I just got a 2000 Polaris Xplorer 400 with an electrical issue. The electric start works since I charged the battery, but no lights, 4wd, and etc... The atv runs and drives excellent.

I was thinking it may be the rectifier/regulator or stator, but can't find a downloadable service manual for this unit and don't own one.

The rectifier/regulator has a two wire plug in with a brown wire and a red wire. The red wire has 12 volts going into the rectifier/regulator.

When I plug in this two prong plug in and leave the three yellow wires unplugged I get 12 volts through the unit to the yellow with red stripe wire coming out of the unit. There is no power coming through the part to the yellow wire or yellow with brown stripe wire. This test is done with the atv running.

I also get no power coming from the yellow or yellow with brown stripe wire coming out of the harness that lead to the rectifier regulator. I assume these wires go to the stator, but without a manual, I do not know.

Should I have power coming out of the regulator/rectifier on those other two wires or are they supposed to deliver power from the stator?

Any other info to help me test these parts?

Thanks in advance for your time and knowledge.

 

This sounds like your problem if you have to keep charging the battery. Yes the red wire should have power and while running the battery should be charging above battery voltage (normally 14-14.5 volts) if not this is the most common problem.Polaris ATV Rectifier Regulator OPT

 

Thank you for the link, definitely some nice pricing there.

The person I bought the atv from stated that the problem started when he was out riding and the battery was going dead. I don't know if it will hold a charge, I just took his word for it. The battery was charged when I started working on it.

I looked at the link and seen that the stator was the same as some of the 96-98` models so I pulled that service manual from this website to try and narrow in before I order any parts. First I charged the battery for about six hours so I had a good base.

The battery read 13.0 volts at start up and went to and held 14.3 volts while running. Up to about 14.4 volts with some rpm. I disconnected all three yellow wires from the Regulator/Rectifier and it dropped to 12.5 volts at the battery. Plugged them back in and back up to 14.3 volts so that made me think the charging system was working okay. The odd thing is that now the neutral light was working, nothing worked before and now with the full charge only the neutral light is working.

I then did the Alternator Output Test (AC AMP) from the manual and got a reading of 12.5 from the Yellow and Yellow/Red wires as listed so it should be good then.

Any ideas about what is going on concerning my other test results from today? I still have no lights or 4wd. The neutral light, electric start, ignition switch, and kill switch are working. I guess I actually haven't tried the 4wd today since I have the atv somewhat apart, but I am assuming it still doesn't work along with the lights. I pulled the headlight bulb out and inspected it and it is good.

 

From your tests sounds like the charging system is ok,but check the battery after it sets overnight and see if the voltage drops below 12 volts. Shorted out, sulfated cells can zap a battery back down plus may not have enough amperage,could be the problem on the intermittent indicator lights,etc. If voltage does drop just have the battery load tested at any auto store. They can tell you real quick if it needs replacing. OPT

 

Only got a short period to work on it tonight. The battery is on the weak side so I just picked up a new one today. I cleaned alot of contacts and traced some wires and found a couple of weak/split wires. After all of that, I've got power to all of the lights, just need to pick up a couple of replacement bulbs tomorrow and they should all be working.

I ran the meter and got juice to the speedo, but no light. It looks like I have to replace the speedo for to get that working from what I can see.

 

Glad the battery and wiring issues have solved most of the problems. If the indicator bulbs on the dash(hot and neutral/reverse) are burnt out they are still available too. As far as the speedo light it is internal. This could still be caused by a short in the speedo wiring harness? If the speedo fails to register hrs and mileage the hall effect sensor on the right front brake caliper(leading to the speedo) is usually the main reason. Hope it all works out for you. OPT

 

Replaced a leaky needle valve assy and have tried everything out. All lights and electric start work good and it runs very well now.

Unfortunately it appears that nothing works on the speedo, awd, and reverse override. My understanding is that with a bad speedo those items also won't work.

 

Do a search using the search bar for speedo awd problem and you should find some results. If you don't want to replace the speedo the wiring for the awd can be jumped to provide full time awd if you desire without spending $300 for a new speedo. Think it is the brown/white wire in the speedo main harness that goes to the awd coils that just needs to be given a good frame ground. Just research this if someone doesn't post the way they may have bypassed the speedo. Good luck OPT

 

Should I be concerned that this will happen again after I fix everything.

I read that high voltage spikes through the regulator are suspect for causing the speedo's to fail.

Is this believed to be true and should I replace mine even though it appears to be working fine?

 

Just check the charging while running and you will be able to tell real quick if the reg/rectifier is working properly! You should be charging between 13.5 to 14.5 volts. If higher voltage is seen (as high as 16 - 17 volts) then yes you would have something to worry about. Reg/rectifiers can undercharge or overcharge. Just make sure it's operating correctly. OPT