[JFWI850XP]

HELLO,
first time posting and I have a real problem! I have an 09 850xp that has already had the breather update. Last weekend it was on a 45 deg. incline for about 20 minutes while being winched up a long hill. It was idling all the way up the hill with just enough gas to keep the tires moving with the winch. When at the top we noticed oil all over the front end. The oil was coming out of the crankcase breather which dumps under the headlight pod. Dealer is telling me my K & N filter is to blame. Sucked up dirt and probably ruined the rings and pistons. Needs a rebuild. I always thought the oiled K & N filters were better than the stock paper filters. Dealer said the other problem is that the filters are not clamped on, well that's not my fault! When shopping for this wheeler in 2009 I was price checking at the dealer where the 4 wheeler is being serviced now (because it's close to home) and was told by the owner "you would get faster, better service if you bought it here". The 4 wheeler does not smoke but it lost about 1 qt. of oil in a 6 mile 2 hour ride; low range 4 wheel drive but not revving up at all. Any suggestions??

 

[Bruce!]

Welcome to the board.

 

[Amdforever]

First off welcome!

As for the oil, at that angle it is very possible for a large amount of oil to be covering the crank while idling. That will create a great deal of oil vapor and the breath was more then likely doing its job of puking it out. Without being there, that is only an assumption though.

As for K&N, they FLOW better then stock; they DO NOT filter better then stock. Only thing that comes close to paper is a foam filter and even that has mixed studies vs real world tests. The benefit of foam/cotton (K&N) is that they allow more airflow and re-usable. More airflow typically means less filtration.

Have you verified dirt has gone down the intake track? Where exactly was all the oil cause it should be going into the airbox as that is where the breather should go stock even with the updated parts from the '12 models. And being a 1 qt low could be accurate given if you think about 1qt of oil has spilled all over the front of the quad as you've stated. If it isn't burning oil yet with blue smoke in the exhaust, that's a good sign. Top it off or change the oil in it for safety, do a compression check on it and see how it does on the next ride; checking periodically for the oil level. If you find dirt down in the intake track, then more then likely you should pull the head off and check out the cylinders.

 

[Snowman525]

Agreed, the K&N is the worst thing you can possibly add to a quad. However the oil leak most likely has nothing to do with it.

 

[LS6rally]

^ Well i know its a big debate. I, Myself have not found any dirt behind my K&N, i do run it with a pre-filter. How do you guys feel about that? should i just go back to Polaris Filters?

 

[Diesel man 03]

First off get a new dealer, this guy is in another world. Any filter that flows better most likely does not filter as good as the paper filter, but don't rebuild your engine until you need it.

 

[Amdforever]

^ Well i know its a big debate. I, Myself have not found any dirt behind my K&N, i do run it with a pre-filter. How do you guys feel about that? should i just go back to Polaris Filters?

Not really a debate; it is governed by physics...just cause they claim they do great in the ads does not mean they truly do. It won't be dirt that you find though, it'll be the dust that it lets through. Out here in the desert especially... That dust then mixes with fuel and oil and can turn into an abrasive against the rings and cylinder wall.

Any filter you run though, definitely put a pre-filter on it if you can!

 

[Snowman525]

Not sure about Polaris but with the Can Ams, the Uni and Twin Air have 1-2hp less on the dyno compared to the factory paper filters. That means they filter better.

 

[JFWI850XP]

Talked to the dealer again today. After talking with Polaris they have now said it is a seal between the engine and the transmission. Have to separate the two to replace it but at least the engine does not have to be rebuilt. Bad rings just didn't make sense. If that was the case I should have been losing oil for a while before this. Not 1 qt. in 20-30 minutes. Of course I set up a big ride for this weekend and I'll never have it back in time. Go figure.

 

[Snowman525]

Well at least they got to the bottom of it


Sent from my iPhone 7 using Tapatalk