I got some problems with the rear end of DS. I was out at glamis this weekend... chain was a little on the lose side but not too bad. I heard a few clanks, like chain slap and stopped to check it out. My chain was laying on the swing arm and the nuts that hold the sprocket on were grinding on the axel carrier. I also noticed that the sprocket side of the axel was really hot to the touch but the rotor side was cool. There is tons of movement on the sprocket side of the axel carrier. I had to limp it back to camp, keeping as much weight forward and to the side as I could. I haven't had a chance to take it apart yet. I am assuming the bearing failed completely. What kind of parts am I looking at here? $$$? Any special tools I will need? Anyone have the service manual for rear end? If not I will probably just buy the damn service book. I hope I didn't damage any other parts like the swingarm or the axel. What could of caused this? I don't jump much if any. I was not even ridding that aggressively this weekend. Any aftermarket parts or other suggestions to prevent this from happening again in the future?

Thanks for the help

 

A similar incident happen to me like this a few months ago. I was at the local track and somehow killed the bearings. The chain was fairly loose but I didn't think anything about it. On the road I noticed the rear end moving around on the carrier side to side. I took it to the shop figuring I needed new bearings but had to replace entire axle carrier.

Hopefully yours ain't so bad as mine was or else your looking at a $300 bill!

 

Tapered bearings designed to handle serious side loading from powers slides are standard on the DS, and a lot of people pay to convert their MX bikes to this style of bearing because of there high strength and durability. Since the bearings are tapered, much like those on the front wheel of a car, there is slop and play evident when the axle nut becomes loose. A loose axel nut will destroy tapered bearings, making it imparative to inspect the integrity of the axle nut prior to every ride. I like to check the bearings for play every time I lube the chain, while its still blocked up.

 

My axle came loose on the second ride due to a faulty preload (zero-fade) nut. I had to cut the slot wider so that it could pinch tighter, preventing it from loostening up again. Back then, there were others that had the same problem. I was lucky to have caught mine before any damage was done... some weren't so lucky.

Acording to your sig, your Baja is a 2002, is it still under the 1 year warranty?? Has to be close, maybe Bombardier will help you out.

 

Am I eligible for warranty work if I bought the bike used? If so how do I prove the warranty is still valid? Do they go by production date or date first sold? I have never used a warranty for an off road vehicle before.... Is there a deductible or other issues?

 

My best suggestion is to find out which dealer the original owner bought it from and represent yourself as him. I'm not sure if the warranty is transferable so if you play it that way it doesn't matter. You could call Bombardier service (the # is in the owners manual) or your dealer and ask them if the warranty is transferable.
As far as how it works, its just like a new car warranty, you take it in and they fix it for free.

 

AZSand had an axle problem this weekend too.[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]

 

i burnt up one set of bearings when my axle nut loosened. check it every time befor riding use locktite blue on it now stays tite. i thought there was only six months warranty on the ds's?

 

I checked the owners guide, the warranty is transferable but its only 6 month long

 

Yah, thats right. Been so long I forgot.
I would appeal it to the customer service hotline though, they may still cover it since they had these issued in the past. Just don't take NO for an answer.....Its worth a try