Well my 850 is at the dealer right now for the humming and now vibration that was there this past winter. I had a thread on it and only one other guy had the same problem, but it went away when the weather warmed up. I only rode mine for 69 miles and the humming was so loud you couldn't hear the exhaust over it. The dealer says they are going to change the belt, which i broke in properly, and go from there. They say that they have been in touch with the engineers at polaris and this is the first 850 to have this problem. They have had it for 8 days now and still no word as to what it is. Polaris has let me down on this quad. My 02 500HO has been a great bike for me, but this one, not yet.

 

I'd say staying in low range the whole time would ruin your vacation more than anything else!

Learn how to quickly change the belt (do it more than once) and bring a spare and appropriate tools so it doesn't have to be towed back. Who wants to tow your *** back and ruin everybody's trip because you don't know what you're doing, or are not prepared for the trip. I don't believe it's fair to your riding partners to go on a trip without these items on hand. If it breaks out in the "bush" then you'll have plenty opportunity to break the new one in. I believe this to be common sense and respectful to your riding partners. HO posted the XP shop manual. If one is that worried about it, then bring two belts.... and spare plugs. Figure out how to change your plugs before you go.

 

Hot, Sorry to hear that. Hope she gets fixed and serves you well going forward.

My XP 850 has been nothing but a blast. I love it. Best atv, dirt machine I've ever owned. Have about 600 miles on mine now. Only problems are self inflicted stupidity. I've not been easy on it.....plowing with tracks in extreme load conditions (bent plow from the traction), running on the sled trails at high rpm and always in high gear (above 6500 on & off for over an hour), bush wacking and pushing over small trees, climbing downed logs and getting stuck on limbs. Only smell of rubber I've experienced is when I smoked my tracks on wet pavement. They spun for a few seconds before it lept forward in a frenzy. Was that the tracks or the belt burning? Likely a combination of the two, but more belt than tracks I'd imagine. No belt issues so far. Hope that continues. I bought the extended 5 year warranty, so I'm not overly worried at this point. Just enjoying the ride and it's a fun one so far. I would recommend a XP850 to anybody.

I'm going to check the belt condition this weekend and will report back on this post. Also will be keeping a spare and practicing how to change it in the dirt.

 

Yep..I wouldn't venture too far into the bush on anything belt driven without having a spare and knowing how to change it...regardless of how many people had or had not broken a belt...anything can happen and it is one of the few show stoppers on these machines and one of the even fewer that can be easily fixed if you are prepared. I took mine off before I even had a manual,just so I would for sure know how should the need arise.. The belt change is really easy IMO..the hardest part about doing it on the trail is going to be lifting the machine to pull the tire(if you aren't prepared). I can think of many creative ways to do it in a pinch but a small bottle jack would come in handy. Other than that it's pretty easy. Pull the left rear tire,then remove 4 bolts holding the removable frame section in..next and the most time consuming is pulling the cover bolts,all of which are easy to get to with a wrench or 1/4" drive socket..except the upper right one just forward of the battery on the right side. You'll need a short extension for that one to make life a little easier. Next pull the rear diff vent hose off the diff fitting(need pliers for the clamp,small ones in tool kit will work) and move it out of the way to give a little more room to slide the cover out...it will come out without moving the hose but you chance damaging the hose. Now slide the cover out the left side. Use the clutch tool in the tool kit to open the secondary clutch,then work the belt out and off of the secondary(if belt isn't broken). Reverse to install. Pay attention to the cover seal s as not to damage it or have it pop out of it's groove while getting the cover back into position. I pulled mine out if the cover the first time I removed it and used thin layer if silicone in the groove of the cover and let it dry to hold in the rubber seal,not enough to push out and get one the mating surface...just thin layer to hold the seal in place...next time I pulled the cover the seal stayed put and didn't try to jump out of the groove. Don't forget to hook the vent hose back up.

Edit-Just occurred to me I may have already posted the belt change instructions in this thread..if I did sorry..lol

Funride-I wonder if you can possibly snake the cover out with the left rear track on? There is more room inboard of the track than if the tire was on right?
One thing I have not tried is changing the belt with the tire on..you MIGHT be able to squirm a belt out and a new one in..but I wouldn't count on that unless you try it at home first. I think I'll look into that the next time I pull the cover.

 

I didn't try while running tracks, but I hear what you're saying. I'll have to test in the fall. If I have to pull a rear track in the snow at say 10 degrees, it would not be fun.....What it would be is suck-it-up-time. Figure it would take about an hour and a half to get it off, change the belt and reinstall the heavy track by myself. It's a bear to get everything lined up solo, but doable. Installing the rear stabilizer would be difficult with freezing fingers. Might have to crawl home and pray you don't rip the track off off the hub. Better that than a frozen corpse though A complete inventory of tools before you leave along with a quality headlamp is required. You could easily end up in the dark if something goes wrong on a winter afternoon. Good thing I've got the front and rear storage boxes on the UPS truck as we speak.

These conversations are good to get folks to think about things....including myself. Hundreds of heads are most certainly better than one.

 

HO, did you not have to remove the bolt in section of the frame?

 

Yes,it is just 4 bolts and it comes right off..sorry if that wasn't clear..I mentioned removing the 4 bolts..that is really all there is to that...it will just fall off once the bolts are out if you aren't holding it.

 

Went to the dealer yesterday and they told me the rear diff is the problem. Said it was set up too tight from the factory or supplier. New complete diff is on it's way and should be ready to go next weekend. Just a heads-up to others that may have the same problem. Dealer said my 850 is the only one to come back for anything from all thay have sold.

 

Glad they are getting is sorted out for you Hotdogmb.

This is the kind of "stuff" than can happen. Polaris (or others) can "engineer" a quad to the highest degree, and test the crap out of it. However, when the manufacturing starts, anything can happen... sub par componets, torque wrench not set right, computer glitch, guy on the assembly line having trouble with his wife, or it was built on "Friday". LOL

What ticks me off, is when the manufacturer writes everything off as "driver abuse", or calls it "normal".

 

I did a couple of WOT runs last night. First of all, the damned thing flies. Second, no smoke, no belt stink, and none on my buddy's 850 either. Both are bone stack though. Still a great machine.