This is a long story so ill try to cut to the chase. On 7-7-07 my cousin and myself bought 2 2007 sportsman 500 EFI's and mine isnt running quite as good as his. 4 days after purchase i had it in the front yard messing with it running for less than 5 minutes and it began flashing "hot check engine". Took it into the dealership 2 days later after it did it to my cousin also and they said they ran 7 heat cycles on it and couldnt find anything nor would it blink hot so i went and picked it up. Took it in a month ago for the 20 hour service and got a call from the service manager saying the radiator was clogged with mud which caused the fan to go out. That made no sense because the fan was working when i loaded it on the trailer to take it. At any rate, the servie manager acted like he was doing me a favor by getting warranty to cover it and this is what all he said the clogged radiator burned up: control module, cap pressure, fan & motor, and water temp sensor. He told me that the part that makes it flash hot by my gauges was malfunctioning so it couldnt tell me it was running hot. Ok, so its fixed and i get it out of the shop and went riding that weekend. Guess what? more problems. There was a chain catching noise comming from the rear. Also, my gas gauge showed full and but it kept dying out. After it died about 25 times, i checked in the gas tank and it was bone dry, but showing a full tank on the gage. Took it back to the dealership and they realized the bushing were completly gone and put in to replace the entire gas tank. Got it out of the shop Saturday and took it straight to the trails. WOW. Went through a 2" puddle of water and it sputtered out and died. Wouldnt start and when it did and i gave it gas it would die. Took 20 minutes to get it started up and was off again. Went through another maybe 5" puddle and it did the same thing. The only thing i can think is its something else electrical but i know nothing about mechanics or electrical problems so not sure what to do next. I dont think the dealership knows what is causing these problems either and i fear i have bought a lemon. Any suggestions on what the problem is or has anyone out there had similar problems? If so Help, Please!

 

when do you hear this "chain clunking sound"? when pulling a holeshot?

 

yes it was when pulling a holeshot but that was fixed. it was the missing bushings. the washer was popping onto the top of the bolt. what concerns me is the dying and not starting.

 

I would check the throttle freeplay first. Is it more than 1/16 in at the end of the lever(there is an etc switch that needs to be adjusted correctly) Are there any trouble codes? Like 44 or 45? If so, let me know. I'll tell you is probably wrong.

 

no trouble codes. i had adjusted it on the handlebar cable when it was doing it in the past but the dealership said never to touch that cause it has to totally be reset. is that where you are talking about?

 

As far as going through water ... it almost sounds like an ignition wire getting wet. Check the coil wire from the ignition coil to the spark plug and make sure both ends are "seated" and sealing properly. Replacing the gas tank should fix the fuel gauge problem.

 

Where exactly would i find it and what is the proper way for it to be sealed and seated?

 

im guessing you dont have very many miles or hrs on this bike, so i would doubt that the coil wire is messed up but if you look at the top of the engine you should be able to trace the spark wire back to the coil. sounds like its not a very good dealer whos not doing a though job. the emc is know in the 05' to 06' to have had issues and they have replaced them under warranty but it sounds like they replaced your already. if the bike shows its hot flashing dont kep driving it until you make sure its not hot or you could do serious damage to the engine. always clean your radaitor out from the front and the back to make sure it doesnt get plugged and make it run hot. the "emc" may even control the fuel gage as well as alot of things in the wheeler.