I have a Foreman, about a '98. It has always run alright, but after a recent ride of 40-50 miles, it started to overheat and run poorly. Since then, in very short order, (maybe a mile) the machine overheats. Light comes on, runs poorly and is hot on my right calf.

There seems to be enough oil in the crankcase, and the radiator doesn't seem to be clogged. Can anyone geve me any advice on what is wrong and how to fix it?

Thanks in advance

 

what engine is that? the 400 or the 450? I think they are about the same though.

As for it being warm by your leg, that's normal. My new rancher 350 does that when I ride with shorts on, my leg doesnt even have to touch the engine, the heat just comes off the engine there and it gets a little warm. But if it is overheating and running like crap when it does, then i would check to make sure it's full of oil, and that the cooler is not plugged with any crap to restrict air flow. Is there a fan on that machine, mounted behind the cooler? If there is, make sure that works. check the fuse for it, if that's good, unplug it and wire it directly to a battery to make sure the fan motor spins. If it doesnt, run, replace the fan motor. The fan should run long before light comes on. If the fuse was bad, check to make sure the fan wasnt stuck, if not, put a new fuse in and see what happens. if the fuse blows again, you have a wiring short somewhere to fix. I think the fan runs off a thermal switch on the engine, you might have to get a service manual to find it, that might have come disconnected or something too. this is just a couple ideas

 

Radiator????? There's no rad on a 98 Foreman....what do you mean it doesn't seem to be clogged? When's the last time you cleaned the air filter? and maybe your oil cooler is shot. I don't think I've ever heard of a Foreman overheating, although I know they can run a little poorly in extremely hot conditions. Have you changed the oil and filter recently and regularly? Is the fan still coming on when it should?

 

1998 was the first year for the Forman 450 which was sold alongside the 400.

If he has a 450 then there is an oil cooler with a cooling fan (looks like a radiator). Do the simple checks first, check the oil level, and give the oil cooler a good cleaning. When its hot the fan should definantly be running, if not start checking like the guy above stated. You may have a bad temperature sensor (the one that turns on the fan) You can either run new wiring from the battery (use a fuse on the + wire) and mount a manual switch so you can operate the fan on your own, or you can source the problem with the wiring.