C
Has anyone experienced a heating problem, I'm thinking of adding a cooler like the 800 RMK's have. Your thoughts
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800 Pro RMK, overheating, coolers... a discussion.
- Thread starter chicago
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Just about everyone knows you cant run these things in anything less than deep powder without the scratchers down.
Just about everyone knows you cant run these things in anything less than deep powder without the scratchers down.
get a snow flap with no holes in it. run the wheels. run scratchers. won't have any heating issues.
M
boondocking on hard pack can get to be very tricky!!! it gets pretty tight on some of the ridges we ride, 10-15 mph stuff. if its setup and hard we just watch our temp gauges, about 180ish its time to stop and put some ice on the tunnel and let it cool. get much above 200 and they start to puke antifreeze. if your riding in even semi setup conditions scratchers down and watch the gauge, this is one thing i don't like about the sled. well worth the small inconvenience to get to ride this thing, nothing else like it on planet earth
Chitown,
I don't know where your riding your Pro, on trails I always run scratchers and have no issues maintaining 125, good throttle management can really help here also.
In 4" of fresh snow or more, it's a non-issue unless it's really warm out and we're moving slow.
Most of our riding is tree running and exploring and we never have heat issues in anything but rockhard snow.
I can't honestly imagine needing a radiator on these sleds unless your just plain hauling butt on hardpack.
Have fun!
Bag
I don't know where your riding your Pro, on trails I always run scratchers and have no issues maintaining 125, good throttle management can really help here also.
In 4" of fresh snow or more, it's a non-issue unless it's really warm out and we're moving slow.
Most of our riding is tree running and exploring and we never have heat issues in anything but rockhard snow.
I can't honestly imagine needing a radiator on these sleds unless your just plain hauling butt on hardpack.
Have fun!
Bag
G
boondocking on hard pack can get to be very tricky!!! it gets pretty tight on some of the ridges we ride, 10-15 mph stuff. if its setup and hard we just watch our temp gauges, about 180ish its time to stop and put some ice on the tunnel and let it cool. get much above 200 and they start to puke antifreeze. if your riding in even semi setup conditions scratchers down and watch the gauge, this is one thing i don't like about the sled. well worth the small inconvenience to get to ride this thing, nothing else like it on planet earth
This. Getting off the mtn in the evenings was quite a challenge during spring months when the snow would ice over and I DO have scratchers down, no holes in flap, etc., etc. so depends on where and how you ride. I'll be using my REV for early and late season rides from now on until I get the FTX aftermarket rear cooler.
Have FUN!
G MAN
I got hell when I said this before......but just to throw it out there I rode mine until June with no overheating issues ever. Stock sled with a vent kit, used scratchers on trails and/or hardpack. Maybe it's how I ride or the awesome snow conditions this winter but that was my experience. I treated it the same as my other sleds and had the same results with regards to cooling.
My Pro got hot faster than any sled I ever owned (including my previous D8). You have to run scratchers on the groomed non-powder stuff. The Pro RMK is not what I would choose for a trail sled.
Scratchers down are a must with my pro on the trail, just like clockwork. As soon as it hits 140 it will keep rising until scratchers go down. Runs 128 all day in the fresh, 134 or so with scratchers down, except for rockhard spring. I also had consistent issues with 4+ inches of mountain dry fluff on trails, scratchers up or down. That was the worse conditions I ran into, have to run off the trail in some real snow for at least 200 feet or so to keep it cooling with that blowaway fluff. Running with a 2010 800 RMK (std, not Dragon), that would never move past 130, regardless of how hot mine got, anywhere. The smaller coolers and lack of a front on the pro makes a huge difference.
Isn't it interesting the different experiances that people have? My Wife's Pro seems to always run a little hotter than mine on trails, maybe 10 or 12 degrees. No difference in the fluff.
I typically ride more aggresive than she does . . . maybe that's the difference? They are identical sleds except her's has electric start and the color.
We will have to swap sleds this year and see if riding style makes that much difference.
Bag
I typically ride more aggresive than she does . . . maybe that's the difference? They are identical sleds except her's has electric start and the color.
We will have to swap sleds this year and see if riding style makes that much difference.
Bag
The front bulkhead cooler would cost more than an FTX supplemental cooler AND be exponentially harder to install.
A ridding buddy has a Pro for him and his wife and he had the same experience. He would have to swap with her once in a while to get her sled to cool down.
Has anyone used water wetter in a sled with results? I tried it in a vehical that over heated once and noticed minimal changes.
T
I also expierence the over heating issue. it mainly seems to be when you are in that tight single track mtn trail that just crawls to the play area. you usually can't just get off into the powder easy and you can't open it up.
I have put a couple of straps on the back of the sled and strap big hard snowchunks down on the tunnel to help keep it cool.
I have put a couple of straps on the back of the sled and strap big hard snowchunks down on the tunnel to help keep it cool.
Probably holding one consistant throttle position which likely runs hotter for 2 reasons.....that's usually where sleds run the leanest (hottest) and not chewing up any snow to spray onto the cooler. Makes sense.
G
Exactly - a whooped out mtn trail with tight trees on the sides it is impossible to get enough speed to cool down the Pro when the snow crusts over in the evening during spring riding... as I stated. Some on here must just ride fire road trails with their wives. I can assure you, I'm an aggro rider and I, as well as the guys at FTX, can tell you the Pro needs help in these conditions (crusted over snow being the worst).
And I DO use water wetter. I've pulled out ALL the G Man tricks for this one and still issues. Water wetter is a surfactant that allows better wetting of the heat exchanger surface area by WATER. It won't work well unless you reduce your coolant ratio (need to use MORE water; glycol does NOT cool, the water does(glycol keeps water from freezing)). But even then you only see about a 8-10 deg drop in the Pro which isn't enough.
Have FUN!
G MAN
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Agree 100%. Great for 90% of my riding, but the other 10 not so much. In fact if my girls keep showing interest, I was thinking about going to the regular RMK or a Dragon so I can slow down with them.
Partly true...for Ethylene Glycol.... Also the other additives present in the formulation play a role in the effectiveness of the coolant.
Water is only effective up to its boiling point... and there are many hot spots in a motor where coolant can boil without you knowing it.
Though the temp gauge might read one thing... the coolant in the motor could be too hot in spots.
If you really want a "No BS" coolant for your sled that is truly the best on the market for heat transfer ability... Evans NPG+ (non aqueous propylene glycol) which has zero water in it... It is one of the best coolant liquids out there...
I tried some of the original NPG from Evans a few years back... But it gels up in colder weather... tried it on a 900 (similar water pump)... it spun the keyway in the impeller.. So I switched back to standard 50/50 after fixing the water pump (what a PITA).
Till...
I built a custom street rod last year for a client...With a monstrous Sonny Leonard engine in it... It had some cooling issues on hot days in slow traffic even though it had a huge custom aluminum radiator and the biggest fan that SPAL makes... switched from Standard Ethylene Glycol (Peak brand) 50/50 to adding water wetter... it helped some.... then on to Distilled with Water wetter... actually ran hotter over the other... then switched out to the NPG+ coolant from Evans...cooling problems went away. I would have used the original NPG (as compared to the + product) but the owner sees sub freezing temps and sometimes uses it on sunny but cold days in the winter... I did not know about the NPG+ at at that time I initially filled the cooling system in the Car. (a nice 57 Chevy)
NPG+ is good for use in ambient temps to -40F where the original NPG was only good into the +30's F.
A good friend of mine who is the engineer on a large yacht uses the Evans coolant in the 5000+ HP diesels on-board...He swears by it, after having cooling issues in warm tropical waters at full load.
Diminished Nucleate boiling and better heat transfer rates into/out of the coolant are what better coolants can do for you.
Here is a good tech presentation of coolants and NPG products
http://www.evanscooling.com/water-based-vs-waterless-differentiators/
NOTE: There are other brands of NPG coolants out there... I only have experience with the NPG products.
I'll be running this in all my sleds this year. A bit pricey at $38/gallon, but, IMO... worth it.
Evans is a recognized supplier in the racing world as well as the heavy-duty/fleet industry and is not a gimmick business.
Another benefit... "IF"... If you have deto issues... AND... those issues are related to nucleate boiling in the head... this coolant would help to reduce deto issues.
BUT...
If your cooling system heat exchangers are not up to the job for your given conditions... then you will still have problems regardless of the coolant once the saturation and working pressure limitations of the coolant/system are met.
I worked with Curt at FTX a few years back to come up with the first supplemental heat exchangers for the Dragons... which had significantly more cooling system capacity and surface area in the stock heat exchangers.
The Pro-RMK install of the FTX cooler is a bit more work with the square cross tube between the stock left and right halves of the heat exchangers (aka coolers) at the rear of the tunnel.. but still very straight fwd if you are a patient installer with decent mechanical skills.
Some people ride in a certain way, and in certain conditions as Gman points out...Some people, in their situations, have no issues... other do... the sleds are the same unless something is broken.
If you have a cooling problem... And the problem lies in the ability to transfer heat to the coolant quickly... the water wetter will help... somewhat... Same for "Engine Ice".
Redline is not known for selling "snake-oil" and I put my trust in that.
With a cooling problem on your sled... make sure you have no air in the system...
Make sure the coolant is up to level.
Make sure your thermostat is working.
Switch out the Ported snow flap (snow flap with holes) for a non ported one to keep the snow in the tunnel where it can do the work of chilling the exchangers.
Use scratchers religiously.
If, for YOUR riding terrain/style/conditions... this is NOT enough... Try the NPG+
...Then go with the Supplemental cooler from FTX IMO. It puts a lot more surface area and a decent increase in liquid capacity right where it is most effective... at the rear of the tunnel.
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Where can you buy this coolnt Eric??
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