When I'm in 4wd, low or high, the front tires are not engaged going down hill. They are when going up hill. The rear tires just skid along leaving me out of control. From what I've heard, it's the nature of this beast. 2000 SP 500. Maybe I'm misunderstanding something. I hope so.

 

You're right,that the nature of the beast and one of the reasons they came up with adc on later models which has it's own set of problems with the clutch packs.The first Sportsmans that came out didn't have the ebc clutches and you could do just like the 2 strokes and give a sight bit of throttle to load the clutches up and help in slowing down along with braking.You can do it a little on the ebs clutches by feathering the throttle a tad which still keeps the belt on the one way clutch but belt will grab the side of the clutch sheathes also.In 2000 they had both ebc and non ebc clutch systems depending on model. Like I mentioned I had a couple customers that hated the ebc and swapped over to non ebc clutch systems because they actually did slow down better on hills when preloaded.Dirt Cheap Yamaha, Polaris, Suzuki & Kawasaki OEM Parts & Accessories – Cycle Parts Warehouse

 

OK. Understood. Thanks you guys. I'm going out tomorrow and give it a go. It would be sooooo nice to be able to head down hills without white knuckling it. Had one pretty scary run that was looking like I'd be jumping off and watching it roll several 100 feet to the bottom. I was thinking of just bringing a roll of toilet paper.

 

Am I missing something here or do applying the brakes not do anything to the front tires? I know Polaris has the one lever braking but that is supposed to stop both the front and rear tires. Unless this machine has no front brakes, wouldn't using the brakes while going downhill slow all 4 tires? Also low range uses the transmission to slow down the machine, just like putting a manual machine in first gear without having to ride the brakes constantly.

 

Might want to check condition of your pads,calipers,master cylinder along with a good fluid change. Plus they've had 3 different rear brake discs on this model.You shouldn't have to change out your shorts every time you go down a hill. Dirt Cheap Yamaha, Polaris, Suzuki & Kawasaki OEM Parts & Accessories – Cycle Parts Warehouse

 

Your right . Polaris has one hand lever that operates the front and back backs at once. It's even split nicely with 40% to the rear and 60% to the fronts.

A person should easily get down a steep hill even in neutral without the ATV even started up and running just by riding the brakes.

 

With EBS I usually have to give it gas to go down hill because it slows down so much. Without EBS I had to ride the brakes all the way down.

 

The area we ride into for Mule deer is a 50 inch trail system that has some really steep parts that are rutted and full of loose shell, They can give the best riders a run for their money. I have the 04 600 twin with ebs and I never use low range. On the loose shell it just starts sliding. The one lever
brake is the best feature for control in those situations.
Going down some of those trails is about like sledding.
The Suzuki Vinson 500 is a lot harder to keep under control because of the dual brake controls.
If I lost high range while back in that country I would leave the wheeler and walk out.

 

I used to use a Yamaha 350 with a 5 speed to pull a trailer full of fencing stuff. Even with very worn tires I never had a problem going down hills with the heavy trailer. When I got my 2000 Sportsman, the first thing I did was hook the trailer to it and head out to check the fence. I started down a hill that I had gone down a hundred times with the little Yamaha and before I knew what happened, I was flying down the hill sideways with the trailer completely jack-knifed. I remember laughing out loud saying WTF??, more in disbelief than afraid. At the bottom of the hill the hi-tensile electric fence caught the 4 wheeler like a spiderweb, I went between two strands and landed in the weeds outside the pasture while the trailer flipped and detached from the ball spilling my stuff everywhere. It must have been a sight watching me get shocked as I tried to get the 4 wheeler out of the fence before my buddies saw what I had done.
Anytime I go down a steep hill in the snow and ice I give it just a little gas and use the brakes or else the back end wants to come around. I like the EBS 99% of the time but it can be dangerous as hell in the right conditions.

 

That's funny as hell. Been there, done that, more than once. It's not much fun either. I'll have to fine tune my down hill ventures by the advice I've received from you all, and hopefully, things will improve.