to night i was riding my 2002 quadrunner 500 4x4, when i noticed it wasnt sounding right. when i came to a stop, it idled, and 6 inch flames were coming out the muffler, definitely not normal. i turned it off and let it cool down. i was runnin it pretty hard. but, the overheat light didnt come on. it is a cold night and i didnt really waRM IT UP BEFORE I STArted riding. I noticed (this may have occured before too) the header was red- hot. (my friend's does this as well) is this normal?? what could be the cause of this?

(sorry for the long thread)

 

I don't know about the flames coming out of the muffler - sound like your carburetor may be set a little rich and the fuel is igniting in the muffler instead of the engine. But the glowing header appears to be normal. I have a 2005 Bruin 350 in which the header gets so hot it glows cherry red, but I have been assured by many sources that this is normal.