Rad Cleaning 101

[Rubberdown]

If you ride your sportsman in a lot of mud, you know the problems with the overheating issue. These rads are too low and too exposed to the mud. So if you run a stock positions rad, not a relocated one, heres a simple step by step cleaning method that only takes about 20 minutes and does not require removing the actual radiator.

1. Pull the steel screen off in front of the rad, it pulls right off with 4 little rubber gromet type plugs on it, no need to un-screw anything. If you have never removed it before, just pull real hard the forst couple of times.

2. Remoce the 3 philips screw on each side shield next to the rad for better access, if its a newer machine, I am pretty sure they are the same as that front screen and it is just pressed into place.

3. Unplug your fan, on the older machines, remove the top center hood plastic and it is a plug right next to the rad cap, it runs down directly to the fan motor, you cant mis it. On the newer machines, I believe it is just under the access panel inside the front storage box.

4. Using a 10mm socket or wrench, remove the 4 bolts (2 on each side) that hold the fan in place and slide the fan out and away from the machine for proper cleaning.

5. Using a regular garden style nosel, spray the radiator frome side to side and up and down at a direct angle so as not to fold or bend any fins. Get right up into the upper and lower corners as they hold the most mud.

6. Repeat this but spray it from the inside out, so the water is coming through the rad from the back side and spraying out the front of it.

7. Repeat this a few times, and then remove the nozzle on the hose and let a full flow right from the hose flush through the rad in both directions, watch for any clogged spots and try to work them clean with the hose. Do this from both sides a couple of times until nothing but crystal clear water if flowing completely un-obstructed.

8. Reinstall the fan and plug it back in

9. Test your fan connection buy unpluging the plug on the thermo sensor on the left hand side of the ATV right near the thermostat. When the key is turned on and this is unplugged, the fan will run continuosly, and the display will flash HOT, now you know the fan is plugged in correctly and the fan is working properly.

10. Put it all back together and enjoy uoir ride.


This takes me about 20 minuts to do each machine, I do it after every mud filled ride, or every couple easy rides to ensure I wont overheat early on in the ride.

[Clubin]

Well put. You made it sound REAL easy. LOL

[Goatmanatv]

Ya, also wondering if you advise getting a better protection or shield for the rad to me it looks so open to anything cracking into it

[msc5195]

Ya, also wondering if you advise getting a better protection or shield for the rad to me it looks so open to anything cracking into it

Here is a good Radiator Guard http://www.jamhard.com/

[Rebel64]

The Jamhard is definitely a great product offering a lot of insurance just incase you happen to have that stick or log hit just in the "right" place.
Very easy installation too.

Here's mine:
http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m169/softailrebel/Bodyguard/DSC00998.jpg

[Rubberdown]

Ya, I also recommend the Jam Hard gaurd. I dont have one yet, but thats because I cant make up my mind to relocate the rad or not.

[Mrmojorisan]

good tip... where do you get that guard at?

[Rubberdown]

http://www.jamhard.com/

Be sure and tell him you heard about him from this site, I like to let him know i am a supporter of his products...or anyone products for that matter that makes a good usefull product that isnt a dick head LOL.

[Goatmanatv]

Ok, so do you need a front brushguard for it to install onto it or no?

[Riven]

No it just bolts on without the brushguard

["Bankrupt"]

mine is really easy to clean...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v298/ereagan2180/P1010712.jpg

[Rubberdown]

Okay dude, is it mounted flat against the front rack? How long have you been using it like this and has it worked well in that position, meaning do you get enough air flow??? I might do mine like that because if I keep it propped up, I know for sure I'll jam a branch though the friggin thing the first time I take it out LOL.

["Bankrupt"]

it looks flat but theres actually about 2" in front and about 5" in back between it and the rack.

i had to redo the mount a week or so ago because the one in the picture was crap and busted the mounts. now it almost touching in the front and maybe 8-9" in the back.

and yes, it works fine, both ways. the fan runs about 35% of the time and is off 65%.

the rad is actually mounted backwards now. the front facing side (from factory mount) is facing down and the fan side (rear facing from the factory) is facing up. the way the shroud is made it works as a perfect guard.

[Rubberdown]

Do you have some newer pics, it looks like yours is a lower profile than some of the other top mounted rads, thats kinda what I wanted with mine, slightly lower profile....

["Bankrupt"]

well this is how close it was before i made a new mount and it worked just fine. after alot of work and some trial and error i figured out that the distance between the rad and front rack does not effect how good it cools and how much the fan runs. it all depends on how you route your rad hoses and if you have any extreme bends. when i first ran the hoses, the fan ran 100% of the time. couldnt figure out why. then realized i had the hoses routed through several bends and had one hose routed directly into the fill neck and the other end of the T went to the rad.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v298/ereagan2180/P1010690.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v298/ereagan2180/P1010493.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v298/ereagan2180/P1010492.jpg
heres the way i have it now. the first mount i made was a hack job and i knew it wouldnt last long. but my lazyness got the best of me and i never replaced it till the rad started leaking. ive noticed 0 difference in the cooling and how much the fan runs vs the way it was and the way it is now. the bike has NEVER ran over 150 even on a hot alabama summer day when the temps get into the high 90's, heat index well over 110 and humidity at 80-90%. even during very hard riding.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v298/ereagan2180/P1020052.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v298/ereagan2180/P1020051.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v298/ereagan2180/P1020050.jpg

[bmdjmd]

that looks wild, why is it you cant run the fill neck a little higher to ease in filling or is it not a problem??

[Rubberdown]

looks awesome dude, I think I'm going to relocate mine this summer. I like the lower profile look though.

[pstock44]

My rad is pretty well protected with my bumper and winch mount but being an older model the bumper/winch is mounted kinda low too. I have a difficult time getting to it but I generally use a pressure washer and spray from the front side till the water runs pretty clean. Never had a problem so far but I do it after every ride.

[Donut Slayer]

Polaris700, your ATV is awesome!!!!!:D I've gotta do that to mine. Your is the best by far, radiator mod I've seen. It looks totally professional.

[choPppps]

Someone mentioned this to me once

Go and squish every other fin together in your rad. Said they used a small piece of plastic and basically made the area between the fins larger. Allowed the mud and crap to flow through the rad much easier without interfering with cooling. Has anyone ever heard of doing this or tried it??

[Donut Slayer]

Someone mentioned this to me once

Go and squish every other fin together in your rad. Said they used a small piece of plastic and basically made the area between the fins larger. Allowed the mud and crap to flow through the rad much easier without interfering with cooling. Has anyone ever heard of doing this or tried it??I think when you do that, you would cut the rad surface area in half. Cause half the rad's air flow is cut off.

[pstock44]

I've never heard of that but personally I wouldn't do it. No matter how much you squish fins together you'll never get them tight enough to keep mud out. It'd be that much harder to clean between those fins and they'll still help the cooling and I think mud would still get clogged in there because the fin spacing would still be the same where they are attached to the radiator tubes.

[duse]

This thread should be deleted.
Banish Polaris 700 and lock & delete all his post.
I'm even thinking some torture might be in order.
Dont you see what he's doing?
I know what your up to.I got my eye (:wacko:) on you
He is secretly advertiseing for HL

Is that a HL lift I see:rofl:
Just kidding with ya,nice bike.

["Bankrupt"]

This thread should be deleted.
Banish Polaris 700 and lock & delete all his post.
I'm even thinking some torture might be in order.
Dont you see what he's doing?
I know what your up to.I got my eye (:wacko:) on you
He is secretly advertiseing for HL

Is that a HL lift I see:rofl:
Just kidding with ya,nice bike.

good eye. but it wasnt a HL lift. it was some off the wall ebay junk that i took off my 03.

the lift sucked though. the springs always moved around and hit the struts. the back was even worse.

and BTW, that picture is pretty old. that was taken back when i first lifted the bike. i did the snorkles and radiator before the bike had 2 hours on it and lifted it before it had 6 hours on it.

["Bankrupt"]

if you notice the rad mount, snorkles, bumpers and all are different now.

plus the bike was shiny and clean looking then.... now its all scratched and dirty.

[fatboy361]

u need 2 put a shield in the back to catch the air. lean it forwad and itl force the air into ur fan

[Dirtbmw20]

u need 2 put a shield in the back to catch the air. lean it forwad and itl force the air into ur fan

It doesn't need a shield on the back nor does it need to be tilted up at all. The radiator will cool the bike just fine with it laying completely flat. It does not need air "forced" into it.