A friend of mine has an 02 SP 500 that seems to have some kind of problem in the left front wheel. After a day of rideing yesterday, it started to make what sounds like a clicking noise that seems to be comeing from the left front wheel. The faster he goes, the faster the clicking noise. We checked and couldn't find anything to be lodged under the machine that would be comeing in contact with the wheel, like a stick or something. Before he takes it to the dealer and pays big bucks, I told him that I would put the problem to the forum and see if any one out there has had a similar problem. Does anyone have an idea as to what the noise could be? Thanks in advance.

 

Another 2002 Polaris with problems.

 

I had a sound similar to that when I bent my front axel. Easiest way to check is to jack up bolth sides of the atv. Rev the engne slighly and see if the wheel thats making the noise has a woble to it. Another way to check is, while jacked up, turn on the 4 whel drive and check to see if the wheel remains steady. It may jerk when the 4 wheel drive turns on, but give it a few seconds and it will normalize. If the handle bars move back and forth (like it's off balance) then chances are you have a bent axel or a problem with the hub on that side. Hope this helps.

 

Jack the quad with all 4 wheels off the ground. Without the quad in 4WD, spin the wheel. This will rotate the tire, wheel, and hub. Listen for the click. If you hear the click, the noise may be in the wheel bearings or brake assembly. If not, Crank the quad, put it in gear and slowly throttle it 'til the front axles turn. Listen again for the noise. Check to see if the wheel jerks as it rotates. If it does, check the axle as it spins around. If you hear the click or pop from the axle, check the CV joint and CV boot. You may have damaged the CV joint causing it to pop or click as it rotates. Check the inner U-joint, too. It may need replacing. You can check the u-joint by twisting the axle with your hand to check for slop in the u-joint. Do this with the quad turned off but in gear. And last, crank the bike. Put the bike in neutral, engage the AWD, put it back in gear, and slowly throttle it again 'til the front tires turn. Listen again for the click. If it's not the front axle/CV joint or the brakes, the best thing to do is tear down the front wheel assembly and inspect the bearings and Hillard clutch. Replace the hub fluid and re-grease the front wheel assembly.

You may have to use an auto stethoscope to pinpoint the noise. Hopefully it's just a rock wedged in there somewhere. Best of luck.
SurferSam

 

Thanks to all for the help. I'll pass on the info and if I can get rid of this flu, I'll try to give him some help. Thanks again!!