2006 Switchback 600HO Temp Light, De-rate, Kill Switches

[JonathanB86]

Hey guys.

I just picked up a 2006 Switchback 600HO for a project. It has 7559mi & 125psi compression on both cylinders. The previous owner had issues with the kill switches and temp light and decided to sell for a steal of a deal ($1k with an almost new 1 3/4" track, cover, 2-up seat, etc.).. thus here we are.

The sled fires up no problem but neither the Kill Switch, Tether nor Key will turn the machine off.. I've checked several ground points from Engine to Chassis, Harness to Chassis on the clutch side, CDI to Chassis Connector, handlebar connections, tether and ignition connections and all are good. I've pinned the CDI for continuity (E5 for kill switches) to multiple points in the harness right up to the handlebars and all is good. I checked the switches for functionality and all works. I checked all the harness /connections I can physically see without the engine removed and all seem solid. No chaffing, burning or breaks. I've never owned a Polaris prior to this one and I'm not sure where else to look for issues other than the CDI.

The sled has working headlights, hand warmers, electronic reverse, taillight, MFD and gauge which tells me the regulator is working properly. The sled runs along with all electronics functioning so I believe there shouldn't be issues with the Stator(?).

The temperature light is also lit up constantly on the gauge and the MFD is displaying "ERR" under the engine temperature section. The sled is in a de-rate condition (timing is retarded?). I tested the sensor with a multimeter and found that it is functioning properly on that end. I rigged up a bypass using resistors to simulate a good temperature signal and the result was the same. I then checked the wiring back to the CDI from the coolant sensor (E11 BK/E12 BN) and found the wiring to be fine.

Since both of these functions are controlled though the CDI, I somewhat feel that it could be the problem but I am in unchartered territory. Anyone have opinions about areas to focus on or previous experiences which were similar? Are there any common points between these two issues that could be more obvious to someone with experience?

I do have experience in electrical systems as well I have the wiring diagram for a 2007 Switchback 600HO CARB which should be similar judging by what I've seen so far.


Thanks

 

[retiredpop]

If you ground pin 5 right at the CDI unit does it stop? If not then I would think it is safe to say the CDI is bad.

 

[JonathanB86]

After work I went ahead and fired it up prior to seeing this message and the temp light and readout was intermittent on the display. I put my hands on every connection while the sled was running at idle and when I put my hand on the CDI the idle came up and the Temp Light went out. By fluke I discovered that the female connector on the harness isn't making a good contact with the pins on the CDI Module!! I used a pick to slightly bend the CDI pins (E11/E12) for the coolant sensor and plugged it back in. VOILA, it runs fine and has an accurate temperature readout. I ran out of time this evening but I will try the same thing on all the pins which are used on the harness and report back with my findings in the morning.

I surely hope this is fixes the issues and ends up helping other members and people who own this model and similar sleds with electrical issues.

Stay tuned.

 

[retiredpop]

If that fixes all your problems then you got an awesome deal on the sled.

 

[JonathanB86]

If that fixes all your problems then you got an awesome deal on the sled.

While I was not in the market for a sled, I really couldn't walk away from the price.

I finally have a day off to tinker. We've been getting alot of snow and while its good for the sleds, the keeps a provincial plow operator quite busy.

Thanks for the reply and tip.. I just confirmed that pin 5 is indeed making the circuit to ground via multimeter but the sled is still not shutting down. I guess the CDI is the cause judging by your second last post. Apparently these CDI's are not available anymore either as per my local dealer, and the used market seems to be almost bought up completely.

Seeing as this is the only issue at hand, is there any other way to turn the sled off via a custom button or switch that I can rig up without toasting any of the electronics? I was thinking of grounding the coil or something similar but I am not familiar enough with the newer style sleds to know if I am going to burn something up. I've been opening the hood and pulling the plug boots thus far but its getting a little old.

Thanks in advance.

 

[JonathanB86]

My apologies for the double post, but I found a wire in the schematic which is referred to as "Soft Stop" being Black/Red which terminates at pin E6 on the CDI module. The wire I was looking into at position E5 was a "Hard Stop". What exactly is the difference (Hard Stop vs Soft Stop) and is it possible to utilize this "Soft Stop" wire to kill the spark somehow? I see it is tied to the throttle safety switches but I am unsure of the way it operates.

Thanks!

 

[retiredpop]

I don't know what the difference is either. Looking at the wiring diagram it doesn't really show what condition would be applied to that wire although it does come from the stop switch/ throttle safety wiring so maybe a ground?. I don't know if grounding out the black/red on pin 6 would shut it down or not. Another option might be to wire a simple toggle switch in series with the black wire on E18 so you open the ground to the ignition coil and therefore kill the spark. Or you could also do the same on the white wire on E1 but that is the hot side to the ignition coil. I think the black is the better option.

 

[JonathanB86]

I don't know what the difference is either. Looking at the wiring diagram it doesn't really show what condition would be applied to that wire although it does come from the stop switch/ throttle safety wiring so maybe a ground?. I don't know if grounding out the black/red on pin 6 would shut it down or not. Another option might be to wire a simple toggle switch in series with the black wire on E18 so you open the ground to the ignition coil and therefore kill the spark. Or you could also do the same on the white wire on E1 but that is the hot side to the ignition coil. I think the black is the better option.

retiredpop, I can't thank you enough for the advice. I went ahead and wired a marine toggle switch inline on E18 and it works perfectly! One small hiccup.. when I first snipped the wire I got a pretty good spark and jolt (I'm guessing the capacitor still had a charge) . I started the process of lubricating, changing fluids and adjusting the chain and track tension last night but with the winter weather sticking around I'm not getting a lot of tinker time.

Thanks again my friend and stay safe! ?️