Picked up a 95 xplorer 400 yesterday. Nice machine for the age and it came with a winch and a polaris plow set up along with a polaris storage box. Typical type of machine I usually find, been sitting for about a year and a half since last started so it needs some freshening up. The lady that owned it said they just used it during hunting season and running across the field to the other hobby farm on their property. It started to grind when going into gear so she took it to a local small engine "mechanic" and it came back still grinding but would idle real slow or die. I looked at the shifting issue and it just looks like a simple adjustment because it's not going into high all the way. I ran a compression test and came back with 125 which isn't bad for a 22 year old machine. I checked the idle adjustment and it's cranked all the way in and it still doesn't idle well or at all. Once you open the throttle it wakes right up and runs great. I checked the ETC and have it set where it's supposed to be. I am going to go ahead with a carb kit, spark plug and crank seals like I usually do on these old machines but is there something else I might look at? I plan on pulling the reverse limiter wire too since I see that is still hooked up. Aside from a good cleaning and some fresh fluids and grease in all the drivetrain, I should have a good plow machine. Unfortunately, I have a brother in law that may be wanting to borrow it for the winter since he wants a wheeler with a plow, lol.

Thanks,
Mike

 

Sounds like you have it covered.
Common problem on these older models when there was wear in the shift boxes. Just have it in neutral,remove the linkage ends from the shift box sliders and adjust the ball ends to where they drop straight back into the sliders with no resistance. If it continues to have problems shifting,some parts are still available for the shift box.

 

Thanks OPT,

got a chance to work on it today. Carb kit eliminated all the running issues and I changed the crank seals and water pump seals while I had everything tore down. The counter balance oil was very clean which surprised me since most people neglect that issue on these old 400's. The shifting problem was a multitude of problems. The shifting linkage was both loose and out of adjustment and none of the lock nuts were tight. The other issue was the transmission was moving around in the frame. I noticed someone had loosened up the mounting bolts for some reason. I tightened everything up and adjusted the linkage and now it shifts fine. The shifter is a little sloppy bit not enough to warrant me tearing into it since it turns on all the lights for neutral, reverse and awd just fine.

changed out the hub fluid and checked the transmission fluid which looked pretty dirty. What can I put in the trans for fluid if I don't have the recommended polaris stuff? Will a good chain case lube like amsoil work?

other than that, just waiting on a new key switch to show up because the original one is very sticky. Then she should be ready to go.

Thanks,
Mike

 

Amsoil chain case lube will work fine. Sounds like you're getting pretty good at working on these old 2 strokes..

 

 

Thanks OPT,

I don't know if I'm getting good yet, still asking a lot of questions to be sure of myself, lol. I haven't done too much other than a few top ends, carb rebuilds and seal replacements. Haven't got into a bottom end or replaced a counter balance yet but I'm sure that challenge is coming someday if I find the right machine to try it on. I have my old mint 95 sportsman 400 that I want to go through this winter. It's all original and looks like a two year old machine with no rust or fade anywhere. Even the plastic doesn't have any scuff. An old man owned it and I got lucky enough to buy it right. I want it to last a long time and being that it's 22 years old, I'm sure it's due for some new seals and have a new wiseco piston put in to replace the fragile oem one. It runs like new now, but just looking to make it reliable for many years to come.

On this old xplorer, what wears in the shifter box? I looked up the parts diagram on partzilla but most of the slides are no longer available. The one part that is would be the bearing cup. Number 10 on the diagram. It shifts fine, but I would feel a bit better if the shifter was a bit tighter. The indicator lights all come on easily and the awd light works like it should also so I'm thinking the internals must be somewhat tight.

Thanks,
Mike

 

Thanks,

I always change my hub fluid on my 4x4 models every year. I notice on the machines I pick up, it is the one thing I see that is always neglected. Probably why so many people have issues with the on demand hubs.

 

Also dont forget to change your counterbalancer oil, the dipstick for it is located on the back side of the engine below the carburator it takes 10w-30 engine oil, it will probably come out cream colored due to moisture

 

Yes the bearing cup wears,plus check the small centering spring or just order it along with the slide o-rings. Check slack at the rod ends also. Replace if worn and wobbly.Pretty soon you may not be able to get these parts.

 

Thanks OPT,

the bearing cup definitely is worn and the spring is pretty week so I ordered all of the parts you mentioned. The rod ends are tight, I just think the shifter box was wire from the lack of line in it and the rubber boot was loose. Now all I have to figure out is how much fluid goes on the transmission. My service manual goes back to 96 but it list 3 different transmissions. I ruled one out as it was a high, neutral and reverse only so the other two have different capacities. One being 32 ounces and one being 20 I believe.

Thanks,
Mike