I bought my 00 lakota about 3 weeks ago and decided to clean the air filter today. I popped the cover off and found that the filter was completely dry and quite dirty. Not sure how long its been like this. After a long ride a few days ago on dirt roads and trails, the quad started running sluggish and wouldnt idle smoothly. Could the problem be a clogged carb or something.............is it hard to clean. anybody know what else it could be?

 

Clean the filter first and try it before you go looking for something else. No, a missing or unoiled filter will not make your carb dirty, the dirt just goes straight to your piston, cylinder, and rings. A foam filter with no oil cannot stop fine dust from passing through it.

 

what kind of problems should i expect with dirt in the piston, cylinder, and rings?

 

Low compression, no power, might be hard starting. Do a compression check.

 

is there anyway to get the crap out of there without tearing into the engine?

oh ya, i was thinking of buying a p650 or 700. how do you like yours?

 

First thing, do you see any dust or dirt downstream of the filter? Should be easy to verify, pop the cover, pull the filter and look inside the air boot. If it is dusty then yes, dirt got into your engine. Remove all the air cleaner ducting and clean it before putting the quad back into service. Then clean and oil your airfilter using air filter oil. Also, change the engine oil and filter in your quad as soon as you can. Make sure you drain it out when it is hot. This will rid your engine of any grit that may be in there. Chances are you will be fine even if you find that dirt passed by the filter. Don't lose any sleep over it and just get it back together so you can ride again.