Its to the point now where I don't even put gas in it because it will leak out a half a tank in about two days time. It has been doing it for a while but before if I turned the fuel off when I parked it it wouldn't leak, now it doesn't work. It is coming out of what I always called the over flow pipe, which I am sure isn't the right name for it, anyway, it is the hose that runs from the carburetor to the back of the motor and doesn't hook to anything. My main question is, do I need to buy a new carburetor or just have the one that is on there cleaned really well and maybe rebuilt if need be?

 

I forgot to mention that it is on '04 400 4x4. I don't know if that makes any difference, but someone will probably ask. LOL! Thank you in advance.

 

I had a similar issue on my Rancher when I bought it, it would leak fuel from the overflow tube. Not as bad as yours but it leaked a noticeable amount of fuel when shut off. I got it pretty cheap so I wasn't worried about it and it still started and ran well and doesn't smoke or anything. I thought I would have to replace or rebuild the carb. I used some Seafoam, its an additive that you add to your fuel. Now it only drips a little once the engine is shut off but I always make sure I turn the fuel off, so its basically the same as yours was and thats good enough for me. I actually bought a cheaper aftermarket carb from Amazon but its still sitting in the box. I'm a bit worried that if i put the new one in, that it won't run as well or even not at all, especially if i attempt to do it myself. I would buy a bottle of seafoam and run through a tank of fuel to see if it helps, it only costs about $9 and it won't take the whole bottle anyway, you'll have a lot left over. I think I put some in my lawnmower too, it works on any small engines. Its best to do it on a day where you can ride long enough to go through most of a tank of fuel as obviously if its dripping it all out then only riding a short distance wont help as it needs a few miles and gallons of fuel to work. I'm not saying it will fix your problem but its cheap and easy to try and won't hurt anything if it doesn't work.

 

Just answered this one for a Kawasaki owner. As a rule this is due to the float needle leaking in the carb. Sometimes it is just a bit of grit stuck to the needle tip, you can remove the needle and clean it. Sometimes it is the tiny plunger and spring, inside the needle, sticking and you will have to fit a new needle.