Took the pipe off my girlfriends M8 to give it a good blasting and coat it today and found a nice surprise. Anyone else have issues resulting like this with their 800 Cat's?? The engine has just over 400km on it as well and most of the damage is on the left (clutch) side jug. The pin moved fine and the bearings look good but the piston is trashed and there are signs of heavy contact at the exhaust port then lightening up through the travel. The right side is only minor scuffing and the cross hatch is still visible but the piston will need to be replaced as well. I've got a few idea's but just wondering if this limited to my sled or not.
My Arctic Cat wants to be a Polaris
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ttpowersports
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that sucks,, what yr n when did u buy it? only prob with taking stuff down urself (if ur still on warranty) is its tough to ensure the reason for failure and get u warranty, if applicaple, check with ur dealer , any issues let us know, we could at the least give u a the S&M discount on the parts,.,,,
T
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pipes
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hard to say but too me it looks like signs of cold seizing.
ttpowersports
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i was thinking that, but my visions getting a bit blurry
teeroy
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I concur.....looks like it was halfway there.
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It's an 09 and since I bought it the dealership has been sold in the town I bought it from and the new owners aren't easy to deal with. I'm not sure what cold seizing is to be honest... I think it's the same thing as a cold start (loading unit while not up to temp). The engine is still under warranty but I won't take the sled to the local dealer so I'll have to eat this one.
pipes
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If that's the case then what temperature and for how long should the engine run before going?? The only issue I have with the cold start is that I know every mile that was put on the sled. By any chance has anyone seen an engine damaged by overheating?? This was one issue we had when we first get the sled.
pipes
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my experience with overheating is usually both cylinders and all four corners. but that's not to say, every situation is unique in it's own way.
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Yeah you're right... the scuffing does wrap around the piston more than the pictures show but the wear is more on the thrust faces of the cylinders and not all the way around. Sigh, if the damage is from riding it cold then I think I'm going to have to start it and leave it running the whole winter just to keep it warm enough or something. Oh well, guess it's time to break out the hone and order new pistons and rings.
Rucky
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That's really weird. At my dealer, they haven't even seen the internals of an 800 engine yet!
Hudson_M1000
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Dude, you can take it to any dealer, anywhere. They have to fix it.
Hudson_M1000
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Dude, you can take your sled to any Cat dealer and they will fix it. They have too.
ttpowersports
Active VIP Member
that may be a bit of a stretch. hope u got a company fuel card...lol
just kidding....since no sled has a temp guage telling u when its good to go,(except yamaha fourstroke) heres what i do... put suit on flash up sled by the time u get ur helmet n gloves on, put ur truck keys in ur pocket and make sure ur good to roll, the sleds warm ,, or 5 minutes... if your loading it on a trailer or deck, start the sled before the truck, and get the ramps out and tie downs ready, then the sled is warm enough.
hope it helps, we too have never had an 800 apart...and only one m7 , warm up is crutial. your new dealer should help u out...
Terry
deathtoll
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what we do when i go rideing. Is the day or night before we go sleding. we warm up the sleds go for a quick ride in the feild come back and load them up into the truck and trailer the next morning we just head out get to where we are going get out start all the sleds then pull them off let them warm up for 5 minutes after there all unloaded and go ride my uncule has done this since her bought his 98 powder spacieals and his 98 couger new they have 10,000miles on them and have never had the motor opened up:d
Trax 2 Treadz
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I have always just touched the rear tunnel cooler, once it is warm it should be fairly safe to ride.
team dirt
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x2. its when the thermostat opens and all the cold antifreeze hits your engine, that where the damage comes from. that looks like overheating to me though, same thing on my rev a few years back, took a cooler out in the creek and didnt realize it. never seized but it was close. there is some kind of acid you can put in the cylinder wich will take the piston scuffing out before you hone it.
Actually.... LOL the new 2010 4 stroke cats will not rev above a certain rpm until the motor is hot enough (I want to say 5000 rpm?).
I'm like Trax 2 Treads and team dirt. Once rear cooler is warm to the touch, then I head out. This means that the motor is warm enough that the t-stat has opened and coolant is circulating. As stated, most cold seizures are from the t-stat slamming open and a rush of cold coolant hitting the motor. Good warm up is important. I also go fairly easy on the throttle for the first 1-2 kms, just to make sure that motor, gears, track, etc, all reach and stabilize at operating temp or at least get some oil on them before you start really cranking the throttle to it. Besides this, its easier to lean seize a motor in the morning than the afternoon typically.
retiredpop
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Muriatic acid - but be careful not to get it on any bare aluminum in the ports or you'll get a free port job.
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