Did you take out the plugs and see if you could turn it over?It might be filled with coolant or it might of seized up.It might of blew a o-ring on a head and filled with coolant.

 

Siezure

Did not pull plugs yet but don't know if that would account for the coolant that was coming from bottom of sled. Would the coolant have an escape route if leaking into the head?

 

the check engine light flashes when the motors getting hot. and stays on solid once its overheating. they dont die to protect themselves, they die once theres damage and it cant run anymore. usually once the light starts flashing the sled will be boggy.

were you just slow trail riding or wide open when the light came on? couldve cracked the head or a cylinder if it overheated severely and coolant could get out that way. only way to tell is to start pulling it apart

 

pull the pipe off an take a flashlight and look thru the y pipe into the cylinders and youll more than likely see some damage

 

pull the plugs, pull the y pipe, if nothing obvious you could have seized up your crank with a bad bearing. I would pull the belly pan plastic off and find out where exactly the coolant is coming from. could tell you more about your problem.

 

One of my coolant hoses came off on my f-5 and i lost all of my coolant. Motor was totally locked up. Actually had to pound the pistons out of the cylinders with a hammer. Cylinders were all messed up, had to have them welded, replated, and resized. Then i had to take the bottom half apart to check everything in there and to flush all the crap that had fallen into the bottom half. So yes, Loosing your coolant could lock up your motor.

 

Well This is Just Ducky!

Info for all you F5/F6/F7 owners. Here is the skinny on this problem. Took it to dealer and.........
*The coolant hose that goes below the motor blew losing all coolant quickly.
*This is caused by the hose rubbing on whatever the heck is down there weakening it. (Common issue they say). Problem with this is you cannot see it or check it without pulling the motor. They now put a protector on them whenever they re-do them.
*Once coolant drains, no hi temp warning will come on, so you just go on your merry way until the effing motor BLOWS!
*Damage: Pistons, cylinders, all seals, bearings yada yada yada.

All this takes a minute or so at high speed which I was at.

I think I'm gonna be sick.

 

Had one of the hoses on mine routed wrong from the factory, dealer checked it out when i bought it and fixed it right away.

 

Makes me want to pull off my bottom skid plate and take a look.

Mine doesnt even have 1000 miles on it, so I doubt my hose is broken, but it wouldn't hurt to throw a protector down there.

Try and look on the bright side, you can get a motor from a sled salvage shop or ebay for under a grand. Maybe your dealer will hook you up with a fatty discount on a new motor....

That really sucks. Its surprising how fast it can happen at temperature.

 

I just had the belly pan off on my sled changing the oil pump setting and noticed the coolant hose running under the motor was rubbing on the frame.It has a piece of plastic wire loom over it.Mine was just about worn through the plastic loom.I took a piece of old heater hose and sliced it and stuck it over the hose and zip tied it on.I'm glad I noticed it was worn.

 

This was actually the second one this week coming into the dealer for this hose problem. The other was a F7 that just happened to let loose at idle so the guy caught it and saved his motor.
Same thing though, gotta pull the motor to replace it.

WHOOOOOOOOOSH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That's what $1500 bucks sounds like flying out yer' wallet.

 

Yeah, but get ready to feel that rush when you pinch the throttle on that fresh, shiny new motor! :3

I'd make sure your hoses are all wrapped with something thick to prevent this from happening again. The factory edges on the framework under there are sharp. It would not hurt a bit to take a file or emery cloth and deburr all the edges you can reach.

 

is there not an low level alarm indicating a problem when your coolant level gets down? kinda distribing to think that i could possbily run my engine dry of anti freeze and cook the motor. is there anything you can put on to let you know if this happens?

 

There isn't anything, such as a float, to indicate that the fluid level is low, like there is with the oil. You just have to keep an eye on the reservoir. If there is catostrophic failure, you may not have time to do anything about it unfortunately.

 

just a little concerned cause there is a small leak on the back side of the motor, the guy before just pulled the motor to replace the water pump seal but then found a leak on or near the water pump. it doesnt go down much but you have to top up the resorvoir after 100-200 miles. i am going to pull the motor in the summer to fix it. just dont want to get into the problem that the previous owner got into when he put a stud through the cooler. it just would be nice if there was a float similar to the oil, at least if you lost your antifreeze, you would see a low level light come on.

 

I'm sure something could be fabbed up, my last car had a low coolant light and there are a multitude of solutions for it. Off to the drawing board for a summer mod while the motor is out!!!! I'm thinking of something I built for a science project a looooooooooong time ago.

 

A Critical Reminder for 04/05 F7/F7 Sabercat Owners

Just a early season reminder to 2004/2005 F7 and F7 Sabercat owners. GET THAT COOLANT HOSE CHECKED! The one below the engine to heat exchanger. To big an issue to ignore, and expensive to re-do the engine.

 

what is the cheapest way or best product per $ as far as engine temp sonsors goes? In theory I would like individual egt as well as water temp but I cant afford all of that. whats the best way to monitor the temps?

 

The hose itself would be cheapest, less than $20. The new one Cat makes is a different part# from the original and fixes the 'rubbing' issue. I see someone here accessed it from removal of the bellypan. AC put out a service bulletin (2004-1-10) which you can find on Funoutfitters.com.

 

Theres one you can acsess from the bellypan, and another that runs behind/under the fuel tank near the steering column.. Don't know if you can see that from the bottom.. but all are worth checking.

 

Wasn't this a recall?

 

Yes it was a recall on the 03 and 04 models. I recomend everyone doing this. I looked at mine today and found wear on it just zip tied a heavy piece of ruber to it. Also check your gas line while your under there and make sure its not wearing as well. It should have a protector on it but mine was starting to wear.

 

So to check this just remove the bellypan and I will be able to see this does the hose run to the engine or to the reservoir.

 

Stupid question....all references are to the F7 and Sabercat 7, does this issue present itself in the F6 also? I have an '06 F6 and my brother has an '04 F6...I 'spose we better check this too????????

 

Copy of Service Bulletin

Looks to cover all 2004 models, but seems more of an issue with the 700's.



Date: December 29, 2003
Bulletin No: 2004-1-10
Affected Models / VIN:
Product Line: Snowmobile
Subject: Coolant Hose (Engine-to-Front
Heat Exchanger)
All 2004 Firecat and Sabercat Models
Condition: It has been determined that the coolant hose (engine-to-front heat exchanger) may come into contact with
the lower bulkhead and engine housing. If this condition exists, the hose will wear through resulting in the
loss of coolant and engine failure.
Solution: It is highly recommended that a section of affected Coolant Hose (p/n 0610-572) be removed to prevent the
hose from coming into contact with the bulkhead and engine housing.
? NOTE: Retain the removed section of the hose for warranty purposes. The section of hose needs to be
returned to Arctic Cat to receive credit for the service work. You must hold the affected part for 90 days.
Within the 90 day holding period, Arctic Cat will send you a parts return notice.
Parts: Not Applicable (No Parts Needed)
Warranty: A labor allowance of 0.4 hr will be paid per affected snowmobile.
Cat Tracker Claim: Enter BS200410 in the Complaint section.
Manual Claim: Enter 0410 in the Complaint section.
? NOTE: Please remember that when submitting a claim, make sure to always enter the current mileage
of each affected snowmobile. In order for Arctic Cat to accurately assess warranty claims, an accurate
recording of mileage on snowmobiles with warranty claims is important.
ATTENTION
This service bulletin expires December 29, 2004. To ensure that the necessary service work is completed
in a timely manner and that this issue can be resolved, Arctic Cat is requesting that all service work
be completed prior to December 29, 2004. All warranty claims directly related to this issue will not be
honored after December 29, 2004.
Service Bulletin
Printed in the U.S.A. ®™ Trademarks of Arctic Cat Inc., Thief River Falls, MN 56701 1203
FunOutfitters I Arctic Cat Parts I Free Mechanical Help I 866-531-0123