Hi All:

My daughter has a 06 Predator 90 and she just loves it, but once she is riding on occasions when she lets off on the gas it back fires.  Some times it will sputter when she takes off.  Any ideas?

Great forum and any feedback would be greatly appreciated!

2007 FFX 700
2005 Trailblazer 250
2006 Predator 90  

Iam guessing here that it is a 4 cycle engine?

if so it sounds like the valves need adjusting a little.  also check the torque on the cylinder and head bolts.  sometimes when the engine gets hot the aluminum cylinder and head swell a bit then when they cool the gaskets aren't sealing as well as they should.
an easy way to test the gaskets is to start the fourwheeler and spray starting fluid where the culinder and head meet on the gasket.  if it's leaking a little the engine will either idle up or stumble and stall.  if there's no change then the gaskets are good.

when was the last time you changed the spark plug as well.

if it is a 2 cycle engine check the reeds in front of the carb if it has them on a 90cc.
also check the head gasket with starting fluid, if none of this is bad then
check the carburetor the fuel air mixture may need adjusting
also if there is water in the carburetor or tank it will spit and sputter.

if it has a cdi box then it could be that as well.

but check the easy stuff first, the gaskets the spark plug, and the carburetor.  

Thanx Wolf for the feedback, I will check it out over the weekend.  Her quad has very few hours and it just started acting up after a trip to the Oregon coast.  The problems are sporadic, but I'll start there.  Thanks Again  

I remembered i have worked on the polaris predator 90cc before so i looked up my notes for that specific customer.
same complaint as yours, sputtering ocassionally upon accelerating, or backfire when letting off the throttle.
seems the stator was going out.

this happens because sporadically as the stator was going out it would have times it would lose spark or have a weak spark temporarily while riding and regain it.  causing the very same problems you are having.


There are standard issues with the Polaris/E-ton atvs.

The polaris predator 90cc is actually made in Taiwan for polaris.  the only thing on the atv that is actually made by polaris are the decals.
The engine is an open 2-stroke design and this allows contamination by water/mud/dirt of the electrical system, particularly the stator.
very little water/mud/or dirt is all it takes to ruin the stator. (this happens over a short period so you don't have to have many hours on it).

Basically polaris advises you to keep it dry and out of the mud, and dirt.

I checked my notes and found that I put 3 factory oem stators on my customers' 06 predator before they sold it and bought something else for their son.
and as you know Polaris can be expensive with some of their parts.

but try the earlier suggestions your stator may not be going bad if you have kept it dry and out of the usual elements an atv is found in.
 It could be any of the others, especially with it being an e-ton it could very well be that the gaskets aren't sealing properly.
the cheaper designed engines like the e-ton or the chinese made atv's normally could do with a retorquing of the cylinder head after 1 month of ownership.  

Thanx again Wolf!!

As for the possible contamination, i.e. dirt/mud/water that is very possible, due to the weather we had on the coast.  I will keep the stator idea in mind, although I will start with your other suggestions.  If all other fails and I have to consider getting a new stator, what do those run for?

Many kudos for your help and I will keep you posted with the outcome.................Thanx  

well the stator at polaris is around $250.00- $300.00
(or they were then based on my notes)

Go on ebay if necessary they have them on there for $125.00


yeah it's aftermarket but so is the predator 90cc
it's not actually a polaris,  it's an E-ton made in taiwan. so most of the aftermarket parts are going to be made there anyway.
 course polaris wont volunteer that information.

they weren't available on ebay or aftermarket when my customer brought his,  you had to pay full price for the stator from polaris. (which helped him decide to sell the atv and buy a yamaha)
Polaris wouldn't cover the stator under warranty because the stator wasn't completely out, it was doing what your is doing, but since it was still running some they wouldn't admit the stator was bad.
(probably just the dealer here and not polaris themselves. afterall there are lots of other complaints with the polaris dealer here.)

But anyrate the customer brought the atv to me and upon checking it out the stator was in fact bad.
but having to buy three of these at POlaris' going rate was enough to scare the customer into buying something else.
the new stators worked about three months perfectly and developed the same problem or went out suddenly.

and honestly; how do you keep a child away from dirt and water on an atv?  water and dirt and mud are magnets to my children.
you can put a ton of nice jumps around where you are riding but if there is even one small puddle my boys are gonna hit it at least 20 times before they even jump the first hill.

put a stator in it you might get lucky and not have that problem again.  i couldn't tell you how to begin with sealing the stator off so that this doesn't happen again. some have used sealant around the stator cover to help avoid this in the future, but i couldn't tell you whether it caused overheating issues or not.

if you are close to the chattanooga tennessee area let me know and you can bring it by and i'll check it out for you for free.  

Hi Wolf:

Yeah I did some checking about the stator and there is a good one thru Ricky Stator for $125 and a one year "warranty".  I went thru the steps this evening and did not find anything unusual, but again I could not get the beast to act up either, ran great up and down the street!  Tomorrow I will drop the gas to see if we have any water showing.

When I checked the stator I was amazed that the area was not as "dirty" as I expected, mostly dust.  I did not realize that the "snorkle" to the stator area was so open.  When I get this figured out I am going to wrap that vent with a thin foam or cloth to reduce the contaminates from coming in.  There are some areas I may try a little Vaseline to reduce the chance of water from coming in.

Would I be too bold to remove the stator and try using some contact cleaner to clean it up or best to just blow everthing out??

As for the "advertising" from Polaris, if I had known this quad came from Taiwan I would have looked elsewhere.  Although I have ridden many Polaris quads, a Cyclone, Boss and the current Trailblazer whitout a hitch, I guess I was just a bit biased.  (Until I got my KFX700 anyway).

For the time being I am going to correct the Predator, at least until it becomes a money pit. My daughter really likes it and it fits her fine.  In fact, I was considering to upgrade her quad as for the exhaust, CDI, jet and filter this summer????  Maybe???

I know what you mean about kids and water/mud, like kids and ice cream trucks.

As for Chattanooga, stopped by down there around '99 coming back from Florida, great place and thanks for the offer.


Appreciate all the help Wolf!!  

No problem glad to help!! and if you are gonna be through chattanooga again, load the atv's up and stop by and ride the many great trails we have here.

Gonna take my son's one summer and just travel and ride different places.

On the predator, no one knows until they buy one and run into an issue. afterall Polaris doesn't want you to know that predator 90 is an import..  and I believe they are still made in taiwan today. it's really a bad thing especially when Polaris charges a higher price than most for it's atv's.

I have been riding since i was 9 years old, although dirt bikes early on and atv's later. I started out repairing various motocross and atv's early on for my uncle who owned a dealship for years.

I have worked on a lot of polaris machines, most with the same repair needs every time from atv-atv.
I owned a few polaris machines for a little while.

I don't like to sound anti any brand, but in truth I have saved a hefty college fund for my son by working on polaris for many years.
When a polaris goes out you can normally trust that it will be back in a few months for one issue or another.  and I have been told the dealer here hates to do anything under warranty, so I see quite alot of polaris owners and get alot of calls when they need repairs.

Names like Suzuki, Yamaha and Honda normally have very few issues, and most of the time i don't see those unless the customer needs a rebuild or wants upgrades.  

If you ever get a chance to go to the Oregon coast, stop by Florence.  The dunes are right down to the beach, sand for miles and miles, obsolutely beautiful.  I am hooked and we are already planning again for next year.  

Wolf

I forget to ask about using my using the contact cleaner, is that ok?........Thanx  

it should be, b ut i doubt it will do very much.
also check the stator for rust at the contact.  if it is rusted use some 360 grit sand paper to lightly clean it. but try not to loosen the stator or you'll reguage it and tighten it down.  just slide the sand paper in there and give if a couple passes. you don't want to wear the contact out.

i'll have to schedule the oregon coast for me and my son.
already got a nice set of paddle tires to hit the dunes for both his and my yamaha. picked up a nice gooseneck enclosed trailer for the toys, and spare parts.
just need to take a summer and load up and go.  

Hi Wolf:

Just thought I would let you know it is up and running.  I did run some sandpaper, a little finer, between the contact and then used the contact cleaner and wiped down the outside.  Also dumped all of the gas and put fresh, it did not look the best.  Thanks for all of the input.

When the time comes to have to replace the stator, will I need a special tool to to remove it...Thanx  

on the 90 pred i think you just need a screwdriver.

other larger atv's you need a socket and a ratchet and a puller.

glad to hear you have it up and running!  

well i forgot of course you know you'll need to remove the cover,  but once inside if i remember correctly you only need a screw driver to remove, check to see what the gap setting is for it. and pick up.  i don't recall it was last year that i replaced it. normally they are between 10th and 17thousands. (the 90cc should be closer to the 10) and i have had some go as low 8 thousandths.
so that being said you probably could use match book paper to reset it.
and if ya want just plan a weekend trip to ride with the fam. in tennessee and bring it down and i'll get it together for ya.

but am glad to hear you got it running right!!

anytime you can run 92 octane or higher.  atv's and dirtbike engines are designed for the higher octane fuels.  and it will make a huge difference. not in overall horsepower but in maintenance and repair. you wont do as much spark plug or carb maintenance.

anytime i can help let me know, i'd be absolutely glad to.

Ray  

Guys,  

I have the same exact problem with the polaris sportsman 90.  It idles fine, but when I take it up toany speed, it just dies.  From all the reading I am doing on the Internet about it, it is most likely the stator, but I would be curious to know if the attempt to seal it up was successful?

We live on a beach, so my son is going to get sand and water in it all the time.

Thanks and have a great holiday!