First off I have a 2006 Sportsman 500 HO EFI with about 2200 miles on it and it is regularly maintained.

Question 1 is, I noticed the other day that the coolant in the reservoir is filling up the tank and spewing out of the cap. The level was at the full when cold line before I took off riding. What are some possible causes of this? The bike hasn't been overheated and wan't running hot. I have a temp gauge on the bike and it was hovering about 185-190* the whole time riding.

Question #2 is why would there be oily residue around the pull start cable? This residue is around where the string goes into the housing.

And the final questions is what would cause water to get in the belt case? I was in some water about 2 feet deep last weekend and with in 5 minutes the belt case was full of water. I had the belt replaced last spring so my thought is the gasket is pinched, but I had the problem before the belt was replaced too, so I am at a loss.

 

On #1 Take the radiator cap off and lift the front of the atv until the tires are off the ground a bit. Crank it up and see if the level in the radiator goes down as it warms up,which removes any trapped air pockets. The fan should kick on and usually drops the radiator level even lower. Top off the radiator and coolant bottle,replace the cap and see if that solves the problem. Trapped air was common on these atvs. Another can be a bad 13 psi radiator cap,available at any auto supply if needed.
On#2 Oily residue can come mostly from water entry that mixes with the grease on the starter bendix. Another reason could be seeping oil from the big o-ring on the stator plate or the seal in the middle of the plate could be leaking. Water entry is common on the recoil asy from seeping around the cover and also through the rope hole. Take off the cover,clean/repair what is needed with contact cleaner,seal the cover with good rtv sealant,NOT RED,mark of an amateur,along with silicone the rope handle into the cover nipple. This also helps keep water out,plus can be used in an emergency if needed.
On #3 Usually water either enters through the cover seal or the the clutch backing plate engine to plate seal. Sharp sticks,branches can damage them or they can just leak from age allowing water to fill the clutch cavity. #5 or #16.Dirt Cheap Yamaha & Polaris OEM Parts & Accessories – Cycle Parts Warehouse You can turn the cover seal around and see if it helps,plus you can pull the drive clutch and remove the plate and replace the seal if you wish. DON'T silicone the cover seal as it's a pain to remove if you have to go back in to the clutches.I fought plenty of these that people had done,rather than turn the gasket around or replace them instead..

 

Can,t help with the Over flow bottle . I would of said a airlock but if its not over heating, and you would know because you would also see steam.

The pull rope being oily is just water mixing with grease inside the recoil. Water get pass the pull rope handle ,thats why I silicon mine in place now. There is stuff inside there you do not want to get wet ,like Stator, flywheel and Plus coil.

The Belt housing if its not the cover seal #5 will be the two large seal #15 and #16 behind the Primary and Secondary clutch's. I had mine both changed a few yeas ago. Apparently its common.

I had the dealer do it ,they cleaned the clutches, changed the two seals and gave me a new belt for $300 which I found to be fair. I was surprised and she is a submarine now.

 

Thanks for the quick response. I am going to bring it in this week to take the cover off to replace the seal. I will also get the other seal you mentioned as well as some good RTV.

Thanks again!

 

Thanks!

 

Be sure to clean up the blue rtv from the engine backing plate throughly and don't spare the rtv on the new seal lip on the backing plate. You only want to have to do this once. This is very close to what Polaris uses on the engine seal.Mr. Gasket/3 oz. (85 g.) tube blue RTV silicone sealer 7808 at AutoZone.com Plus use a good aluminum color rtv for the recoil assy.Blends in and doesn't look tacky versus red or black.