2009 Polaris Sportsman 500 EFI overheating

[Guest Auyeah]

had a Sportsman 500EFI, continuously boiling, especially when using Low Range 4WD. even with message "Hot - check engine" fan would be cutting in and out or stopping altogether. New Fan, new Electronic Control Module, cleaned radiator fins, still the same.I opperate in hot climate, Nth Aust. Only remedy was to disconect lead / plug to fan and run fan continuously from the battery.

I have just traded up to a new Sportsman X2 550EFI, also overheating. Anyone had similar problems or any ideas; radiator thermostat wrong setting for hot climate?, Circuit breaker dropping out?, Control Module needs re-setting for hot climate. HELP

I have a Redarc Smart Start Dual battery Isolator Solenoid installed to run a second battery (for charging satphone / GPS unit / detector batteries etc) but have been assured this is not feeding back and effecting the Elec Control Module.

[Ajmboy]

Welcome to QUADCRAZY! I see you are from the land down under!! Be sure to post some pictures when you have some time. I and others would love to see the riding in Australia.

What year is this machine? You may want to check with the dealer for a program update on that atv to compensate for hot climates. Is the fan turning on allot? Sounds to me like it just is not coming on frequently enough.

* Adjusted your thread title to include make and model, for better responses.

[BuckBilly]

First of all welcome to QuadCrazy!!!!!

Second , witch way did you clean the fins out??? Opposite airflow works best. Very common polaris problem . Seen this mentioned many times on other sites. I will check around to see I can find a answer for this.

[DirtDemon]

If you spend alot of time running slow in low gear, you are running the motor hard, but not moving fast enough to get adequate airflow past the radiator. Since you are in a hotter climate, that obviously makes the problem worse. My advice would be to get an oversized radiator, bigger better cooling fan, and run the highest octane fuel that you can afford to run. The higher the octane fuel, the cooler it burns.

[Guest Auyeah]

some useful hints, thanks. 1/ Overheating is quite common in our tropical climate, but all the cases I have heard about are Polaris. 2/ if the fan wiring is disconnected and the fan run continuously per direct line to battery there is no problem. 3/ problem seems to be that even when the display is showing "hot - check engine", or the radiator is actually boiling, the fan is still cutting in and out. Surely it should be running continuously at this point! 4/ I have heard that the Elec. Control Module can be changed to suit hot climates but none of the sales / service people up here seem to know anything about it.

[DirtDemon]

That is really strange that the fan is still cutting off when the vehicle is obviously hot. It may be a faulty relay or other component that controls fan operation. I think that until you can get that problem fixed, running the fan off a manual switch is a good idea since the device that controls the fan is not working properly. You can always turn it off manually when you are moving fast enough to get good airflow past the radiator. I would check the relay that turns the fan on and off and check any wiring and connections that are connected to the cooling fan. The fan may also run off it's own temp sensor, if so, I would check that too.

[Ajmboy]

Auyeah, any luck with this? What year is your quad? Any update?

[Guest Auyeah]

I got rid of the 500, 2009 model, never did get to the cause of overheating. Have just picked up a new 550sportsman 2 seater, larger radiator now. I am trying to get the electronic control module set for hot climate, service doesn't know much about it yet. This is probably why all the quads we hear about boiling up here are Polaris.

[Sc0tt]

Sorry I missed this thread earlier. Welcome to QuadCrazy Auyeah!

[ATVmechanic]

I got rid of the 500, 2009 model, never did get to the cause of overheating. Have just picked up a new 550sportsman 2 seater, larger radiator now. I am trying to get the electronic control module set for hot climate, service doesn't know much about it yet. This is probably why all the quads we hear about boiling up here are Polaris.

Congrats on the new quad. Yeah, I believe you will need to get it set by the delaer most likely to have the fan turn on sooner and stay on longer.

[Ajmboy]

* Added year into thread title.