Unhappy 800D owner

[manitoba_boy]

Probably not the solution and maybe someone has already suggested it, but that second last post reminds me of a friend's 900. It was cutting out on him and then wouldn't want to start. I cant remember exactly what it ended up being, but if he unplugged the 2 connections going to the gauges, it would run fine. The computer was thinking that the sled was overheating and then would shut down. I think he ended up needing a whole new computer, it wasnt the thermostat.
This likely isnt the problem but maybe next time it is happening to someone, try unplugging the connections and see what happens.

 

[JR6996]

my sled is doing the same thing, me and THEDICK both bought the same sleds, from the same place, his runs awsome, mine has the cutting out thing, we switched sleds, and there was a big diffrence, im pissed!! my dealer told me to switch pipes with his seld, and see if maybe the pipes might have a defect, i told him that was his job and im not doing HIS testing for him, i bought a stock sled so i didnt have to work on them anymore!!! my sled hat almost 200 mi, same with THEDICK's sled

 

[roller1]

mine also cuts in and out if you hit the gas. rpm will increase but my temp lite, check engine lite, and rev lite come on. it is at the dealer now with 260 miles on it. and tons of new snow in the mts. other than that it rides and feels great

 

[HighLineHooker]

Elevation related?

I have about 180 miles on a 163. The only time I noticed a slight cutting out was at low elevation (about 2500') when I got on it hard - quick changes in throttle position. I assumed it was the DET system protecting the engine from detination. Has anybody had the cutting out problem above 6000'?

 

[turbodiesel5.9]

I have about 180 miles on a 163. The only time I noticed a slight cutting out was at low elevation (about 2500') when I got on it hard - quick changes in throttle position. I assumed it was the DET system protecting the engine from detination. Has anybody had the cutting out problem above 6000'?

Thats what mine started doing but not till my second trip, ran fine in Revy and the crapped the bed in Valemount but only down low, ran good up high and then crap again on the way down. After we got home it would not start at all until I held it wide open. After sitting in a heated garage for two days it seems to be working fine again, makes no sense to me at all. I was not running any fuel deicer and am starting to wonder if it is something crazy like that so I added some and will be going out Saturday for a ride.

 

[Freak]

Has anyone tried to see if this is hand warmer related? Some of the 700's had hand warmer shorts, I hear if your display goes out then it is a symptom of hand warmers.

Also has anyone tried running a det sensor from a sled that isnt having this prob, thats an easy swap. those of you who are having this prob that have a buddy with a good running 8 are the ones who could help us solve this.

 

[AKSNOWRIDER]

also...everyone with a crappy runnig sled...have you had moisture in the airbox at all? could be that the moisture affected the air sensor in the box?Am not sure how close it is to a car system..but next time it acts up..try unplugging sensor and see if it helps...ecm should substitute a preset value for it and turn on the light..but at least you can eliminate things...

 

[5STAR]

Hey turbodiesel you might have something there. I was in the mountains just before christmas and my sled was running great, four feet of fresh and snow over the hood all the time, I didn't know about the headlight being not sealed to the hood or dash at that time, when I got home and put my sled in my heated garage to melt off, that is when I noticed the water in the bottom of the air box, I didn't pay much attention to it until I started to read all the posts, the next 50 miles or so were made at home on the fields and trails and thats when my sled started to act up, cutting out and kinda missing, outside temps were about -15c or 5f. Anyway I just got home from a ride about 25miles , but before I left I gave it a dose of isopropypl alc. Now it started out missing but the longer and harder we rode the better and smoother it began to run. Don't know but maybe this sled is super sensitive to moisture in the air box.

 

[Freak]

also...everyone with a crappy runnig sled...have you had moisture in the airbox at all? could be that the moisture affected the air sensor in the box?Am not sure how close it is to a car system..but next time it acts up..try unplugging sensor and see if it helps...ecm should substitute a preset value for it and turn on the light..but at least you can eliminate things...

SLP single pipe has a temp sensor bypass, I didnt plug it in but I wonder is anyone having this prob that used the bypass or is running the slp single?

 

[turbodiesel5.9]

Hey turbodiesel you might have something there. I was in the mountains just before christmas and my sled was running great, four feet of fresh and snow over the hood all the time, I didn't know about the headlight being not sealed to the hood or dash at that time, when I got home and put my sled in my heated garage to melt off, that is when I noticed the water in the bottom of the air box, I didn't pay much attention to it until I started to read all the posts, the next 50 miles or so were made at home on the fields and trails and thats when my sled started to act up, cutting out and kinda missing, outside temps were about -15c or 5f. Anyway I just got home from a ride about 25miles , but before I left I gave it a dose of isopropypl alc. Now it started out missing but the longer and harder we rode the better and smoother it began to run. Don't know but maybe this sled is super sensitive to moisture in the air box.

I was going to go out today and try it but I have a cold from hell so I am stuck inside, I did ride in deep powder and had some moisture in the air box but never had any snow like some of the guys are posting but I am hoping that it is that simple and the fact that mine did not do it in Revy the first trip could have to do with the fact that it was so warm that trip only about -2c and the second trip was closer to -16c over night I can't believe that the two are not somehow related. How about if everyone that is having this problem dumps in some deicer and see what happens

 

[Ron]

Doubt it's moisture in the air box. Have seen some wet ones still running good even 07's that didn't know about snow injestion but had plenty. Water in the fuel is always a possibility this time of year.
Just another thought-back to the electrical. It's my understanding that a short of any kind can eventually disable a sled. Take the handwarmers as an example: During pre delivery testing Polalris found the HW short in the 800's which was a minor issue until they discovered that after a day or two it took out some of the electronic's & disabled the sled. Polaris fixed most if not all 8's prior to delivery but what about dealer setup? Maybe the sled that got the wires zip tied to the steering post, got a short & then the more serious problem developed.
Just another thought: Why just a few 8's? Don't all of the 2008 6,7 & 8's share the same electronic's? Carl's sold a lot of sleds & I can't find anyone locally with this issue. I do remember the shop foreman going into my trailer at delivery to check the wiring one last time.
I'm not up to speed on these new sleds but think some parts changing is in order to find the problem. Get one good one & one with problems & start switching parts until the issue moves to the good sled. IMO that short of the stator & main wiring harness, parts could be switched in the field maybe in a few hours time.
Hard to believe that a dealer can't find the problem in over a weeks time.

 

[turbodiesel5.9]

I am not dismissing a short and will be checking mine over closely but it seems odd that a short would fix itself after sitting in a heated garage for two days, also mine does not feel like it is cutting out from loss of ignition but rather a lack of fuel, now it could be that the injectors are not getting proper voltage from a short somewhere but that should remain a constant problem, mine will run fine all day and not miss a beat at 6000 feet then has the problem coming down the hill again. I am so confused, if it is water in the fuel it should run like crap ALL DAY LONG not just at low elevation so my first idea may be out the door, the more I think about this the more lost I get, is it possible that what ever they are using to tell the computer the elevation is sticking and then in the warm garage it lets go. Does anyone know what tells the computer to make changes for elevation?

 

[trench]

SLP single pipe has a temp sensor bypass, I didnt plug it in but I wonder is anyone having this prob that used the bypass or is running the slp single?

Good question, not sure what temp sensor bypass you are talking about.
I am running the slp single pipe , it only has a resistor that connects in line from the egt. prob in the pipe ,to the ecu. It is only a tempary solution to trick the ecu in thinking the egt. is cooler than it realy is so the ecu will add more fuel. Slp will have another solution shortly I believe.

 

[Ron]

I am not dismissing a short and will be checking mine over closely but it seems odd that a short would fix itself after sitting in a heated garage for two days, also mine does not feel like it is cutting out from loss of ignition but rather a lack of fuel, now it could be that the injectors are not getting proper voltage from a short somewhere but that should remain a constant problem, mine will run fine all day and not miss a beat at 6000 feet then has the problem coming down the hill again. I am so confused, if it is water in the fuel it should run like crap ALL DAY LONG not just at low elevation so my first idea may be out the door, the more I think about this the more lost I get, is it possible that what ever they are using to tell the computer the elevation is sticking and then in the warm garage it lets go. Does anyone know what tells the computer to make changes for elevation?

You have a head scratcher for sure. I agree with you doesn't sound like electrical. Try the deicer because it's possible that you have some water in the fuel system. Nothing really makes sense but maybe when warm the small amounts of moisture pass through the system but when cold & low on gas ice crystals start to block fuel flow. Normally water will settle in the bottom of the tank because it's heavier than gas but a small amount in the fuel filter???
I talked to a tech in a large dealership this afternoon about the short issue and asked if they were having any problems. (Someone I know so I didn't get the "we haven't heard of any" response.) I'd guess that they sold 150-200 08's. There is a service bulletin out on the handwarmer short but they lost one stator on a sled before they got sleds in for the fix. Apparently a bad short will eventually take out the stator. Is it possible that the stator doesn't always fail completely but just loses capacity and low voltage causes an erratic running sled? Maybe borderline output so that at times it works but as it gets hot drops output?
They found an electrical short (wire) in another sled too. In this case juice from the short ate the nylon bushings out of the steering hyme joints.
I'd guess that the last thing to get attention would be the stator just because of location & degree of difficulty to change. Maybe cold they would test OK? I'm not qualified to draw conclusions but just wondering.....

 

[BYOB]

Talked to a guy this afternoon that said the problem is the clutch weights in the primary. The computer gives fuel based on fuel map, engine rpm and throttle position sensor, and a couple other things. Say your sled came like mine did with 62 gram weights for 6000-8000 ft elevation, and you head to the hills. You offload the sled in the parking lot at 1000-2000 ft and give er up the trail. Now with the extra power the engine makes at lower elevations, it takes less fuel to get the engine to spin at say 6500 rpm, especially without the heavier weights that are supposed to be in there at that altitude to keep things in check by loading the engine heavier. So what happens is the engine sees that it is getting to 6500 rpm at say 1/3 throttle instead of 1/2 throttle and the computer puts the engine into a funk because the throttle position sensor says the engine should be running one way and the rpm says another and the computer doesn't compensate as it goes outside of the parameters of the fuel map. That is why most of us (myself included) are having trouble only on the trail rides up and down and are fine up top where everything is balanced as it should be. People that have there sleds set up for the elevation they ride consistently or that dont do heavy elevation changes (5000+ ft ?) are not running into cutting out trouble.

It also explains why the problems are starting after the break in is finishing up as the engine is running a lot stronger and the changes are more pronounced. When it is still a little on the weak side out of the box it is not building power fast enough to get outside the parameters with the light weights so it will run fine until the engine starts to finish its break in and get peppier.

I have not tested this out yet but he said he knows a few others that were having the same problems and switching to heavier weights at low altitudes cleared the cutting out problem out immediately.

This individual works for one of the Polaris dealers in Alberta and has always been on top of stuff when I brought issues to him.

The downside is that if you put in the heavier weights needed for down low it may not run right up top once you get up the mountain, so I'm not sure what the solution is.... maybe a comprimise and run somewhere in the middle (5000ft? weights) for those of us who offload at 1000ft and top out at 8000+?

Lemme know if this works, wont be heading to the mountains for at least a few more weeks.

 

[turbodiesel5.9]

Talked to a guy this afternoon that said the problem is the clutch weights in the primary. The computer gives fuel based on fuel map, engine rpm and throttle position sensor, and a couple other things. Say your sled came like mine did with 62 gram weights for 6000-8000 ft elevation, and you head to the hills. You offload the sled in the parking lot at 1000-2000 ft and give er up the trail. Now with the extra power the engine makes at lower elevations, it takes less fuel to get the engine to spin at say 6500 rpm, especially without the heavier weights that are supposed to be in there at that altitude to keep things in check by loading the engine heavier. So what happens is the engine sees that it is getting to 6500 rpm at say 1/3 throttle instead of 1/2 throttle and the computer puts the engine into a funk because the throttle position sensor says the engine should be running one way and the rpm says another and the computer doesn't compensate as it goes outside of the parameters of the fuel map. That is why most of us (myself included) are having trouble only on the trail rides up and down and are fine up top where everything is balanced as it should be. People that have there sleds set up for the elevation they ride consistently or that dont do heavy elevation changes (5000+ ft ?) are not running into cutting out trouble.

It also explains why the problems are starting after the break in is finishing up as the engine is running a lot stronger and the changes are more pronounced. When it is still a little on the weak side out of the box it is not building power fast enough to get outside the parameters with the light weights so it will run fine until the engine starts to finish its break in and get peppier.

I have not tested this out yet but he said he knows a few others that were having the same problems and switching to heavier weights at low altitudes cleared the cutting out problem out immediately.

This individual works for one of the Polaris dealers in Alberta and has always been on top of stuff when I brought issues to him.

The downside is that if you put in the heavier weights needed for down low it may not run right up top once you get up the mountain, so I'm not sure what the solution is.... maybe a comprimise and run somewhere in the middle (5000ft? weights) for those of us who offload at 1000ft and top out at 8000+?

Lemme know if this works, wont be heading to the mountains for at least a few more weeks.

Ok this is very possible because my first trip I did not have this problem and the one thing that I did change for the second trip was gear down, this would make the problem even bigger, I have my Vert geared low but run 68grams in the hills I will try this out on the D8 because the HP should be close with the stuff I have done on the Vert, this could be it.

 

[actionfigurejoe]

Talked to a guy this afternoon that said the problem is the clutch weights in the primary. The computer gives fuel based on fuel map, engine rpm and throttle position sensor, and a couple other things. Say your sled came like mine did with 62 gram weights for 6000-8000 ft elevation, and you head to the hills. You offload the sled in the parking lot at 1000-2000 ft and give er up the trail. Now with the extra power the engine makes at lower elevations, it takes less fuel to get the engine to spin at say 6500 rpm, especially without the heavier weights that are supposed to be in there at that altitude to keep things in check by loading the engine heavier. So what happens is the engine sees that it is getting to 6500 rpm at say 1/3 throttle instead of 1/2 throttle and the computer puts the engine into a funk because the throttle position sensor says the engine should be running one way and the rpm says another and the computer doesn't compensate as it goes outside of the parameters of the fuel map. That is why most of us (myself included) are having trouble only on the trail rides up and down and are fine up top where everything is balanced as it should be. People that have there sleds set up for the elevation they ride consistently or that dont do heavy elevation changes (5000+ ft ?) are not running into cutting out trouble.

It also explains why the problems are starting after the break in is finishing up as the engine is running a lot stronger and the changes are more pronounced. When it is still a little on the weak side out of the box it is not building power fast enough to get outside the parameters with the light weights so it will run fine until the engine starts to finish its break in and get peppier.

I have not tested this out yet but he said he knows a few others that were having the same problems and switching to heavier weights at low altitudes cleared the cutting out problem out immediately.

This individual works for one of the Polaris dealers in Alberta and has always been on top of stuff when I brought issues to him.

The downside is that if you put in the heavier weights needed for down low it may not run right up top once you get up the mountain, so I'm not sure what the solution is.... maybe a comprimise and run somewhere in the middle (5000ft? weights) for those of us who offload at 1000ft and top out at 8000+?

Lemme know if this works, wont be heading to the mountains for at least a few more weeks.

That's a very interesting conclusion and one to follow up on. Motors also get stronger during the first 100-200 miles as the rings begin to seat. That would only serve to cause the problem to grow worse.

 

[dragonflats]

I still don't have mine in MN so called dealer today and told them to keep it. got money back. hope you get this cutting out thing fixed.

 

[AKRMK]

Talked to a guy this afternoon that said the problem is the clutch weights in the primary. The computer gives fuel based on fuel map, engine rpm and throttle position sensor, and a couple other things. Say your sled came like mine did with 62 gram weights for 6000-8000 ft elevation, and you head to the hills. You offload the sled in the parking lot at 1000-2000 ft and give er up the trail. Now with the extra power the engine makes at lower elevations, it takes less fuel to get the engine to spin at say 6500 rpm, especially without the heavier weights that are supposed to be in there at that altitude to keep things in check by loading the engine heavier. So what happens is the engine sees that it is getting to 6500 rpm at say 1/3 throttle instead of 1/2 throttle and the computer puts the engine into a funk because the throttle position sensor says the engine should be running one way and the rpm says another and the computer doesn't compensate as it goes outside of the parameters of the fuel map. That is why most of us (myself included) are having trouble only on the trail rides up and down and are fine up top where everything is balanced as it should be. People that have there sleds set up for the elevation they ride consistently or that dont do heavy elevation changes (5000+ ft ?) are not running into cutting out trouble.

It also explains why the problems are starting after the break in is finishing up as the engine is running a lot stronger and the changes are more pronounced. When it is still a little on the weak side out of the box it is not building power fast enough to get outside the parameters with the light weights so it will run fine until the engine starts to finish its break in and get peppier.

I have not tested this out yet but he said he knows a few others that were having the same problems and switching to heavier weights at low altitudes cleared the cutting out problem out immediately.

This individual works for one of the Polaris dealers in Alberta and has always been on top of stuff when I brought issues to him.

The downside is that if you put in the heavier weights needed for down low it may not run right up top once you get up the mountain, so I'm not sure what the solution is.... maybe a comprimise and run somewhere in the middle (5000ft? weights) for those of us who offload at 1000ft and top out at 8000+?

Lemme know if this works, wont be heading to the mountains for at least a few more weeks.

Sorry to tell you, but thats not it either. Took mine out today for the first ride (0 miles) and it was cutting out all day, fouled 3 sets of plugs and almost put me over the bars 3 times. Temp was cold (-5 to 5 deg)and the snow was deep powder. The airbox was full of ice and snow everytime I would stop. One set of fouled plugs I found an ice chunk big enough to get lodged in one of the three inlet pipes in the airbox.
I let is sit with the hood closed once for about 20 min. and it ran great.....for about 5 min. Very, very VERY disapointed with my $10,000 peice of crap. Maybe I should have kept my 900, it always ran great.

 

[BYOB]

AKRMK, you may have 2 different problems here. See what is happening after you can keep the sled from ingesting water.

Take the time to seal around the headlight with some silicone or a thicker foam strip, do this from the inside of the hood once the panel is pulled off, you will see the gaps in there. I also covered a few other holes in there with duct tape to keep snow from getting in. Also adjust the lights to the height you like and put a strip of duct tape over the wheel to close off those holes as a quick fix for that. This should keep your airbox dry. I did this and then rode 3 days of bottomless, over the helmet, dream fluff and had not a single snowflake in there.