2005 Suzuki Vinson Rear Wheel Drive Not Working

[bummy945]

Please help!!!! My 05 Vinson 500 auto suddenly has no rear wheel drive. As far as I know(I have kids) it was driven to it's spot in the garage just fine and when I went to use it next, it won't move in 2wd. If I put it in 4wd it engages and I can drive it that way with no noises or issues. In 2wd there is a slight noise like something spinning freely that should be engaged. I compare that noise to a snowmobile clutch with no belt on only quieter. Please help point me in the right direction.

Thanks

[bummy945]

I found what appears to be a damaged electrical connection to a small housing just down from the shift lever on the left side of the bike. I pulled out the receptacle and it appears to be a solenoid of some kind. It's black plastic. Does anyone know what this does and if it could be my problem? I can't repair it or get a part today so I'm just curious if I should keep digging.

[Ajmboy]

That may be the 2WD/4WD actuator, and very well may be your issue.

[bummy945]

Unfortunately, I found out that the electrical item is just the speed sensor so I'm still searching to find out why there is no rear wheel drive.

[bummy945]

Front driveshaft turns and rear doesn't. I'm guessing this means I have big problems. Anyone have any ideas?

[Stoopidbot1]

I'm not familiar with the 4x4 setups on quads but I would start looking where the rear drive shaft connects.

[DirtDemon]

The rear drive output shaft is driven by a bevel gear, that gear could be toast, also , the splines could be stripped where the output shaft bolts to the rear drive yoke. Look at the bolt in the center of the yoke when you put the machine in gear in 2wd, see if the bolt is spinning inside the yoke.

[bummy945]

The shaft was spinning with the yoke so I guess either the gears or output shaft have broken. I just pulled the engine out. Anyone have any advice on tearing into the transmission? I have a service manual and it's too pricey to get this done at a dealer so here I go.

[DirtDemon]

Just keep track of where everything came from, the biggest concern besides finding the broken parts, is making sure everything goes back in the way it came out. If you can keep everything in order, you should be fine.

[yimcyco]

the input shaft to rear diff is stripped where yhe rubberboot is

[bummy945]

The problem was a coupling at the front of the rear output shaft that connects it to the front output shaft which is driven by the bevel gear. The front of the coupling is splined to connect to the front shaft but the rear of the coupling is apparently only press fit onto the rear shaft and it was spinning freely and floating forward off the shaft. Seriously Suzuki, how hard would it have been to spline the rear or at least key it? I removed it, cleaned it up in the lathe, pressed it back on, and welded the $@&ker. Why buy a $170 shaft so it can fail again. The real work was in taking everything apart to get to the shaft. I see why the dealer wants $2000+ for this job but mine is fixed for $40 worth of gaskets for reassembly. If anyone has similar problems and wants advice, feel free to e-mail me and I'll walk you through the repair. I'll even clean up your shaft and weld it for you if needed because I know how bad I felt when my $7500 machine took a crap. I don't drive it hard at all so if I had this problem, either I bought a lemon or other people will have the same problem.

[Ajmboy]

Nice job! Thank for posting your fix, I'm sure others will run into the same situation.

* Adjusted thread title to include manufacturer, full year, and issue reword, for better searches.

[DirtDemon]

That is a crappy idea to press fit a drive shaft together. Welding it was a good idea, but gears and such are usually made from a medium carbon steel, which is harder than mild steel and has different weldability due to the higher carbon content. It is usually necessary to preheat the metal prior to welding, and keep applying heat for a while after welding to keep the metal from cooling to quickly and getting even harder and brittle. I don't know if you did that or not, and even if you didn't you may not have any problems as long as them metel didn't get too hot, but I just though I would point that out in case you have any problems with your repaired shaft or end up doing it for someone else.