SP500
Feb 7, 2000 | 09:56 PM
#1
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Trailblazer
Joined: Jan 2000
Posts: 53
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Question? Has polaris worked out the reliabilty issues that I here so much about. Everybody says they are great, but they break down alot. Let me here from you SP500 owners,(HONESTLY) HAVE YOU HAD ANY PROBLEMS? It's a great looking quad.!!!!
NOTE FROM ATVBBS:
No duplicate posts, please. From deleted duplicate thread:
BIGBEAR4x4
Senior Member
Tyler, TX, US
Date Posted: Feb 07, 2000 8:39 PM
My dad has a 98 sportsman 500 and it is a nice machine....only thing went wrong on his is
he broke the belt once(but scorched it real bad when pushin a truck outta tha mud)and his
stator has gone out....on the stator..today is the third time we have had to take it to the
dealer to fix it because once they put it in they broke the seal and oil was the pull starter
casing...took it back so they would fix it and even though the stator was covered with oil
they left it in only to fix the seal....its back there now hopefully bein fixed the right way this
time
Another friend of mine has a 97 sportsman with very high milage and the only thing that
has gone wrong with that one is the fan stopped workin..another odd mishap was when he
got something wet and the sportsman would not run unless it was in gear and 4wd...if
taken out of either it would die
The sportsman is a good quad i think...it will prob be my next purchase...either that or the
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sheluvit
Senior Member
geneseo, NY, US
Date Posted: Feb 07, 2000 9:56 PM
Sly,
In regards to your question about the sportsman 500 .
I have found that if you have the EBS you go through a lot of brake pads esp if you go
through a lot of mud and do a lot of steep hills. The polaris pads are more expensive than
the other quad riders i have talked to (a loT more)I have even started keeping an extra set
of pads in my tool box because they allways go right before a really big run and can be
difficult to obtain on short notice or on sundays (at least at my deales) If you hear a
squeeking behind you.... i have found 90% of the time when i look over my sholder its a
fellow SPORTSMAN 500 rider.
The second problem i have had is with the bike overheating .If you are going through a lot
of mud esp durring the hot summer mounths mud will cake the radiator off and the bike will
overheat .I did partially solve this problem by removing the out side screen after each ride
and pressure washing all the mud out (just have to be carefull not to bend the metal in
there with the water pressure) and keep a few extra o-rings on hand iv lost a lot when you
remove them they bounce away and are hard to find esp in the grass or leaves.
The third problem i have is when i go through a lot of really deep water really fast ha ha .As
your wires get wet it will cause a lot of funky problems like the bike will only start and run
in while in reverse (had us scratching our heads for a really long time on this one).I have
found if i spray the wires down with wd40 or a silicone spray it helps .
I have had my sportsman now for 2 yrs 2000 miles and a lot of abuse (really lot) and i must
say i am really pleased with my machine just have too do the maintence and wash real
well between rides. I hope you have as much luck with yours.
Ride safe have fun!! SHELUVIT
NOTE FROM ATVBBS:
No duplicate posts, please. From deleted duplicate thread:
BIGBEAR4x4
Senior Member
Tyler, TX, US
Date Posted: Feb 07, 2000 8:39 PM
My dad has a 98 sportsman 500 and it is a nice machine....only thing went wrong on his is
he broke the belt once(but scorched it real bad when pushin a truck outta tha mud)and his
stator has gone out....on the stator..today is the third time we have had to take it to the
dealer to fix it because once they put it in they broke the seal and oil was the pull starter
casing...took it back so they would fix it and even though the stator was covered with oil
they left it in only to fix the seal....its back there now hopefully bein fixed the right way this
time
Another friend of mine has a 97 sportsman with very high milage and the only thing that
has gone wrong with that one is the fan stopped workin..another odd mishap was when he
got something wet and the sportsman would not run unless it was in gear and 4wd...if
taken out of either it would die
The sportsman is a good quad i think...it will prob be my next purchase...either that or the
rubicon
Notify Moderator
sheluvit
Senior Member
geneseo, NY, US
Date Posted: Feb 07, 2000 9:56 PM
Sly,
In regards to your question about the sportsman 500 .
I have found that if you have the EBS you go through a lot of brake pads esp if you go
through a lot of mud and do a lot of steep hills. The polaris pads are more expensive than
the other quad riders i have talked to (a loT more)I have even started keeping an extra set
of pads in my tool box because they allways go right before a really big run and can be
difficult to obtain on short notice or on sundays (at least at my deales) If you hear a
squeeking behind you.... i have found 90% of the time when i look over my sholder its a
fellow SPORTSMAN 500 rider.
The second problem i have had is with the bike overheating .If you are going through a lot
of mud esp durring the hot summer mounths mud will cake the radiator off and the bike will
overheat .I did partially solve this problem by removing the out side screen after each ride
and pressure washing all the mud out (just have to be carefull not to bend the metal in
there with the water pressure) and keep a few extra o-rings on hand iv lost a lot when you
remove them they bounce away and are hard to find esp in the grass or leaves.
The third problem i have is when i go through a lot of really deep water really fast ha ha .As
your wires get wet it will cause a lot of funky problems like the bike will only start and run
in while in reverse (had us scratching our heads for a really long time on this one).I have
found if i spray the wires down with wd40 or a silicone spray it helps .
I have had my sportsman now for 2 yrs 2000 miles and a lot of abuse (really lot) and i must
say i am really pleased with my machine just have too do the maintence and wash real
well between rides. I hope you have as much luck with yours.
Ride safe have fun!! SHELUVIT
Feb 8, 2000 | 09:14 AM
#3
Pro Rider
Joined: Jan 2000
Posts: 459
Likes: 0
Sly,
A couple of us here with Sportsman 500s (98s). My wife and I are so pleased we have just ordered a 2000 model. Overall excellent. The best ATV we have ever had.
The only problem I have seen so far is rear brake pads on one, gone at 1000 miles. The guys are right, they aren't cheap. They are $46.00 Canadian but very easy to replace. I don't consider this a big problem. In comparison the brakes on the 87 Honda 350 4-Trax we use are a huge problem.
From the comment above I don't see how EBS makes the brake pad wear worse?? If anything it should be better since you have the engine slowing the machine down most of the time.
SP500 highly recommended from this corner!
Good luck in your decision.
DJ
A couple of us here with Sportsman 500s (98s). My wife and I are so pleased we have just ordered a 2000 model. Overall excellent. The best ATV we have ever had.
The only problem I have seen so far is rear brake pads on one, gone at 1000 miles. The guys are right, they aren't cheap. They are $46.00 Canadian but very easy to replace. I don't consider this a big problem. In comparison the brakes on the 87 Honda 350 4-Trax we use are a huge problem.
From the comment above I don't see how EBS makes the brake pad wear worse?? If anything it should be better since you have the engine slowing the machine down most of the time.
SP500 highly recommended from this corner!
Good luck in your decision.
DJ
Feb 8, 2000 | 09:34 AM
#4
Pro Rider
Joined: Jul 1999
Posts: 2,275
Likes: 1
I have had so many problems with my 99 Sportsman,the moderater would probably ban me for posting such a long post.So I wont list everthing wrong.But since it's return from a differant repair facility last December,everything is going just fine.Things started going wrong pretty much right after I bought it.The purchasing dealership repaired most things incorrectly.I contacted my lawyer and she contacted Polaris.Im completely satisfied since it's return last December.Im a strong advocate of the Sportsman.Many friends I have ride them trouble free.I just happened to get a bad one I guess.Good Luck=====BILL
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