Broken Speedometer and AWD. Fixed it. Polaris 1996 to 1999.
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- čas přidán 1. 10. 2020
- My speedometer wasn't functioning and as a result neither was my AWD. I was able to resurrect the speedometer as well as the AWD. I did this on a 1999 Sportsman 500 but I believe this same speedometer was used from 1996 to 1999. Maybe 2000. On a few different models.(The outside anyway looks the same as my 2002 as well.) My scenario and how I was able to fix it may not be exactly the same as yours. But I will explain how to remove the speedometer and take it apart to get inside to explore what your issue may be.There are a lot of good threads and a fantastic blog out there with pictures and great step by step instruction. And since I was doing this I figured Id supplement some of that with a video of my experience. This seems to be a very common issue with the speedometer and AWD from these years. I hope this is of some help.
Below is the link to a blog I found very helpful and dives much deeper. Even if this video covers what you need I strongly recommend checking out the link for more information. If you haven't already.
ka7oei.blogspot.com/2013/10/re...
Link for a decent shop manual. amzn.to/3rFQW6p
It does not affect the price you would pay. Links are provided for convenience. But I may make a small commission (Usually pennies.) on any products purchased through the Amazon Assoc. Program. Via links provided. Thank you for your support.
Always be sure to follow your manufacturers specifications and requirements. This video is for demonstration purposes only. - Auta a dopravní prostředky
Great job! Very helpful video. Thanks 👍
Thank you. Glad it was helpful.
My speedo on my 1999 doesn't work. Voltage regulator failure caused all the lights to burn out. AWD didn't work also. Found bad main grounds to everywhere. I ran a new wire from negative battery to the new voltage regulator, fixing my charging. issue. Then under the front panel under speedometer, creating a new frame ground put new ground to harness where the voltage regulator brown wire plugged into harness. Also from new ground source I sent 2 wires up to the brown wires on the AWD connectors to properly ground them also. Now no more starting issues, charge issues are gone. AWD WORKED, like a new bike. Speedo doesn't work but everything else works perfectly. GROUND is main issue on Polaris systems. Also replaced lights with LED lights at the same time. By sending a good ground back to the harness from the voltage regulator harness brown wire gave the bike a new ground source to everything! Someday I will pull apart the speedometer and deal with that issue. High voltage I'm sure caused it to fail some how. Hope this helps others,
Good info thanks. Sounds like you put in some time. But I bet you know that wiring backwards and forwards at this point. That particular speedo is known to be problematic and one of the things that can contribute to its problems is a faulty regulator. Its problems also relate to the price to replace it. What I did was an exploration or exercise or experiment that fortunately worked out. But I have known many to bypass the wiring successfully. Probably the best more permanent solution really. And if my speedo acts up again, which I suspect in will in time. I will probably do the same. Ive been fortunate enough over the years to not have any wiring issues really other than that. Thanks for the feedback.
I have a 2000 Polaris sportsman 500 6 x 6. It ran in three years ago, so when I was attempting to start it. It was misfiring really bad and when I unplugged the speedometer, it ran perfect but at the same case I don’t have all wheel drive no more.
Thats a stumper. I completely understand why he AWD would not work after unplugging it. That makes sense. But not sure how it would solve the misfiring issue. How did you come to decide to unplug the speedo when having this problem? The first thing I'd have done was replace the spark plug. And the old fuel. Does it begin to misfire again with fresh fuel and when you reconnect?
Just had my rear axle come apart on my 96 Polaris 500. We see the bolts that hold both sides together. Do you have a link for repair/replacement of the rear axles. Haven’t looked yet to see if the bolt simply unscrewed or possibly snapped. Kind regards. Jan in upstate New York
I had actually shot a video on that in the past and the footage evaporated along the way. Is it a single axle? Meaning not independent rear suspension with a shaft to each wheel? I forget what year dual independent rear suspension came out. If its a single axle for both wheels I have limited experience with that set up.. If its dual. They're relatively inexpensive and relatively simple to swap out. Happy to chime in if needed.
Hello Eric I got the drain plug out on the hub no problem.
My speedometer lights work, headlights work and the four-wheel-drive works but simply no speedometer. Before I try to look into this really long blog that you recommended farther down in the comments I thought I’d see if you had a quick thought. There looks to be like some sort of speedometer cable to the back transmission on my 96 sportsman recently acquired
Just opened up the light box, wonderful surprise old style with speedometer cable unscrewed/easiest fix in the world!
Easy to say now of course butthat would have been my suggestion. Not that it was disconnected. But to replace the cable. They're fairly cheap and an easy thing to eliminate in the trouble shooting process. But your fix was even easier. Hahaha! So much can be learned by just opening stuff up some times. Thats great!
Great video! This is very helpful. I just purchased a 2000 sportsman 500. The speedometer doesn’t work at all not even lights and neither does the 4x4. I’ve got the ring off and the glass, now I’m at the speedo face. I was able to remove two screws however the third is completely stripped out. Any tips on removing it?
Who knows if I’ll have any luck, the speedo was full of water because the machine was left out in the weather for a few years. The acres inside are very rusty and brittle.
Needle nose pliers? Yah, water can certainly be the enemy. You'll never know what's going on inside there until you get in though. And if it's unfixable. At least you'll know that. And then, on to plan B. Take the most care of all removing the needle. If that breaks off. You're pretty much done. Or at least Im not aware of an economically reasonable solution that's cheaper than just replacing the whole thing at that point. I wish you luck.
@@ericinalaska7648 I got the needle off in one piece. I’m at the part where you pry up the speedo face and undo the three screws. One screw left but it’s got a stripped head. Think I’m gonna try to drill it out
@@MrBoston2612 If I remember correctly its a Phillips? If so, can you get enough purchase with a small straight blade?
Yep. My 2000 Polaris Sportsman 500 also had a dead speedo/AWD/headlight and the transistor de-soldered and rattling around in the assembly like yours. Unfortunately, soldering it back into place in mine didn't fix it. I intend to replace the entire speedometer with a small computer and screen and relays to get everything working again. I've managed to snag a schematic and will be fixing everything by a full mod on the ATV. You'd be crazy to pay $400 for a replacement OEM speedometer because they're stupidly designed in the first place and bound to get too hot again like before; there's no heatsink on the TIP48 power transistor and it gets to well above 300 degrees Fahrenheit at times. This is completely ridiculous. We should all sue Polaris in a class action lawsuit.
Sounds like you have a pretty good handle on it. Id love to see what you come up with. Yah there def is a design flaw. And the replacement is unreasonable. It sounds like you have some electronics knowledge and experience. Have you or could you modify the TIP48 with a heat sink somehow? Would it be worth it and or less trouble or no?
I finally got my speedometer working with a new speed sensor but the needle stops at about 7 mph and won’t return to 0. The needle was at 0 before I installed the new speed sensor and speed increased when spinning the right front wheel. Do you think the needle just got stuck because it has been sitting for a while not working? I’m thinking about taking it apart and see if I can gently push the needle back down to zero
Thats a tough call. Did you gain any other functions as well? Id probably ride it for a bit and see if it comes back to life. And if you gained any other functions you have to weigh the benefit vs the risk. The needle is pretty firmly pressed onto a pretty fragile pin. Have you opened it before? In the process of troubleshooting? Does the needle seem displaced or rubbing on the lens/plastic? Or had you previously removed the needle? If so. If its not put back in the same position it may settle at a different point. Pos.
There's a chip near the edge of the board which controls the movement of the two windings (and thus, the needle). Get it apart and measure the resistance across both the bottom two poles of that middle assembly as well as the top two. You should get around 200-230 ohms. Look for heat damage on that rectangular chip. The chip is responsible for zero'ing the needle. It's possible that the needle was reinstalled in the wrong position.
I have a 1999 polaris xplorer 4×4, the speedometer light works and everything works except the speedometer itself, and the awd doesn't work, I would assume the speedometer is the culprit, but I heard if you take the 6 pin plug out, and short the brown and white wire, then it will bypass the speedometer? Do you know if this is true? Or is it even possible for that to work?
I have seen a video or two over the years showing the bypass and considered it as an option if my attempt didn't work out. But I haven't done it. Based on what your saying Im wondering if it could be your "Hall affect" cable. Assuming the Xplorer has one. Its a cheap effort.
On the 1999 Sportsman It goes from the front right wheel to the speedometer. Pretty simple part overall to replace. And inexpensive. Personally Id give that a try and go from there. There are also a few videos out there showing how to test one if you want to do that first.
Oh I see, because everything works except the needle, which I believe is the part that makes 4×4 work, and would that be the red white brown cable going into the right side of the speedometer?
Mine is a black cable, not sure what colors the internal wires are. Sensor at the right inside wheel and trace it to the speedo. Mine just plugs into the speedo then.
Okay thanks a lot man, really helps, but my 4×4 switch also doesn't light up, do you think it could be my switch? Do the switches only light up if 4×4 is actually working? or is that a sign of the switch not giving power
Hard to say.. There are two other parts in the speedo tat can need to be replaced as well and Im not clear on the symptoms each would cause. Did you check out the link I put in the description for the video? It may be of help to dig deeper. There is always the pos of a faulty switch as well. Id hate to send you down a rabbit hole throwing money at it without. digging into it in front of me. But check out that link. Its been a while. But the guy gets pretty detailed about each part and it helped me a lot. ka7oei.blogspot.com/2013/10/repair-of-speedometer-on-polaris.html
Mine 1998 is not even digital is with cable, is not working I need to change it, should I also bypass the 4x4 connector!?
I would see what happens when you change the cable first. If that's your plan. That way you can get a better understanding and see if that solves anything or reveals more or the real issue.
I noticed your fuel cap has a gauge on it. Do you know what gauge that is or where it’s from? And is it accurate ?
I may be wrong but I believe its original. Maybe not. Ive seen them on ATV's so much over the years and figured they were stock. Never really dug into it. If you google gas cap with gage and of course the model and year you have. They're pretty readily available. It has a float on it. So its most accurate on level ground but yah Id say it's accurate enough to know if you have a full tank or a need for refueling. I would imagine one size does not fit all though. Some models may have a different tank design that wouldn't accommodate or have room for it. I googled it real quick and didn't find one specifically for a 1999 sportsman 500. But I'd be surprised if a compatible one was not available. Hope that helps.
@@ericinalaska7648 it think yours is either aftermarket or a different factory option cause the gas cap on my 99 is just a normal Polaris branded cap
@@loganbeedy5950 Probably. I did find this one on Amazon specific to the Polaris Sportsman. amzn.to/3J6QLHY And of course the standard cap. Who knows. Mine could be for a snowmachine/mobile or a different model. I don't really rely on it too much and haven't calibrated its accuracy. But for my purpose its close enough. It docent show empty when its not and I don't feel it misrepresents levels to any crazy inaccuracy. Id think if you find one the proper length. Same as the one in the link I included and the cap fits properly. You'd be good. Q&A indicates if you have 7.5 inches or more clearance into the tank it will fit. Let me/us know if you learn anything more.
Eric, I have a 1996 sportsman 500, I got my awd system working but my bulb is burned out. I cannot find one locally, I have even taken it one step further and called polaris it self with no luck. Any suggestions? Thanks
Bulb in the speedometer? Or? Yah that's a tough one. Id have to open mine up again to see it. If you have it out, it may sound weird but, may batteries+? If not Id try to find and talk to a small electronics repair guy. Google that and see if you can find someones brain to pick. Someone specializing in stuff like that usually welcomes the challenge. Hope that helps a little anyway.
@@ericinalaska7648 sorry I didn't clarify, the buld in the awd indicator switch. I know it's a t3 style buld with a type of plastic socket no one has one. It's now my mission. Lol
@@joewilson3656 I did find this. But I don't think it lights up. Check it out. Maybe with a more refined search this will get you where you need to be or you can at least see prices and decide from there which is the best route to take. I totally understand the being on a mission. I get it. amzn.to/3xzHiWu
If you got your AWD working with the hack where you ground the brown/white wire then that's to be expected; the LED on the right handlebar won't light up in this case.
My speedometer needle broke because it froze and snapped it was really old and left in the sun a lot but everything works great on it 👍
Sorry to hear that. Are you able to make something work in its place? Attach something?
Hey man I have mine apart right now and it has corrosion and based of looks I can see that my capacitors blew out. Do you know if that's common or if another part caused that?
My first question would be was it stored outside exposed to the elements or did you or anyone commonly use a pressure washer on it? They're relatively water tight and most do just fine with all that but I think this particular one is a bit vulnerable to moisture getting in it. When you say blew out do you mean fried? Is the board showing any damage? As far as other parts causing it. Sure its pos. Off hand Id say starting with the battery. If that's bad it can cause issues. You may have a good battery now but it could have happened prior. A bad voltage regulator can also pos I would say. But you'd also have other symptoms of that. The most common being headlight brightness fluctuating with throttle. And poorly changing battery or maybe not charging at all. The blown out parts pretty much indicate they were likely over loaded and for that to happen Id think it was either moisture related or power related. If the voltage coming in wasn't properly regulated there's that. Thats my quick two cents anyway. I hope that helps.
@@ericinalaska7648 It was stored in a garage from the guy I bought it off of but it did have a bad battery and I have been having charging problems with the stator. The capacitors pretty much unsealed from the top. The board does look good other wise so I'm going to look at power and swap the capacitors out. I just want the awd back so thankyou for your input and the video. Thankyou
@@marknogueira6425 No problem. I'd love to hear what you figure out. Always good to add to the knowledge and to help others.
Do you know if any aftermarket speedometers that might work? My 99 Sportsman 500 speedometer is beyond repair
I do not. I have looked a bit but won't go as far as to say it doesn't exist. But I am unaware of such an animal. My limited understanding of this one is that it has some functionality pretty specific to a small range of years and models. S When I searched for it to make an educated decision on just buying one vs. attempting a repair I really only found an exact factory replacement. You may be able to score a used one on Ebay or something for a little cheaper. But at the time I was digging in it seemed folks were pretty aware of there market value. If you do find an option or learn something. I'd love to hear about it. As would other viewers Im sure. Let me know if you come across an option.
@@ericinalaska7648 thanks for the advice. When your all wheel drive quit after your speedometer stopped working did you have any other electrical issues? Like the lights being dim?
@@MrJSR02 Sppedo didn't work, light on speedo didnt work, AWD didnt work. When you say dim. Do you mean all the time? Or do they get brighter with throttle? If all the time. Prob battery. If changes with throttle. Likely Voltage regulator. I have a video on that as well. Check the Polaris playlist on the channel. A weak underperforming battery can cause a few issues with the speedo on this particular speedo that aren't really common it seems with others. The AWD for example. May be more common than Im aware but Ive gotten the impression its kind unique to this model and range of years.
There are no third-party replacement speedometers for these. The market for used ones is ridiculously high or nobody had the part. The new one is about $400. Personally, I'm going to replace my speedometer (and its circuitry) with a small computer and screen.
how did your friend test the transistor?
Multimeter. I'll bluff my way through it best I can. The one that needed to be reattached in the video is a TIP48 NPN (Neg Pos Neg) transistor. You have an emitter, a base and a collector. The middle being the base as I understand it. (Three posts.) He put the pos probe on the base (Middle post) and the neg on each outer post one at a time to demonstrate if there was a voltage drop (resistance or change in the reading from zero) and then reversed the probes to demonstrate no change or no reading. And with his experience he said looks good. But my understanding is if you put the pos probe on the middle post and see a reading change on the left and then the right. Looks good so far. If you then switch it to place the neg probe on the center and then the pos on the two outer posts one at a time again. You should have no reading or resistance. If you get a change in your reading like this your transistor is bad. I was prepared to replace it, having limited knowledge of testing one. And they're fairly cheap. But he was confident in his ability and confident it was good so we put it back in. And his assessment was accurate it seems. You can look up how to test an NPN(Neg Pos Neg) Transistor and you'll find lots and lots of videos if you need more detail. But that's about the extent of my understanding off the cuff. Hope that helps.
@@ericinalaska7648 Thank you for your advice
No problem. Hope it all works out for you.
Where can I get a transitioner can’t find it on eBay
Which one are you looking for?
2002 Polaris 500 Ho
When your display wasn't working did you have lights
I did not. In the video I talk about that when I first test it I believe. That was my first indication things were looking good as I turned the key on. Showing it had come back to life.
After thinking about your question again and my response. I thought to myself was he asking about the lights on the speedo or headlights? Because I have come across people who were attributing the loss of the speedo to a possible voltage regulator failure. And that their head lights would blow out or be symptomatic by getting brighter or dimming in coordination with throttling. But to answer that possible question. My headlight was working. The two lights on the front were missing bulbs when I acquired this machine. I did not the bulbs prior to fixing the speedo. But my VR tested good.
hi eric. my question isnt about the sppeedo. my issue is the r/f hub leaks. yesterday i changed the seal and leaks like a faucet now worse. any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Are you taking about the hub seal on the back of the hub under the brake disc or on the strut Im assuming. With out seeing it all I can do is ask a bunch of questions most of which you've pos covered. But bare with me as I go through some and hopefully it'll help. All these questions would really apply to either. Was it an OEM or after market seal? If after market, is it known to be a good replacement? Was there any damage to the casting removing the old seal? Or the corresponding contact surface? If so repaired or smoothed out as best as pos before reinstall? Was the seal confidently put in properly? Correct orientation? Not bent damaged or distorted? Did you you lube up the surfaces of the seal and the contact surface? All of these things can contribute to a leaker. It can be a finicky deal. I have had similar outcomes in the past. You just have to be aware and prevent any of the above as best you can. Also I have a couple other videos on the hub assembly and a strut seal install. In addition to the above proper torque on the castle nut is certainly a factor. You'd have to watch for the specs on that I don't recall off the top of my head and don't want to guess. Look on the channel at the Polaris playlist if you interested though. Hope that's of help.
@@ericinalaska7648 wemade sure that seal was even and level when we installed it. i also hear now it could be some o-rings . i dont mean the hub seal but o-rings.
@@judgementday7107 There is an orange(s) on the end cap. Is that what your referring to? Is that where its leaking the cap? Then yes absolutely there is an O-ring. Just pop off the cap I believe 3? bolts pos 4? and you will of course need to refill the fluid after .
@@ericinalaska7648 the leak is from behind the caliper. sorry so new to this my lingo is hard tounderstand. arent there any o-rings behind the caliper to the hub.
@@judgementday7107 Is brake fluid leaking? The would be another source. If you have a bad or damaged caliper. Thats pos.
No speedo, no charging, no four wh drive, can i Do a bypass ?
Yes, no, yes. Ive seen others bypass to restore the 4wd and there are a few videos out there. But I have not personally done it. Im not quite sure what issue you 're having with charging. Im assuming your battery isn't charging. And you've determined the battery is good. I cant think of any way that bypassing the speedo would have any effect on the charging, That would be stator/voltage regulator related to my understanding. Both relatively simple swaps if need be. Also on this model/years. A bad or faulty VR can contribute to the failure of these speedos. And a replacement isn't exactly cheep. Thats why I explore this route and got lucky. Still working.
So the awd won’t work if Speedo is broken
In this example correct. I wouldn't say that applies to other year makes and models though it may for some. If yours is the same year or I think it was 96 to 200? A common issue.
@@ericinalaska7648 I have a 2001, mine lights up and digital part works. Not the Speedo
@@justatrucker5681 Hall affect cable pos the culprit. Its a cable that goes from the speedo to the right front wheel. It translates tire rotation to speed indicated . There fairly cheap aftr=er market parts. And if it doesn't fix it it's not a lot of time or money invested. If mine was as described Id start with that. Unless there is more to the story.
I can add, the 1996 500 sportsman is different.... mine does not have a digital odometer but mechanical.... also uses a mechanical speedo cable... which yes, its broken... no idea if 4x4 works.... gona check it in the next few days. This thing has only 10 miles on the odometer, so its been broken a long time... picked it up for $300 and had to assemble it, last guy rebuilt the engine top end and never had it running.
My 98 has a cable on it it
Does that cable go to the inside of the front right wheel?
My 2001 has the same speedo.
Its been a while. I'd have to confirm. But I think they were 96 to 2001? Are you having the same issue?
@@ericinalaska7648 Yes But my 4x4 didn't work when my speedo did. I've rewired and filled the hubs still didn't work I'm going to breakout the voltmeter and see if I can find the problem, I may have to bypass the speedo.
@@garyvincent9663 Explore your switch as well. They've been known to fail also.
@@ericinalaska7648 Yea it sat in the weather a couple years before I dragged it in and started working on it Runs good now but I'd love to get the 4x4 working Thanks!
@@garyvincent9663 Yah it can be pretty limiting with out it depending on your riding style and needs of course.
My speedometer doesnt work but my all wheel is good
Does it light up? Or completely dead? If it lights up. It may simply be the Hall affect cable to the front wheel. Thats a cheap fix if that's the issue.(after market part anyway.) And it's a cheap way to trouble shoot it. It plugs into the back of the speedo. And go's down to the front right wheel. Thats what senses or calculates your speed based on wheel revolutions. And in turn moves the needle. Not saying that's your issue of course with limited info. But a potential and relatively common issue.
@@ericinalaska7648 mines completely dead but my awd works no problem. The needle doesnt move and the light doesnt work on the speedometer too
Hmm. Have you checked out that link I put in the description. ka7oei.blogspot.com/2013/10/repair-of-speedometer-on-polaris.html
This may help you troubleshoot a bit more. My repair was limited to the issue I had. I didn't need to dig beyond, But If I did I would have tested the other two problem parts The MPSA42, and the Zener diode referenced in that link.I reattached the TIP48. And I really looked the board over to see if anything appeared obviously fried. If so. Time for a new one. Beyond that and the hall affect cable I mentioned above. I would have either lived with it or explored getting a replacement speedo. A bit spendy. But for me it was all about getting the AWD to work. Yours works apparently. So I guess you'd have to weigh the importance of the other features against the effort and pos $$. Id love to hear about what you learn if your able to revive it or if you determine the cause. Check out that link. Its got a lot of good info. Hope this was of help.
@@ericinalaska7648 thx for the videos mine has all these problems lol
@@ethand4343 Well there you go. Im actually about to finish one on coolant change and troubleshooting over heating issues if that on your to do list. Should be done in next few days or so.