I have a polaris sportsman 500 ho 2005. In high and low gear forward it works fine 2wd and 4wd. In reverse it wont lock into 4wd. The indicator light wil come on, but nothing will happen. I got in to the wires with a test, and figured out what goes on to engauge 4x4 in forward. Well when its in reverse it gets the signal from the computer (i get power to the front diff) but nothing happens. I dont know why it works forward but not in reverse, even tho it gets power both ways. So anyone out there familiar with polaris atvs?

 

Not to sound stupid, but you have to press the override button for 4wd to work in reverse on Polaris ATV's. Are you pressing that button?
The override button also removes the rev. limiter in reverse (you can go faster in reverse with the button pushed).
If you are pushing the button, ignore my ignorace

~Rob

 

Hehehe did the same thing on mine when I first got it. Plowing snow with it and when I went to back up the rear wheels just spun. Took me a minute to remember that button

I guess reading the manual isn't such a bad idea after all

 

Yup same here, plowing, yellow overdrive button has to be pushed to give 4x4 in reverse, if trouble getting into gear forward pull the panel by your right leg and check linkage, they do loosen up with lots of use,

 

Yep...push the button.

And for the 4 wheel drive to lock in (FORWARD OR REVERSE) the rear tires must spin 1/7 of a revolution.

 

Thats right. even if your in 4wd the front wheels are not pulling untill the rears break traction and as soon as they regain traction your in 2wd again. It works a lot better than it sounds like it would.
joe

 

Not to be a nit picker...really.

I would just add that you need to let off of the throttle for the 4 wheel drive to disengage.

And it does work real well, you never even feel it locking in, it happens that fast. Great 4x4 system, IMO the best one out there and it is actually FOUR wheel drive, not three like most.

 

Another thing to note, is there is a sticker on the machine somewhere that says "Do not engage 4x4 switch WHILE rear tires are slipping".
You can engage 4x4 on the fly as long as the rear wheels aren't slipping. If they are slipping, let off the throttle, let the wheels stop, hit the switch and try the throttle again.

~Rob

 

I push the button. That is how i determined that the diff was gettin the same power signal in reverse as it was in forward. But it wont lock up in reverse. The thing that has me stumped is there are 2 wire only, its getting power and is grounded, it works fine in forward gears, but doesnt engage in reverse. WHY? There is no other input goin to the diff to disrupt any thing. It should work since its getting the power signal to lock it.

 

Have you tried calling the dealer? A tech at one of the Polaris places may have a better idea. Sounds like the switch is ok, but where does the signal from the switch go? Wherever it's going, it doesn't sound like it's being processed properly. Is there some type of computer for controlling 4wd? Seems like there should be, so maybe that went bad.

 

Rob,

First of all the button (Reverse Over-Ride) doesn't actually lock in the 4 wheel drive when you push it. The button allows full power when in reverse, that's all the button does.

The 4 wheel drive system needs a quick spin of the rear wheels to allow engagement of the front wheels when the 4 wheel drive slide switch is placed in 4WD. If you don't press the button a miss is put into the engine when in reverse as a safety feature. So...to spin the tires you must push the button so that the engine has the power to spin.

Having the slide on 4WD sends power to the front dif or front hubs (depending on model) that activates engagement if the rear wheels spin. The engagement is a mechanical one caused by the rears turning faster than the front tires.

If you have the slide on 4WD and you press the over-ride button when backing up and you don't get 4WD it has to be something with the over-ride button since you are fine in forward gears.

Do you get full power in reverse when you press the over-ride button?

 

Yes i get full power with the over ride button pressed. I also know what you mean with the lock up to 4x4 when the rears loose traction. So when im in reverse and the 4x4 switch is in 4x4 and i push the over ride, on ice the rears will spin but it will never lock in 4x4 no matter what. Forward is fine. Basicly i cant back up anywhere right now except on pavement or level ground. I will end up callin a dealer to get some info i guess. Is there any other sensors that you know of that affect 4x4?

 

Do you get full power if you don't use the button in reverse? If you do, the problem could be the switch at the transmission or shifter (I'm not sure where it is on 05's). I just spent a whole day chasing down electrical gremlins on our 00 that has been to H and back. Check under the front cover for any broken wires. Also, a factory service manual for these things is a great resource to have. The schematics are very easy to track things down. The fix for ours was a broken neutral light wire... I could kind of understand why but it still seems weird to me. Our wheeler is real bad about breaking wires under the headlight pod so that could be a place to check.

But again, if you do get full power in reverse without the overrride button pressed I would lean towards the transmission switch.

 

Tranny switch is back on the trans where the linkage goes in. No i do not have full power with out the switch press. Every thing works perfect ecept 4x4 in reverse. Not one other problem. Im gonna look for a service manual tonight or tomorro.

 

Check out the guys at, www.quadovator.com they have an overide kit so you don't need to press the button. They also seem to know everything about Polaris ATV's, I would ask them.