I have a 97 Bearcat 454 4x4 that I bought used about a year ago. It never seemed to be jetted correctly.
I only added a K&N fliter to it. Seemed to be lean. I went up one jet size and she ran ok for a while. Now it got bad again. Seems like it studders at top end, and sometimes will not build to full speed. I took the carb all apart this weekend and replaced the fule lines. It ran ok for a bit. Then when I tried to run it the next day......same thing it studders on top end and won't seem to build to full speed. Also this time seemed to shift funny. Coud it maybe be something in the transmission? I am running a 142.5 main jet now, and the fuel screw is 2 turns out form all the way in. Carb and fuel lines are clean . Any suggestions before making a trip to my dealer? Thanks.

 

You didn't state how many miles.
Allot of the 97' Bearcat 454s suffered from cooling damage as the cooling fan came on too late & cause loss of power due to cylinder wear.
When is the last time the valves were adjusted?
It could also be a bad CDI Unit. My 2000 Cat 500 had the same problems you are describing & it turned out to be the CDI @ $350 to replace.

 

about 2200 miles
Any way to test the cdi box?

 

Yes but you will need the service Repair manual.

 

I have access to another cdi from a friend's machine. I will try that this weekend. Kinda hope that's it, I know it's expensive but at least I will be done trying to solve this reacurring problem.

 

What does the spark plug look like? Is it worn, black, wet, etc? An old or worn spark plug can cause this and if the plug is new, what it looks like will tell you volumes about what is going on in your engine. The best way to get a good reading on your high speed problem is do a high speed run and then just stop the engine and check the plug there and now. How old is your fuel is another thought?

 

Plug is fairly new. Checking it in a shut down mode is a good idea that I have not tried yet. Gas is new too but it may be premium (which I don't normally run). I did not fill it.

 

The premium gas should not hurt anything, it's just expensive for no increase in performance or mileage. Fairly new? in like before the problem started or like a month or 2 old? Plugs are cheap and I carry a spare and always change it first. But what it looks like is very important to troubleshooting.

 

I guess you are right Bear. I will try a new plug, can't hurt. I actually have a couple of new ones in different heat ranges if I remember corectly. The more I think about it I am thinking CDI it happens more as she gets hot, than when I run the first mile or so. Thanks for the input.

 

Electronics don't like heat and when they get old they like it less. Could be the CDI but a plug is cheaper if I'm wrong. Whereas how bent are you gonna be if you get a new CDI and all it would have taken was a plug change?