I will burn through the high test gas and switch to regular. It is worth a try. Insofar as lower octane is more combustible, maybe it will help? I only buy the 91 octane because it is ethanol free. I'm sick of rebuilding carburetors on my bikes and old cars. Of note; I keep a charger on the battery which has made a tiny difference in ease of starting. The resting voltage has been 12.8, the cranking voltage drops a bit. So I started hooking up an Antigravity lithium microstart to it and it definitely starts a bit easier. When it is warm, it start on the first crank with the microstart hooked up. Not as easy in the cold, but better. I think the battery is worth replacing with a lithium, higher cranking amp battery.

 

If you go with a Lithium starting battery make sure it will be able to be charged at the low temperatures in your area. I know LiFePo4 lithiums shouldn't be charged at below freezing temperatures. Not sure of the ones you're looking at.

 

There are not a lot of choices that I can find. I was thinking about the Antigravity and could not find their recommendation on the website. I sent them an email. I will see what they say. I put lithium in all of my bikes these days. I ordered the Polaris AGM HD lead acid battery, but it is backordered, so I will probably cancel it. It would certainly be a cheaper way to go. The current battery turns it over just fine, but sometimes that isn't enough. I've load tested it and it is in the green, even in cold temperatures. With electric fuel pumps and the required cranking amps, with the slight drop in voltage below 12 when starting, the fact it does better when jumped with a microstart, a better battery should help. All new vehicles have CPU's and accessories that have a constant drain on the battery. Despite always being on a trickle charger, it doesn't seem to have the oomph to start this vehicle. I have had motorcycles (Ducati comes to mind) that won't start and run with a less than optimal battery. The alternator simply does not put out enough juice to run the bike with a deficient battery. Thanks for your thoughts......

 

Don't worry about the 87. Have been running it in my rangers since 2004. Not one fuel related issue.

As for a battery. It's a group size 26 auto. Pick which one suits your needs.

 

I hate to hear all these issues with Polaris machines. I love how they ride but dang they sure are trouble prone. We have a XP800 and two EV’s. All have had their share of issues. The two EV’s we just converted to Lithium so hoping they will be more reliable now. The 800 has constant belt issues and starting issues also.

I’ve also been a Honda guy and they are so very dependable but most machines I’ve had don’t ride as well or offer the accessories that Polaris does. Just wish Polaris would get their crap together and make a dependable product.


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I hate to hear all these issues with Polaris machines. I love how they ride but dang they sure are trouble prone. We have a XP800 and two EV’s. All have had their share of issues. The two EV’s we just converted to Lithium so hoping they will be more reliable now. The 800 has constant belt issues and starting issues also.

I’ve also been a Honda guy and they are so very dependable but most machines I’ve had don’t ride as well or offer the accessories that Polaris does. Just wish Polaris would get their crap together and make a dependable product.


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Their overall engineering isn't bad. But their quality control, fit and finish, leave much to be desired. For a new vehicle, it is a rattle trap. When it runs, it is great. I love the ride and the suspension. When I harrow my pastures in the spring, I have traditionally used a tractor. Since tractors only have suspensions that are nothing more than springs in the seat, it is a slow and often a harsh experience dragging the harrow over the pasture. I can only go a few miles per hour. I tried it with the Ranger and what a difference. I could go 15-20mph and the long travel suspension just soaked up every gopher hole and irregularity. I got done in a fraction of the time. In the winter I put chains on all fours tires yet have still gotten it stuck in my pasture in windblown snow drifts. So I put on the snow tracks this winter. What a tank! Just wish it was easier to start. There has to be an answer. After I've gone down the troubleshooting list, maybe add a dynojet ignition tuner?

 

We’re getting ready to take ours back to the shop again and replace the belt once more. They do really ride great. If Polaris ever matches some of the other manufacturers in quality control no other competitors will touch them.


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We’re getting ready to take ours back to the shop again and replace the belt once more. They do really ride great. If Polaris ever matches some of the other manufacturers in quality control no other competitors will touch them.


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If you are going through belts thats a driver issue usually….. also it takes 10-20mins to change the belt why not do it yourself its so simple

 

Has anyone ever used one of the aftermarket snowblowers, like the Rammy 155 on their Polaris Ranger? They look like a cheaper solution to a tractor with PTO snowblower or Skid steer with direct drive and hydraulic controls. I'm not sure they are heavy duty enough to remove two feet of set up windslab snow. Anybody?

 

Babying a belt drive is one of the worst things you can do.
Don't drive like granny and take off slow. Go ahead and get moving.
Use low when you are going slow or when your are under a heavier load like loading on a trailer or climbing out of ditches or with a load of dirt etc.
There are basic instructions in the owners manual.

 

We use low in hill country and towing but not when we’re under 25mph. It gets really loud because of high rpm’s so we figure high range on flat ground is better. We can try this though thanks.


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Polaris engines are designed to run at high rpm, don't be scared to let it rev. If you're putting around keep it in low. If you're hauling the mail switch to high.

 

Mine is a 2019 1000. I use it every day on the ranch in Colorado and it's always started hard. I use a trickle charger in the cold. It's getting worse. It's not the gas. I've replaced battery and spark plugs this year and now it's actually worse. I use Stabil. So frustrating. When it do get it started and back out within 3-5 seconds it dies again and then it will start right up the second time. So frustrating.

 

I keep my 2018 XP1000 at my cabin in Colorado at 9400'. It usually starts fine but if it's been sitting for a couple weeks or in the very cold temps I'll turn the key on/off a few times to prime the fuel injection system before starting. It'll usually start then. I'll also let the engine temp warm up to 50º or so before driving it.

 

Just dug mine out of the snow and it started up ok. I turned the key on/off a few times to let the system prime. I'm at 9400' in Colorado and temp was about 24ºF.
I burn 87 octane regular w/ethanol. It wasn't fun walking through hip deep snow to get to it but that's what it is.

 

I was did you ever resolve this issue? My Polaris 1000 has the same issue. And I am trying to get it figured out any advice you have figured out I would greatly appreciate. Thanks.

 

Are you running premium fuel??

 

I will get the 91 non-ethanol out of there tomorrow and get some 87 ethanol thrown in there. I will keep you updated

 

What is the update on this ? ?

 

😀 If you don't want it I'll tke that premium gas you pump out and put it in my 570 , mine starts perfectly on premium , all I've ever run in it since new , it can be sub zero and always fires on the third revoloution when cranking . No corn gas for me ..

 

Altitude is also an issue. I'm at 9400' and no one runs 91 octane, most run either 85 or 85 no ethanol.

 

I have the same problem still looking for resolution. The Polaris dealers are untrained morons they told me it’s bad fuel also changed fuel from ethanol to non ethanol and still will not start. I’m sure Polaris is aware of the problem but has not reached out to the consumers and I have contacted them with zero success. My next side by side will not be a Polaris.

 

Hi all, I'm new to this forum. Have the same problem when the temperature drops below 32 degrees F. I have tried the gas thing total BS. Its not the battery thing cranks like crazy. I haven't tried the valve clearance but it would seem that it wouldn't run very well and it runs just fine. I however, have a fault code of 636 2 when it does not start. This code has to do with the crankshaft timing. I have tried heating the sensor up with a heat gun and had mixed results. So I ordered another sensor and that didn't fix the problem either. I've checked wires to the sensor no problem. The sensor is supposed to measure 1K ohm to be good. It measures 900 ohm's when it is below 32 and once it gets warm the resistance goes up.

Has any of you had this code associated with cold starting?

Like many of you the dealer is of no help wanted me to bring it in and let it set inside and move it out when cold to see if it wouldn't start. Total BS as if it gets warm soaked it will start every time. It has to sit outside in the cold over night. Again total BS....

 

The gas thing isn't total bs with the newer machines. What exactly do you have?? But does sound like you have an electrical issue going on. And tight valve clearances make for cold hard starting. So should be ruled out.

Machine model and miles will help figure out your BS.

 

2018 900 XP PRO 300 hours.

 

2018 900 XP PRO 300 hours.

 

We're having similar issues with my son's '21 Ranger 570 when the vehicle has been in a warm garage the previous day (during weekend), parked outside over the night and then starting in the Monday morning. Exactly the same has happened now on two Mondays in a row, but then the vehicle has started fine on the mornings and afternoons after that. My son drives the Ranger to school, and thus far the issues have been only on Monday mornings, which is a bit weird. I've tried starting it myself on those mornings too, so it's not just my son not wanting to drive to school.

Based on our really short two-weeks-experience with it (just bought the vehicle as used), this might also be related to temperature changes as we've had temperature going up from -10 C to +5 C, and from +3 C down to -3 C during the nights before issues. As we live in Finland, weather like this is something that we will experience pretty much half of the year.

First we noticed that the battery died out after one or two cranks, so we've installed a battery tenderer into it and filled the battery with distilled water. Now the battery has enough juice to crank the engine over many times when starting, and we've not had issues with the low battery voltage anymore. At the moment we're having 95 octane fuel with max 10 % ethanol in it, and this is the lowest octane fuel we have here. Other option is to go for 98 octane with max 5 % ethanol in it, which we actually had in the tank before but experienced similar problems. I was first thinking that there could be some water condensation in the tank and was thinking of filling the tank next with 98 w. 5 % ethanol, but based on the comments in this thread this might actually make it worse.

Today I got the Ranger started eventually after few tries by holding the key in the ignite-position for an extended period of time, shifting to neutral and giving it a bit of gas while still holding the key on ignite. After revving it gently few times I then let go of the key (which moves it to ON with lights off, i.e. 4-position ignition switch), after which it would run fine. With earlier tries the engine died out instantenously after I let the key from ignition position to ON. Usually we start it on park and it does not require any additional gas, nor keeping the key in ignition-pos more than few seconds. The vehicle did have broken, unsecure ignition switch when we bought it. Earlier, you could turn the switch with basically anything so we changed it yesterday, so this can still be one of the reasons for bad starting experience today - I guess we know more today afternoon, or tomorrow morning. 😅

My action plan for fixing the cold start issues looks like this at this stage. As always, all comments and corrections are highly appreciated!

1. inspect the spark plug and its gap, and replace if necessary
2. install block heater (I already have one extra laying in the garage, so might as well put this on)
3. try filling the vehicle with lower % ethanol, which in here means going to higher 98 octane fuel
4. check the valves
5. investigate if this could be an EFI / ECU issue

We have not had any errors on the dash (except the low battery voltage before installing the tenderer and doing maintenance on the battery), so at this stage at least at this stage I'm ruling the crank position sensor problem out from investigations.

 

Hi Jason, what type of block heater are you installing? Is it a polaris part or after market?

When I get a code there is also a check engine light too.

 

I haven't tried the valve clearance but it would seem that it wouldn't run very well and it runs just fine.

Characteristic of closed up intake valve clearance is hard to start. After it starts it runs fine.
You have easy access to the valve cover. It is easy to check the valve clearance just to make sure that isn't the problem.
Also check the intake boots for air leaks.
If it sucks dust it will wear the valve seat and cause the clearance to close up.
If that is the problem it will eventually get to where it won't run at all.

 

I checked the valve clearance and all the boots for air leaks.

 

Thanks Jason, I thought you might have found a Polaris heater. That's really nice heater and you did a great job installing it. Your install gave me ideas on how to install one. The only one I could find is 240VAC and sold in Finland by TT Thermal. Now I realize what the JasonFIN means you are in Finland. Good to here you got you problem fixed. I'm going to find a heater here in the US that would be similar to yours. I think I have a couple but going to try only 500W ones. Thanks, John

 

Based on the quick tests we did with the heater it's really overly powerful for such a small block engine - seems to heat the engine up in few minutes. If I hadn't had this one laying around, I'd also go for a smaller heater.

We still haven't validated if the heater helps on the issue really though, as we'll only see that tomorrow - at best it's like band-aid that doesn't cure the problem, but hopefully makes it possible to live with it. 😅

 

UPDATE: conditions: 1 deg. F morning temperature Ranger sat outside overnight. I have found that if I cycle the fuel pump 10 times, try to start and no start, cycle fuel pump 4 times, try to start and repeat until it starts. It usually starts on the second try of 4 cycles of the fuel pump. Runs ruff but runs.
CONCLUSION: The fuel pump can't produce enough pressure at cold temperatures. I have a pressure test rig on order and will verify fuel pressure. I suspect the warm temperature pressure to be low.

 

A quick update from my side as well. After installing the block heater, the issues with the cold start on our XP 570 seemed to disappear mostly, without some exceptions on few colder mornings. Funnily my son doesn't have the chance to heat up the engine during his school day, so the Ranger starts after parking for approx. 8 hours, but wouldn't really do so if being parked over the night (approx. 15 hours). The temperature differences here in Winter aren't that much different from day to night to justify this behavior in my opinion. When installing the block heater on February, we also installed battery charger from Defa.

Now as the temperatures started to get a bit colder here again (around 5 degrees Celsius) we had issues with starting again, and clearly the block heater didn't help in this either. Also the battery charger was running longer than usual with no help. This time the issue was clearly in the battery, as the voltages were low even after over night charging. I added some battery water to the battery (it's one of those older serviceable batteries) which helped a bit but not enough.

When the battery started dying the Ranger started to throw also electric power steering and motor error codes. One of these errors my son said was related to crank shaft sensor error.

After I replaced the battery now roughly two weeks ago, we haven't had these issues again. So, I started wondering, if the battery was already going bad last Winter and that could've caused the voltage to drop during cranking it up, potentially messing with the crank shaft sensor and/or fuel pump.

I guess we'll see how it goes when the temperatures get sub-zero Celsius here again, which is likely to happen in a month or two. 😅