Lots of play in transmission belt please help!

[carralo1]

So just bought a 2000 xplorer 400 4x4. Stripped it down and checking everything along with new fluids,grease, paint etc. The guy said it has a new transmission belt he put in. So I took off the cover to check it and yes it looks new but there's a lot of play in it, (up and down when I press on top of the belt). My reason for removing the cover was 1. to see if it was a new belt like he said and 2. because when I test drove it, I had to give it a lot of gas to get it going, which seemed weird to me but I thought it might of had something to do with the carb because it needed to be cleaned(wouldn't idle and ran a little rough).

So What id like to know is how firm should that belt be when I press down? and seeing that its got a lot of play what will it do to harm anything in anyway? and how do I fix it? Thanks all

[tt425]

When looking at the belt you shaould be able to read the part number from left to right. What is the part# on the belt that's on it? It will have some slack. Look at the drive(primary engine) pulley and make sure it don't have a grrove on the sides of it. EBS or non-EBS clutch? If its EBS it will have grooves at the bottom of the clutch. Similiar to serpentine belt grooves on automotive pulleys.

[pjmartin]

Put a straight edge on the belt and push down lightly on the belt between the two sheaves. Deflection down should be 1-1/8" to 1-1/4". Any more than that then it's either a worn belt, the wrong belt, a motor mount problem or worn driven sheave.

[buddy_1]

Also, look at secondary to see where the belt is riding. Crank and run the engine with the trans in neutral then shut it down and look at the belt. It should be sticking out of the groove by a 1/16". If it any deeper than that, the secondary buttons and/or helix are worn or binding. This will make it sluggish on take off also, like trying to take off in second or third gear on a stick. Buddy

[carralo1]

okay so belt is moving atleast 2-3 inches up and down. Writing on belt is Polaris 3211077. Its like brand new...

I read in my manual something about shims if the belt has play up and down?

[pjmartin]

It's the right belt. Shims are to correct the alignment of the sheaves, not the distance between them. Total deflection up and down should be no more than 2.5 inches. A new belt is 1-3/16" wide across the top. If it's less than 1-1/16" then it's time for a new belt. As buddy_1 said the belt should stick out the top of the driven sheave. If a good belt doesn't stick out then the driven clutch needs servicing as it's not closing properly. Distance between clutch centers should be 10" If it's less than that then check the motor mounts.

[carralo1]

Belt says cvt on it. Just checking... It's chain to rear and shaft to front. Is this a cvt tranny because cover says Polaris variable transmission(pvt I assume? Or are they the same thing) thanks. I will check measurement today or tomorrow and will post results

[pjmartin]

CVT and PVT are same thing.

[carralo1]

so finally was able to start and ride atv today. Belt has 2.5-3 inches of play. Its grinding when I try and go in reverse. High and low are ok but reverse is bad. Please some help would be great because ive put in a lot of work and this is one of the last things