buy backs on cars and arbitration on GM & Ford vehicles.

All of these corporate giants including Polaris have dealer agreements and the dealers are the only way the corporation has any customer contact or relationships.

What is frustrating is even when you have a problem like this your dealer is obviously aware of it and involved & they are obviously working with one of the dealer reps in regards to whatever the situation may be.

So when we call Polaris and they finally communicate with us and you advise there customer service agent of your complaint or concern and all they can do is record all of your issues and they can not make any promises other then to point you to the closest dealer, but then they pass on your information & concerns to the local or selling dealer who is suppose to contact the customer regarding the concerns.

So other then Polaris using their customer service line to pass the info back to the dealer for the dealer to handle the issues. I just wanted to share how the basic system works and why it is not really productive for the end user or the consumer. This is why the corporate giants have dealer contracts and agreements.
 
E

Err

Well-known member
May 19, 2009
90
61
18
Didn't get to ride today. People in from out of town and we were snowboarding. Deep deep deep, good day. Tomorrow we're sledding all day, I'll be sure to post up a report tomorrow night.
 

Cardiac Kid

Well-known member
Lifetime Membership
Nov 12, 2001
298
55
28
ERR

Ypu need to get rid of that sled. I did a similar thing and just wanted it fix for 3 yrs and hated it for three yrs. Do what ever it takes to get an agreement that it is fixed by ____ or replaced or refunded. I don't what to see anyone go though what you are going though and it may just never be right for what ever reason. Good luck.
 

mountainhorse

Well-known member
Lifetime Membership
Premium Member
Dec 12, 2005
18,606
11,814
113
West Coast
www.laketahoeconcours.com
It is great that they actually found the wiring gremlin which can be super difficult to find at times. It is nice to find something wrong rather than "hoping" you got it when you tweaked something or replaced something... Just replacing the harness would not have you knowing if it really was or was not the issue... Peace of mind is awesome.

Can you take a photo of the area of the harness and/or describe what wires and in what location those were bare and shorting?

It might help others keep an eye out for the same problem if it arises.

Working with a good dealer and being persistent can pay off sometimes

Having this kind of problem is bad for all involved... Owner, Dealer and Polaris.

Crossing my fingers for you... give us a heads up tomorrow night.. When they are running right... Hard to beat the experience of riding the new RMK.
 
M

Milton900

Member
May 30, 2008
56
5
8
Were in the harness have the wires rubbed through? do they go to the tps? Glad they found the bad wires, wiring problems are so hard to diagnose because of the iconsistancy's.
 
E

Err

Well-known member
May 19, 2009
90
61
18
50 miles and a tank of gas, no issues. Ran it hard today, the pow was deep, lots of full throttle. Threw in a healthy dose of whooped out trails to see if I could rattle it into breaking. She never skipped a beat today. :rockon:


The three wires that had rubbed through were in the middle of a bundle of many. Maybe 10? I should have gotten a photo of the exact spot, sorry.
 
L

lognomore

Well-known member
Oct 25, 2008
131
45
28
Red Bluff, Ca.
So glad that the problem was found. As others have said wiring issues are very hard to find. I had a bog at midrange that will happen just once during a ride and then disappear for the rest of the day. Disconnected the TPS plug and put in some dielectric grease in it, only it got worse instead of better. Had it running, pushed, pulled, and twisted all the wires. Nothing is changing. Went ahead and cleaned the plug to the TPS. Will ride it next weekend and see what happens. If it still acts up, I'll take it the dealer and see if it giving any codes. The check engine hasn't been coming on so not sure what is going on.


Again, I'm glad you finally got your sled running good!!!:face-icon-small-coo
 
E

Err

Well-known member
May 19, 2009
90
61
18
Ride #2, still no more issues. Looking more and more like it was that wiring harness all along.
 

Mag

Well-known member
Lifetime Membership
Nov 26, 2007
11,111
1,795
113
54
Fairbanks Ak
Polar, go ride one..you wont be disappointed for sure...not even close to the dragons ......

No way, no how will I fork out money to a company that assembles sleds out of their own spec. Yes they ride good, yes I'm brand loyal but I won't buy another new poo.
 

trevormezz

Well-known member
Lifetime Membership
Feb 8, 2010
72
48
18
Elk Grove CA
Tell your dealer you will buy the injectors if he will put them! cost is 76 bucks! I had one do something real similar too yours so see if they will go for it! If not I'll sell them to you for cost! Pm me
#2
U got a coupon when you bought your sled that said Polaris will give you 1000 dollars on top of whatever your dealer will give u towards trade in value! So dealer gives you 10000 Polaris will give u 1000 more! Get a great deal on a 12 snowcheck from that dealer for all of your troubles! Ride a brand new one next yr with another 4 year warranty and all the bugs worked out. And keep riding the best sled on the market!
Don't waste money on a lawyer or any more time! You can't give it back and get your money back! PowerSports dealers are not ran or governed by automobile laws! So no lemons! No buybacks it's yours
 
Premium Features