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Sportsman 850 burnt up its toast

5K views 45 replies 15 participants last post by  madmatterphotos 
#1 ·
My boyfriend had a 2020 sportsman 850. He went riding today but before he even got 10 feet, he heard a pop under the engine, saw smoke, lost power and then flames. Anyone have any ideas?
He’s had a power issue before with it losing power then during, and a dealer diagnosed a fuel pump so he replaced it then no problems for months till now. Thanks
Ecoregion Fire Ash Flame Pollution
 
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#3 · (Edited)
My boyfriend had a 2020 sportsman 850. He went riding today but before he even got 10 feet, he heard a pop under the engine, saw smoke, lost power and then flames. Anyone have any ideas?
He’s had a power issue before with it losing power then during, and a dealer diagnosed a fuel pump so he replaced it then no problems for months till now. Thanks View attachment 174738
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Ball Gas Font Vehicle registration plate Automotive lighting
 
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#10 ·
Well, if it had been an electric vehicle it would not have happened - no gasoline or oil to fuel a fire!

But wait; isn't the container for the EV battery made of petro-chemical material? How about the insulation on the wiring, the body, the tires, lighting equipment, motor controller and brake system materials? How much of an electric vehicle can be constructed without products derived from coal, oil or gas?
 
#11 ·
I have seen pictures of sleds that caught on fire. Everything burns down to a little pile of ashes in the snow. About all that is left is the crankshaft, shock springs and small steel parts.The track and seat burn so hot it turns the tunnel into ashes, and all the plastics and gas burn so hot it melts the engine and bulkhead. You could put all that is left in a couple of 5 gallon paint buckets.

Nothing even left to salvage from your ATV. Hope you figure out how it happened and let us know so we may be able to prevent it from happening to others.

Hope you have good luck with your insurance and get a new ATV without to much trouble.

D
 
#15 ·
As long as the extinguisher is charged and serviced yearly, they basically never wear out - if the unit is dry chemical (colored baking soda treated with an anti-caking agent) servicing consists of turning to unit opposite it's stored position and tapping with a rubber mallet to assure the chemical is not caked or clumped. I have refilled and recharged my own extinguishers for many years. Note: I fill with compressed air - not nitrogen or CO2 as commercial servicers do - alsso commercial servicers will not refill an extinguisher over 5 years old without 'hydro pressure testing' and then they refuse to service an extinguisher over 10 years old. I have to replace my extinguishers every 10 years to maintain my commercial liability insurance.
 
#25 ·
My boyfriend had a 2020 sportsman 850. He went riding today but before he even got 10 feet, he heard a pop under the engine, saw smoke, lost power and then flames. Anyone have any ideas? He’s had a power issue before with it losing power then during, and a dealer diagnosed a fuel pump so he replaced it then no problems for months till now. Thanks View attachment 174738
I just got a recall for my 2021 Polaris 570 wire harness issue and we're it is about catching Fire I wonder if that is affecting your vehicle I took mine to the dealer last week they inspected it they said mine was good to go wonder if you have the problem with that model
 
#26 ·
There was a recall on my 2021 Polaris 570 Sportsman took it to the dealer last week they inspected it it was a wire harness that the recalls about they said that could catch fire wonder if that is affecting your ATV I would look into that mine was good to go thank goodness for that
 
#29 ·
Consider an ABC extinguisher.
many of the “automobile” extinguishers are simply BC.
 
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#30 ·
I buy NOTHING from Amazon. Counterfeit or chinese garbage, always. eBay isn't much better, but if you know what you're looking for you can at least buy something decent from a non-commercial seller.

Pop, then fire - sounds like an extreme dead short of something thick, wiring-wise. Either carelessly installed accessories, or poor build quality. Both are extremely common today, no matter what you buy - cars, trucks, lawn mowers, etc.. The amount of crap out there today astounds me as a mechanic.

Partly because of this, after 14 years of running my own small engine and automotive repair shop, plus another 10+ on top of that doing it on the side, I'm moving on to something different. Between crap parts that are junk right out of the box or don't make it a week, supply chain b/s, USPS / UPS b/s, rust due to road salt, super expensive tooling becoming obsolete in just a few years (and failure prone because it's electronic), I've had about enough. Taking a maintenance position in the city. I'm friggin done.
 
#31 ·
ummmmm ok?
 
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#33 ·
"Taking a maintenance position in the city. I'm friggin done."

I worked for a municipality for 8 years. You are not going to distance yourself from cheap china crap. Municipalities buy from the lowest bidder and hires low bid contractors for anything they do. I spent most of my 8 years fixing or modifying what a low bidder installed. It always cost them more in the long run than if they would have bought quality instead of cheap.

D
 
#35 ·
I hear ya. I was the machinist at a water treatment facility. We had a lot of old mechanical equipment that I rebuilt. That part I enjoyed, But, the city was always "upgrading" with modern electronic controllers trying to operate valves and pumps built in the 1930's. It was an automation nightmare. I also did boiler work. Lots of new electronic controls being added to old boilers these days too. Usually by the low bidder.

D
 
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