Twins! 2ea 05 900 159 RMK's - new owners

[RYDPWDR]

410

Just reading this post makes me smile the entire read. My wife and I have been doing this for a long time together and it's a great sport. We are fortunate that our best friends (another husband-wife) also love to ride so we have a great time together. This is a good website but it can become bogged down by negativity and bickering sometimes, so it's awesome to hear the enthusiasm you show for this sport and working on things. Those 900's you have don't have the best reputation or easiest to learn to ride but it sounds like you are getting them worked out, so keep with it. I suggest the snow bungie to help in the stuck department...they really do work. Thanks for a good read.

 

[410Fortune]

we have the handle style snow bungie and have used it many many times already!!
Would love to pick up the hook/hook type as well so pulling with another sled will be possible.

one thing we have learned is how to get a 900 unstuck after it trenches!! That is for sure! Its really easy to get stuck when you are new LOL

Thanks for the encouragment, we really look forward to riding with some more people and finding new areas to play in, but for being brand new we are off to a great start! I think I have put 500 miles on my machine already.
we have been to Rabbit Ears (4 times), Grand Lake (2 times), Georgia Pass (3 times), and now Rampart Range

Colorado RULES
Georgia pass is 70 miles from us, rampart is 38 SWEET!! Come on snow storms!!

The guy (Steve) we bought our 96 from lives in Breckenrige, very nice guy...he was telling us about Spring Creek and I have seen the signs on the way to Steamboat...anyone ride Spring Creek???

 

[RYDPWDR]

Bungie

Get the hook style...they work so good you won't believe it. I keep mine on my rear bumper with a strap and I wrap that around by spare gas can and then hook it. When I pull up to pull a sled out I simply unhook it, hook the ski loop or arm and give them a tug and the sled pops right out. This isn't the greatest picture of it but you can see how I strap it on the back of my sled. Our group all have them and new peeps that ride with us are blown away how good they work.

 

[410Fortune]

I am in DEEEEEEP right now

My sled developed a coolant leak last weekend, from the back of the engine area. I had to pee in the coolant bottle to get her back to the truck LOL

Leaking enough to drain the bottle every 30 minutes or so
Sled saw 210 degrees, which is too hot for my taste

So last night I got to dig into this
Currently the seat, tank, console, coolant resevoir, oil resevoir, computer, wiring, and steering have been removed/moved for access to the waterpump.

I am working at getting the waterpump bolts out, the leak is coming from under the cover so it is either the O ring or the actual WP seal...

The big hose was also resting against the steering pivot bracket and it is cut 95% of the way through, but this is not the source of my leak


Will get pictures! Can you say crash course in Snowmobile chasis 101...
May have to pull the engine forward = removing both clutches = yikes!

Waterpump on the back of the engine = SUCKS Access through tunnel = no such thing.

Anyone got tips for the waterpump service on a 900? is it dealer routine to pull the engine? Or do we just try to tip it forward? Which is faster?

Do I need special tools to re-assemble both driven and drive clutches?

Thanks for any tips....
I need 1 new hose and the cover O ring is my guess, but likely another 10 hours of wrenching....

 

[happyfast79]

i dont know about the leaks but as for clutches you need a puller to get the primary(drive ) clutch off and the secondary(driven) just slides off, pimary torques to 96 ft lbs with no lock tite, and the secondary torques to 12 ft lbs with blue loctite.
hope you find your leak.

 

[410Fortune]

crappy

I removed the waterpump cover, the cover and O ring are fine.
I sealed it back up using silicoln and the leak is still present.

The leak is from behind the water pump or inside the block down there. I can watch it drip drip drip through the drain port hole in the bottom of the chasis

Water builds up where the bottom of the engine meets the middle of the engine...bad news Would likely have to pull the engine to fix.

I am going to put it all back together and use a BG product to stop/slow the leak. BG makes a cooling system sealer that uses cellulose to stop the leaks, it works VERY well, I have used if a few times in the past.
This should buy me the rest of the season before pulling the 900

SUCKS!! If anyone has ideas about what could leak here I would love to hear them

PIcs coming

 

[duallymanca]

There is a seal behind the waterpump impeller.

 

[410Fortune]

water pump seal is my issue.
I found many threads about the issue on Polaris ATV forums

The hole I am looking at in the bottom of my engine is there to leak coolant if the seal goes bad. This is better then the coolant running into the bottom end thats for sure.......

New seal at dealer is like $15 in town.

I will be removing the waterpump cover again and the impellar then attempting to replace the seal without removing the engine the seal is on the oil pump shaft, I have good luck using an anabolic sealer when re-installing plugs like this.

Hopefully riding this weekend.....

 

[05900]

Good luck and Godspeed to ya!! Hope it's up for the weekend!

 

[duallymanca]

Not sure if you have a manual on hand but that seal is a nasty one to get at. Very important that seal is installed to the right depth. Don't want it blocking the vent hole. There is a special installation tool. Should be fun with a hammer, socket and the engine still in. Let us know how you make out.

 

[410Fortune]

I am back and forth on this.
I did a bunch of research last night, the engine really needs to come out in order to properly replace the seal, I saw the special seal puller and the seal installation tool, no way would either of those work without pulling the engine or at least cutting all the rivets on the front mount cooler to gain access..

I believe my approach for now will be to try the BG cooling system sealer and see if I can slow/stop the leak. If it works this will buy me the rest of the season. I ran my bronco like this for two years, after spending $600 on a custom aluminum radiator (V8 conversion) the radiator developed a header leak and basically the radiator is trash. It would POUR out coolant..the BG stuff has it down to a slow trickle.

One of the hoses (from resevoir to engine) rests right up against the steering pivot bracket and the hose is cut 90% of the way through. I found a replacement at Checker Auto last night, so at least I avoided a major leak there...I will protect the hose this time so it can tear again. I believe 900 owners are going to have an issue with this hose, I assume they are all assembled the same as mine and this hose cannot last forever..

Wish me luck tearing into it again this evening, I will post pictures of my findings when I am done.

plan is to carry lots of extra antifreeze just in case and to slow the leak with BG stop leak..ride till summer... then I will likely rebuild the 866 myself or go all out to a 910 kit or similar
I already have a Kawasaki 900 Jet ski that needs a new pump and engine rebuild, so hey why not!!

 

[POORIDER9]

Honestly, taking the motor out isn't that hard and from reading your posts your are capable of doing it. I took my motor out this summer to replace the steering post and it wasn't that bad. I used a hoist to pull the motor once the 6 bolts were out. Once you have changed the seal drop it back it. YOu don't have to worry about the alignment because the 866 bolts in from the sides providing you keep the front cross member bolted to the motor.

 

[duallymanca]

What he said. Plus your stop leak product won't slow down a seal leak. Those products are designed to gather around a hole and then when exposed to air thicken up. There is nowhere for it to stick on the seal or shaft. What might happen is the vent hole will get plugged then push coolant into the crankcase. Not good!

 

[Norway]

Welcome aboard dude!

For technical info, you came to the right place. The knowledge gathered here on the forum is awesome.

dont have no 900, so cant help out much. But Xtreme have made alot of sleds and have a high altitude setup that involves modifying the pipe, cutting the head and jetting/adjusting for altitude.

I would talk to them about clutching before I chased around to much..

The ATF tip you got is soundly based. You come from the 4x4 world you say? Well, dont you recognize the chain from a transfer case?

Happy sledding to both of you.

RS

 

[410Fortune]

Dually,

You are 100% correct. Since this is the waterpump seal, the sealants would not help if the leak is on the oil shaft side of the seal (most likely) so....We are pulling the engine.

Sealants dont work on moving parts, just on holes.

Clutch puller and new water pump seal are on the way here
I am getting the rest of the engine ready to come out

Still planning to sled this weekend LOL

I have one question:
Anybody have advice on clutch alignment after I re-install everything?
I am not sure if this will be an issue since I am just pulling the block, replacing the seal, then re-installing without changing any settings on the torque arm or mounts...the deep snow manual shows a fancy alignment tool...is it required?

Thanks for any help.....I'm not scared of these small engines, just want to have all the tools on hand so I can RIDE when its back together.

thanks Norway, ATF is now in both of our chaincases, in fact I plan to do another drain and re fill just to ensure the rest of the gear lube is out....all 3 of my transfer cases run Mercon and have for years. Last summer I converted my 96 explorer 5.0L from AWD (Lame) to a manual t case from an F-150, a 5.0L Explorer with low range was never available from Ford, around here I build them the way Ford should have... Looks like these Polaris' are gonna get similar treatment


Wish me luck....pulling engine 101, I am taking pictures

Is the Deep Snow 2005 manual the best shop manual available????????? Its pretty vague

 

[POORIDER9]

I had two dealers tell me that the alignment will not change because of how the motor it mounted from the sides. If you look at the new motors in the dragons and older sleds they mount from the bottom and you could easily twist the motor from side to side.

I think the lay down polaris motors are the only motors that mount this way. I would still check alignment but since you don't unbolt the front motor mount off the cross member alignment shouldn't be affected.

Correct me if i'm wrong....anyone

 

[410Fortune]

engine is out, repaired, and re-installed.

I am intake, exhaust fluids, burp cooling and oil and shes ready to fire...

Not that difficult!!! I did not have to remove the primary clutch

 

[410Fortune]

awesome! Yesterday I tore the entire sled apart, removed the engine, repaired the seal, re-installed everything and finished by 11 pm

Rode all day today, sled runs 100% does not leak a drop

I found this RMK VERY easy to work on, a work of art really...I learned alot about these machines and I am impressed. A little care during re assembly and they can be trouble free. There are a couple of areas where I can see POlaris could assemble them a little better from day one, routing of hoses and wires mainly..

Here's a few pics, we took our time and did alot of cleaning to the long block and the chasis. I found a missing rivet, so I replaced that. Also two missing bolts...sled is now better then ever

Access to the water pump with engine in the chasis is limited, no WAY the seal can be replaced properly this route, even with steering moved over:

Factory pump to resevoir hose cut, from being against steering pivot bracket...POlaris could have twisted the hose slightly to avoid this contact. I found a hose at Checker Auto almost an exact match (had to cut off 1"):

 

[410Fortune]

engine out, water pump cover & impellar removed, old seal in place:

seal removed, a real BI&^% without the right puller but we got it:

cleaned up:

new seal installed with anerobic sealer, used dead blow hammer and sockets to press it in place, its not easy...the copper seal goes against the block but the inner aluminum seal must go in with it:

impellar and cover installed with new o ring and more sealer:

 

[410Fortune]

engine cleaned:

chasis cleaned, lubed the steering CV joint and pivot:

clean 2:

he he he

finshed the night fixing the suspension rear torsion spring adjustment, was set on soft:

I didnt get many pictured during re-assembly....wanted to ride today