I've got an 02 Kodiak 400 auto that I recently took to the local ATV shop to have my shifter tightened up. I've worked with the guy there before and believe him to be a good guy not trying to pull my leg.

He noticed while looking at the shifter that eventually my carb will need to be rebuilt. The tube that comes down near my left foot does leak a few drops of gas here and there, and has since early spring.

I checked the oil and it is still good (no gas in it).

I was planning on taking the quad to an off road park for the day this Saturday for some riding. I wanted to get some opinions if I would be alright to do so or not.

The quad seems to run just fine, and I was hoping to hold off on the carb rebuild until this fall.

 

That's a chance you will have to take, leaking gas is never a good thing. I have had a Raptor that started leaking gas while I was riding it catch on fire before and burn to the ground and burn an acre of woods up before the fire dept could put it out lol. I would go ahead and fix the leak/rebuild the carb.

 

Lol, its not anything like that. I've been riding around on it for months. It leaks from the tube straight to the ground. And even then, it literally will leak just a drop or two after the ride. It doesn't leak anywhere internally. The guy at the shop even said I would be fine as long as it didn't start mixing with the oil.

I was just wondering from guys with a carb that needed rebuilt if it was something like this were you rode it for a while before you got it fixed.

 

I'd like to play it safe. The shop said they are looking to see if they could get it fixed for me in time for Saturday or not, if so, I'll get it fixed. But if not, I'll likely go, unless the majority of you guys think its really a bad idea.

 

...Also, are there any options out there for more powerful carbs? Or should I just replace it with another standard Mikuni?

 

There's a brand new one on Ebay for $93, BUT at that price I can almost guarantee you it's not a Mikuni but a Chinese knock off. An oem Mikuni at most parts houses would probably cost around $500 or so.As far as putting a bigger carb,it wouldn't do any good unless you increased the air flow(valve work,cam) and exhaust system.I had that asked often at my old shop on people just wanting larger carbs.Yamaha Kodiak 400 Carburetor YFM 400 YFM400 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 A | eBay

 

Well. there is no way you need a whole new carb. Likely just a new float valve and maybe a good cleaning. Heck, I have just cleaned carbs older than yours that were leaking pretty good out the overflow and had them be fine for a few more years.

Personally, if I couldn't get the parts to fix it/have it rebuilt I would still ride it. I would also do the work as soon as parts were at hand though. Nothing like burning your quad to the ground to ruin a nice day.

 

Thanks for the info.

The guy at the store got back with me. He said he can't get it done in time. He also said he verified just a couple days ago it hadn't mixed with the oil yet, and that was the only real hazard. He said just switch the fuel off after I ride it and it should be fine for a day of thrashing.

I already made an appointment to take it to him afterwards for the rebuild. He agrees it won't need a full new carb but more likely small things like maybe just the needle valve. He will only fix and charge me for what needs to be done.


Thanks for the replies! Now all I need to decide is whether to go to the badlands, or haspin acres on Saturday.

 

I ended up going to Haspin Acres. Holy Moly was it muddy!

Anyways, I had a great time and the Kodiak performed flawlessly. I just made sure every time I stopped that I switched off the fuel.

I think its gonna take me a long time to clean it, but as soon as its clean, I'll be taking it to the shop for the new carb. I just wanted to follow up with it, and say thanks for all the advice.