This is my favorite post ever, I am going to print this and frame it.

TLC, you hit it right on the money....

 

Ok...so you are saying the alignment and deflection are off from the factory on machines that are having belt problems?
Also he said 70Hp is nothing for the belt system but above you say they failed 3 times more often than onld Sportsmans because of the power? I am getting really confused with what you are saying Koerbs..maybe if you could tell us a little more about how you came to witness all the testing on the XP first hand and a little more about what exactly it showed it might help clear things up. Just saying guys are using high when they should be in low and that the 70 HP on the belt is too much for high range under loading..but fine for a 170 hp sled..is confusing.

 

When did I say horsepower? Its the torque, a 4 stroke has more torque than a 2 stroke, but the belt is strong enough anyway. And if you re-read my previous post about putting a load on the motor and what happens when the tires don't spin, you should understand, its in english.

 

A sled is not just harder on a belts due to much more HP but they all have a higher operating rpm and do not have a low range(most),yet sleds towed out other broken down sleds at slow 20 mph twisty and hilly trail speeds for 50 miles without belt troubles.

I,m not comparing 2 vs 4 strokes, a 750 twin 4 stroke sled makes 140hp but requires much higher rpm to achieve this,it should blow belts left and right compared to a ATV.

 

I'm not trying to get into a ****ing match with you..those were serious questios..
But actually you said POWER...close enough to HP..never saidn anything about the TQ..and I bet at some point that 170 HP 2 stroke sled motor has more TQ than the 70 HP ATV motor..granted it is likely at a higher RPM which will allow the primary to exert more force on the belt with less weight. Regardless you agreed the belt is strong enough...and I agree it is...then why is it slipping (besides the pulling up to an obstacle in high theory..I know I have not done that with mine, besides I can get mine to slip enough to smell it right this minute by doing a WOT pass up to 50 mph..is that normal?)
I do understand when the tires are not turning but the motor RPMS are climbing above belt engagement RPM then the belt is slipping. Do you really think guys are pulling up obstacles in high range and rolling into the throttle letting the belt slip until while the tires just sit there not turning..then realize they are not going anywhere and nothing is happening so they just give it more throttle? I just can't fathom that X number of people,some with previous Polaris ATV experiance would be that dumb.

 

LOL... and after everything you've said that's my favorite post of all time.

Anyhow, it certainly sounds like you know what you are talking about, and I guess you are right... if you buy an 850 XP, you better leave it in Low Range... especially if you have to go over a stump or rock or something.

Kudos to Polaris for making the "Worlds Toughest, Most Powerful ATV".

 

Because you are not in low range! LOL LOL Ooops... that's right 50 MPH is a bit to much for Low Range.

BTW, finally a post from an actual XP owner, with the problem, describing the point I was trying to get across.

 

Another thing is the same belts and CVT system on the 1000-1400lb RZR / Ranger side by sides do not blow up belts and those things are way heavier and have 1200 and 1700 lb towing ratings.

2009 Polaris Ranger™ RZR™ LE Stealth Black Utility Vehicles

 

LOL..it will hit 41 in low though!
Like I said I can only comment on what mine seems to be doing. I don't climb over trees in high..I don't tow in high..I don't negotiate deep mud in high...I normally don't do anything that would be considered high load,especially not at low speeds(below 10 mph)..except I have taken off from a stop,or slow roll in high under heavy throttle..from watching the RPMs and when the smell is apparent the belt only seems to slip once I hit 30+ MPH. I can launch in high from a stop(popping wheelies) all day long with no belt smell or apparent slip..if I do not stay in it up past 30 mph..
But I tested high range alot in deep sand down in Florida,I rode in high alot of times when I would normally go to low,..just to see how it did after reading about the belt problems and havine a possible problem myself....at speeds of 10-15 mph I ran high range through deep sand and even climbed 1/4-1/2 mile long slight ascent hills in deep sand and never smelled the belt..you could tell the machine was under a pretty good load..I had to use about 1/2 thottle to maintain speed and the RPMs averaged about 4800-5200..not from spinning but from backshifting. The back shift was apparent. I must admit the XP clutch set up did very well. I never tried to go WOT in high in the deep sand though. Like I said though..even with the new belt that I took it easy on for about 50 miles(10 hours for me when I ride trails in NC) WOT in high range will occasionally cause a burning belt smell,especially with decent traction...but I haven't done done any repeated WOT runs with the new belt..that would really get the last belt to slip..again it might have been contaminated. If I went WOT in high from about 7-8 mph up to 40-45 mph turned around and did it again by about the 3rd pull it would very noticably slip...RPM would climb to 74-7500 by 40 mph.. Maybe I'll try that on the new belt soon but I have a sneaking suspision I can make it slip.

Back to breaking in the belt..Does it take more than 50 miles to break in a belt? How do you know when it is ok to romp on the belt?
I mean exactly what is happening during belt break in? The belt is wearing into the clutches right? I think the manual says 10 hours or 100 miles right? I know that after break-in I rode the 800 the same way that I ride the XP after I broke it in..hard and fast in high was not uncommon and never had a belt smell or glazed the belt.

 

HO,

Just so you know. The guy that has the 850 that we ride with who broke his belt in extremely easy (maybe to easy?) He also seems to keep his bike in low range in the same spots that we do (which is most of the time).

As for going over logs and rocks and stuff... he seems to go over them without so much as spinning a wheel, and without having to apply to apply hardly any throttle. His bike crawls over them effortlessly (probably because he's in low range). As a matter of fact, he seems to transverse everything easier than most of the other bikes.

Anyhow, we have a flat mile or so stretch of smooth logging rode that we always like to "open them up" a few times. He was going WOT a few times from about 20 - 25 MPH. We were all doing it. The third or fourth time he did it, I saw him back off the throttle and look down. We could smell the belt.

Sure enough, he took it back to the dealer, and the belt is shot... at 37 hours and around 210 miles.

I called him and told him about some of the advice and comparisons to snowmobiles and such. He really didn't want to hear it, and I can't repeat what he said. LOL Can't say as I blame him... he is really ****ed.

He said he's trading it in on a new KQ or Grizz as soon as he gets it back. He rode his old KQ over the same turf, in the same manner for 5 years... never a problem.

I have no idea what is wrong, but it really makes me mad... I wanted to ride it a couple more times.