i have a 05 brute force (with a snorkel)... i can go through water at about half throttle with the water over my seat with out it killing, but if i just cruise through the water at low speed and it gets about 1/3 of a foot on the motor it kills.... then i drag it outa the water and it starts right back up as if it didn't happen, first time it happended i thought my snorkel wasn't sealed but it is and everything is completly dry on the inside, i think it's because the water is still pretty cold around here and when it hits the water at low speeds the oil pressure drops and it kills... but in case it could be somthing else i could fix i would like some other thoughts or if it happened to you then give me some tips of what might be causing this... thanks....

 

Wow, I've never thought about that possibility. I have to think about this one.

 

I've had the same thing happen due to the hot engine hitting the cold water and causing steam to be sucked into the air intake and stalling her out.
Not sure if that would happen with EFI or only a carb engine like mine.

Also maybe your exhaust is under water and not enough back pressure.

 

no it neither one of those, the water gets about four to five inches from the exhaust when it kills... and when the water hits the engine it doesn't steam unless the engine is bone dry which usually never is... like i said i think it just drops the oil pressure, but what has me confused is that it doesnt do it when i have the rpm's up, only when i cruise in the water, my 06 big bear will just idle through it,.... this is what happens exaclty and what happened saturday, i went through about a 4 foot water hole to get to this little island part of the middle of the pond, it went through it and ran like it didnt even touch the water, i did a few water wheelies and got back on land, then i cruised through a spot i never been in b4 to test the depth of the water b4 i started to play in it, when it got up a little passed my ankles it sputtered and killed, i tryed to start it and it just kept turning over, so i got off and floated it to land WITHOUT water ever geting in the exhaust or snorkel, soon as i got the motor out of the water, i hoped on and it sarted up like a brand new bike, no struggle, and didnt take a few times to turn over then crank, just cranked right up, , so i went in it again but about half thottle this time and went through it like it was nuthin, then tryed goin slow in it again, it killed again then i floated it back to land one more time and again cranked like a brand new bike... i guess it just doesnt like the cold water, ha, when the water gets warm i'll try it and if it does it then, then i'll just hall *** through the water all the time!!!!!

 

My vote is plug wires. Maybe when you are going fast the wires just get splashed and are not enought to short out to your chasis. When you go slow they are in water and it provides a path to ground - which is anything metal on your bike that is also underwater.

i dont really know how you would test this . . Maybe do an insulation test on the wires???

 

that could be a big possibilty... what could i put on my plugs to make them stop grounding out in the water? i've heard of some stuff ppl have used b4 but i can't remember what it's called

 

If ignition/electrical shorting is the cause, how would above description make a sense?

To test the shorting possibility, submerge the quad in deep enough water so that igntion parts like coil/plugs are in touch with water AND stay there for a while. Then see if the engine stalls out or not. I say not.