i was riding over the weekend, at a campout, and the speedometer quit working all together. no trip, odometer, or speedo. i didnt go though any water over the tires, but it did rain really hard on it for around 10 mins. i havent taken the esembly apart yet, but i will after school tomorrow. i just thought i would see if anyone has had this problem, and how did they fix it. i really need it, because i am planning on sellin it within a couple months. any help is appriciated.

 

PolarisMan, Mine went out after a hard jump. Turned out to be the pickup sensor on the right front wheel. Mine was in warranty and they replaced it. Might just take an adjustment. Anyway I would check this first.

Gardner 10

 

anybody else? i hope i dont have to replace the whole thing, and if i do anyone know how much that is????

 

The speedo is $140 (MSRP). Mine quit, too.

 

PolarisMan, Does your hour meter still work? If so it is just your pickup that is toast. They don't take impacts very well, chances are you kicked up a rock or other piece of debri and into it. The pickup has a Polaris list price of $39.95. It is a common problem the those of us who ride hard or mud alot.

 

Mine went out while on warranty, and was replaced
then. I don't know how much it cost though. Another thing to consider other than the sensor, I noticed before and since I had mine replaced that the plastic nut which holds the ignition switch in place backs off ALL THE TIME. If you don't stay on top of it it will spin all the way around, could this short out the digital speedo? Just a thought. As mine was going bad, the motor would run rough and then would stop, then it would not start. I also noticed the digital display went skitso and it could not be read.

 

Polaris Man:

My came unthreaded where it joins the odemeter. If you are lucky that is all it will be.

1998 500 SP~ 6249 miles

 

mjs,

I had the same problem on my '98. The units these guys are talking about don't have a speedometer cable like we do. They have a speed sensor on one front wheel. Diagnosis and repair is not the same. As quads go, you and I are not up to date, we ride in the dark ages. Good to see that many miles on a '98. Mine is not there yet but I am working on it!

offspring,

If it backs off all the time then fix it! Spin the nut off, put a dab (doesn't take much at all) of silicone on the threads of the switch, then snug up the nut. allow an hour for the silicone to set and it will never back off again. If you just use a small dab it will hold firm, but will still come off with light pressure later if required. Good luck.

DJ

 

Dj:

I used Loc Tite on mine last year and not a problem since, never thought of silicone. Hey I am not all that far from you just up HWY 17 about 2 hours west.

 

The sensor could be just knocked out of adjustment and not actually broken. It works by counting the holes in the brake disk as they go by. If it gets bumped over just a little, it may not be able to read them.