I bought a 2000 Sportsman 500 last week. The guy said it needed a new battery, front CV shafts, and he "thinks it needs a voltage regulator".
I replaced the shafts (with the air hammer on the roll pins suggestion I found here) no problem and in the process found a broken wire going to the left front coil dealie. I soldered and sealed it back up.

The machine had no lights. The PO said that they didn't work because it had a bad battery & they need the battery to work. I've never had a 4 wheeler, so I didn't know if he was full of it or not.

Anyhow, I replaced the battery with a new one and still no lights. I checked them all & every one was burned out which supported his voltage regulator statement. I checked the VR wiring and found a badly fried yellow wire which I repaired. I had 12v at the battery and a consistent 14.4 at the high beam plug and tail light socket while running. After the wire repair, it seemed to be ok at any RPM according to my meter.

Now onto my problem(s):

• The high beam works kind of intermittently; bright, then dim, then bright then not at all in random order. The tail light works when the headlight switch is in the High beam position.
• The low beams (aftermarket) aren't working right, either. The right one is barely on, the left one isn't on at all and no tail light when the switch is in the Low position.
• No dash lights at all, even after replacing bulbs. Checked ok using a jumper directly to battery before installing.

I checked the engine to frame ground, battery cables, and voltage. I had a new voltage regulator on hand, so I put it in just to eliminate that as a possible cause. No change.

The whole thing feels like a ground issue, but where? I was thinking the handlebar switch? But that wouldn't explain the dash indicator lights not working.

Also, are the dash and tail lights (with headlight switch on) supposed to come on with the key? Seems to me they should. Mine don't.

I've read several threads with similar problems but haven't found a solution.

Any suggestions? Thanks!

 

Think you need a manual with the wiring schematic to help you track down wiring issues. Bulbs can be burnt from a dead battery also,not just a bad regulator/rectifier.Voltage has to go somewhere,lights are the first to go usually. Here's a pdf service manual if you don't already have one.Index of /ORV Manuals/Polaris/Sportsman/1996 - 2001

 

Thanks. I actually do have a manual, so I'll be printing the schematics so I can start trying to find the problem. I'm going to start under the little hood, I see the PO had been fiddling around in there and there are 2 switches on the pod that go nowhere, too. He must have had some sort of accessories on the machine. There is a red wire that runs from the battery to under the hood. It's not hooked to anything on either end.

Is there any particular area that is notorious for wire breaks?

Do the symptoms sound like a ground issue to you?

 

Worst spot for grounding problems,wiring breaks is under the headlight pod where the main harness branches of to the switches,lights,etc. Even worse if someone has been messing with the wiring!

 

Ok. I'll give it a close look!

The dash lights and tail light is supposed to come on with just the key (not running), right?

 

Yes!

 

Thanks!

 

I went through the wiring under the hood this afternoon and found several cracked wires and even one brown wire that was completely broken in half with the ends no where near each other. I soldered and sealed all the wires back together then moved on to the pod. There were 3 wires worn through in there, so I repaired them, as well.

I also took the headlight/kill/starter switch apart to see what was going on in there. It was really icky and corroded, so I cleaned everything, then put new dielectric grease in.

I'm not sure what fixed the problem, but I now have high, low and tail lights. Yay!

I also fixed my leaky front hub. The PO had to have taken it apart for some reason & must have removed the seal, because there wasn't one in there! I put a new seal in after checking all components over. The hub holds fluid now. I'll be testing the 4wd system tomorrow. Sure hope it works!

My husband is really glad I was able to fix the problems so far. He was cringing at the thought of taking it in. lol!

 

Sounds like you're every mans dream spouse.. One that can turn wrenches/trouble shoot atv problems Hope you've solved your problems.

 

Lol! Thanks! Fixing things myself is pretty rewarding even if I do break a couple fingernails in the process.

I appreciate the help you offer here. It's very generous of you to take the time to help strangers.