Just got the 500 HO sportsman..almost time for the 10 hour or so oil change

My questions:
1) Do you recommend using the Polaris oil change kit or buying other oil and filters from the auto parts store?
--my buddy claims it's extra money "wasted" on the Polaris kit...stating that I should just buy regular oil and filter from Auto Zone...

2) Is there any other maintenance that we should do besides the oil change? Fluids, etc



Thanks in advance...I appreciate all the free expertish adevice that this site provides

Congrats on the new 500...your gonna love it. Your buddy gave you BAD advice. You just spent at least $6,000.00 on your new ATV. I can't understand why people have this mentality: "Hmmm......I wonder if I might be able to save $25 per year by using non-polaris approved fluids in my BRAND NEW machine???? It's a gamble.....but it's 25 whole dollars we are talking about........I think I'll see if my Brand new Machine will survive with non-polaris oil......"

Man, that makes NO SENSE!!! I spent over $7,000 last year on my new 700EFI. You can bet your a$$ that for an extra $25 a year, EVERY FLUID OTHER THAN GAS that goes into my machine will come from a blue bottle that says "Polaris" on the side. It doesn't make sense to risk a 6-7 thousand dollar machine for the price of a tank of gas for it. Can you GET AWAY with using other fluids? Most certainly.......but I'm not using MY machine as the guinea pig..........

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If you have never been stuck, than you haven't been 'wheelin much.

I always use the kit. I wouldn't change any other fluids until you hit 100 hours after the first oil change. Please read all oil changing instructions for they are very important! I think you might be a little early because I think it is after 20 hours and your machine will let you know with a indicator light. After you change the oil you can reset the sevice indicator to 100 hours to let you know for next time. All the instructions are in your manual.

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atv gooroo
05 sportsman 500 HO
26' mudlites on ITP's
Black and white primary spring
K&N Air filter
New brake pads, tie rod ends, fan,
ecm,wheel bearings,belt,water pump seals,
and rebuilt front end three times.

Slayer,

Ten or twenty hours, not a big difference. I did it at 20 on my 500, and 15 hours on my 800. My 500 still uses Polaris oil, but my 800 uses Amsoil Formula 4-Stroke 0W-40 and a Purolator Pure One filer #PL14610. The 500 can use the PL14612 filter. Quite a few guys use Amsoil and Mobile 1 0W-40 with no problems at all. The only fluids that you should not substitute for the Polaris brand are the front differential fluid and ADC fluid. Engine oil is perfectly okay to use whichever brand you prefer, just as long as its the same API service rating and weight as what the factory recommends. And filters from Mobil 1, Purolator, and Wix are high quality filters that you won't have any worries in using.

Jod, you're way off base. My 800 is far from being a guinea pig.

ADDED:

I changed all my fluids early, not just the engine oil.

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2007 Sporstman 800 Deluxe, w/ 14" SS108 rims, Terracross Radials, ADC on-off switch
2006 Sportsman 500 H.O. (wife's) w/ 800 rims & tires
2006 Sawtooth (daughter's)
2005 Predator 50 (son's)

A wife-beater is nothing more than a big CRY-BABY!!

Edited: 04/28/2008 at 08:54 AM by sheepdogMSP8117

I use Amsoil 0w-40 and a Fram filter only because the Canadian Tire store that sells it is nearby,it works out to only be $7 cheaper than the kit. If your dealer is close by just get the kit plus they give you new washers for the drain holes.

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2001 SP 500 H.O

I don't get the washers anymore. I hove notinced over the past year these changes: 3 Quarts down to 2, New washers to none, lower price to higher price.

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atv gooroo
05 sportsman 500 HO
26' mudlites on ITP's
Black and white primary spring
K&N Air filter
New brake pads, tie rod ends, fan,
ecm,wheel bearings,belt,water pump seals,
and rebuilt front end three times.

If thats what they offer now than the kit is pointless.

Just get full synthetic 0w-40 and a filter that fits anywhere you want.

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2001 SP 500 H.O

Most auto stores I checked don't even have 0W-40 full synthetic oil. Even if they did it wouldn't be made to Polaris specs. I take mine to the dealer in the spring and fall and they check the whole machine when they change the oil. The only thing I do is change the air filter, and top off the radiator and oil if they need it. I'm not a mechanic and don't like getting dirty unless I'm playin' in a mud hole.

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2006 Sportsman 500 EFI with winch, Glacier Plow, Lock & Ride backrest, front brushguard, rear bumper, 8" rear rack extension, thumb-warmer, 3-headlight kit, RAM mount for Garmin GPS 12.

Evo 2X 50cc 2-speed powerboard (scooter) with Power Pipe, velocity stack, ADA Racing air filter, bigger drive gear. Only 55 pounds with 6 HP.

2001 Chevy Siverado half-ton 4x4, regular cab, long bed, Leer fiberglass cap, an old mutt in the passenger seat.

They dont sell Amsoil in the states? It the favorite of performance street bikes guys and comes in 0w-40 and is sold at our Canadian Tire stores which are like a Walmart.

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2001 SP 500 H.O

Edited: 05/07/2008 at 05:23 PM by TLC

Yeah. They MAKE Amsoil here, and they've been selling it for over 35 years. They just don't have it in stores everywhere.

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2006 Sportsman 500 EFI with winch, Glacier Plow, Lock & Ride backrest, front brushguard, rear bumper, 8" rear rack extension, thumb-warmer, 3-headlight kit, RAM mount for Garmin GPS 12.

Evo 2X 50cc 2-speed powerboard (scooter) with Power Pipe, velocity stack, ADA Racing air filter, bigger drive gear. Only 55 pounds with 6 HP.

2001 Chevy Siverado half-ton 4x4, regular cab, long bed, Leer fiberglass cap, an old mutt in the passenger seat.

Polaris specs? What exactly does that mean? I'd bet that Amsoil and Mobil 1 are a better oil than Polaris. Being that Polaris doesn't make their own oil, one can't even say who actually makes it. Obviously it comes from somewhere and Polaris slaps their label on it.

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2007 Sporstman 800 Deluxe, w/ 14" SS108 rims, Terracross Radials, ADC on-off switch
2006 Sportsman 500 H.O. (wife's) w/ 800 rims & tires
2006 Sawtooth (daughter's)
2005 Predator 50 (son's)

A wife-beater is nothing more than a big CRY-BABY!!

Obviously, but Polaris decides what grade and rating, and how much of which additives they put in it. It's just like car oil has API service ratings like SL, CF, CG, CH, Energy Conserving, Energy Conserving II, etc. But it's a lot more than that too, because they have different degergents, dispersants, anti-foam, anti-corosive, viscosity improvers, and all the other good stuff in it. If a bottle of oil only had oil in it, then it wouldn't matter what you buy. But each manufacturer has their own specs and Polaris is different from Amsoil, is different from Yamaha, is different from...

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2006 Sportsman 500 EFI with winch, Glacier Plow, Lock & Ride backrest, front brushguard, rear bumper, 8" rear rack extension, thumb-warmer, 3-headlight kit, RAM mount for Garmin GPS 12.

Evo 2X 50cc 2-speed powerboard (scooter) with Power Pipe, velocity stack, ADA Racing air filter, bigger drive gear. Only 55 pounds with 6 HP.

2001 Chevy Siverado half-ton 4x4, regular cab, long bed, Leer fiberglass cap, an old mutt in the passenger seat.

Now I'm going to have to replace my Rotella with:
Yamaha, Bombardier, Kawasaki, Briggs and Stratton, Dodge, Case, John Deere, Honda, Wisconsin, Oldmobile, Mazda, Nissan, Cadillac, Chevy diesel, Chevy small block turbo, Chevy small block supercharged (is there a difference? they sell turbo oil? must be a different spec.) Chevy big block.......Oil!!!!!
Because each has a different spec!!!! LMAO

I need a bigger oil storage place. LMAO

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N2O; better racing through chemistry<BR>If I was 21 and had good medical insurance, I would own a Banshee. I'm not and I don't, so I don't. <BR>Quads are cheaper than drugs but both are hard on our bodies.

Hardy har har. A lot of cars say "Energy Conserving 5W-30 API Service SL", but don't say Chevy, Dodge, Cadillac, whatever. I've never seen anywhere that says "USE ANY 0W-40" for quads. I have seen in my 2006 owners manual...

"CAUTION
Never substitute oils or mix brands."

And I've seen where it says that if you do use a different oil of the same weight and type, in this case 0W-40 API SH, and it HAS to be API service rating SH, it may not work as well, and you may have to change your oil more frequently. If you spend less money at a time, but more often, you're probably spending more money, not less. Even if it costs the same exact amount to change the oil five times with a cheaper brand, instead of four times with the recommended oil in the same time period, your just making 25% more work for yourself. I'd rather use the right oil and change it less often.

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2006 Sportsman 500 EFI with winch, Glacier Plow, Lock & Ride backrest, front brushguard, rear bumper, 8" rear rack extension, thumb-warmer, 3-headlight kit, RAM mount for Garmin GPS 12.

Evo 2X 50cc 2-speed powerboard (scooter) with Power Pipe, velocity stack, ADA Racing air filter, bigger drive gear. Only 55 pounds with 6 HP.

2001 Chevy Siverado half-ton 4x4, regular cab, long bed, Leer fiberglass cap, an old mutt in the passenger seat.

Edited: 05/08/2008 at 12:19 AM by jumbofrank

Here we go again. Not trying to sound like an oil expert, but I do know that the Amsoil Formula 4-stroke oil that I'm using is the same weight (0W-40) and API service rating (SH) that Polaris calls for, and even says in the manual that its okay to use it. Tests have been done that show Amsoil having the best rating in a 4-ball wear test (I think thats what its called), too bad they didn't include Polaris oil in the test, they just used all the other top names out there.

I think the only thing Polaris does is add tint to the oil so they know if you're using their oil or someone elses.

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2007 Sporstman 800 Deluxe, w/ 14" SS108 rims, Terracross Radials, ADC on-off switch
2006 Sportsman 500 H.O. (wife's) w/ 800 rims & tires
2006 Sawtooth (daughter's)
2005 Predator 50 (son's)

A wife-beater is nothing more than a big CRY-BABY!!

If it's SH it's good enough. How much is a quart of Amsoil? I know it was really expensive in the 80's when I used it in my Ski-Doo. But so are all the other synthetics now.

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2006 Sportsman 500 EFI with winch, Glacier Plow, Lock & Ride backrest, front brushguard, rear bumper, 8" rear rack extension, thumb-warmer, 3-headlight kit, RAM mount for Garmin GPS 12.

Evo 2X 50cc 2-speed powerboard (scooter) with Power Pipe, velocity stack, ADA Racing air filter, bigger drive gear. Only 55 pounds with 6 HP.

2001 Chevy Siverado half-ton 4x4, regular cab, long bed, Leer fiberglass cap, an old mutt in the passenger seat.

Its a gimmick to drive business back to the dealership. Every manufacturer does it. Reacuring sales make more money then the initial sale.

If you truly had to use it, the manual would not state that you can use 0-40w fully synthetic that is not energy conserving (which doesnt make any sense, speaking the only reason you wouldnt want the energy conserving is to keep from slipping a wet clutch).

Probally the vast majority of the fluids in the bike can be found at your local auto store. Even the dreaded front end fluid is most likely Type F transmission fluid (a lubricant that still allows friction between clutch surfaces aka the rollers in the cage).


Mind you Mobil 1 and a Napa Filter is still over $30. So my personal savings is Napa is 16 miles round trip ($2.36), the dealer is 64 miles round trip ($9.47).

At the rate I put hours on machines I'll end up doing between 4 and 5 changes this year. 4 years later I've saved enough in fuel cost to rebuild the entire motor....

My dealer isn't in the same city as me but is still less than 10 miles away so I don't burn much gas getting there. I let them do the work while I eat, sleep, and watch TV.

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2006 Sportsman 500 EFI with winch, Glacier Plow, Lock & Ride backrest, front brushguard, rear bumper, 8" rear rack extension, thumb-warmer, 3-headlight kit, RAM mount for Garmin GPS 12.

Evo 2X 50cc 2-speed powerboard (scooter) with Power Pipe, velocity stack, ADA Racing air filter, bigger drive gear. Only 55 pounds with 6 HP.

2001 Chevy Siverado half-ton 4x4, regular cab, long bed, Leer fiberglass cap, an old mutt in the passenger seat.

Your the person that stated each manufacture has it's own spec oil. I just listed all the manufactures I have on my place and all the different oils I need if I followed your oil instructions.

Ching, ching, ching, we have a winner!!!!!

That pretty much says it all.

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N2O; better racing through chemistry<BR>If I was 21 and had good medical insurance, I would own a Banshee. I'm not and I don't, so I don't. <BR>Quads are cheaper than drugs but both are hard on our bodies.

Here's where you order Amsoil.http://www.amsoil.com/StoreFront/default.aspx

I run the motorcycle 10-40,https://www.amsoil.com/storefront/mcf.aspx
others swear by the 0-40 https://www.amsoil.com/storefront/aff.aspx

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2006 Honda 450ERRRRRRRRRRRRRR<BR>2005 Yamaha KodiaK 450...crashed/Totaled<BR>2005 Honda 250EX (sold but never forgotten)<BR>2003 Yamaha Raptor 80<BR>2006 Sukuki ZZZZZZ400
GRIZZLY 700 FI........nothing compares!

Edited: 05/08/2008 at 12:49 PM by CamoKodiak450

jumbofrank, I fully agree with you as well. At the high price of your machine (6000-9000) it is not worth guessing it will work. Penny wise dollar dumb. I read that polaris changed up the formulation about 100 times before they got the right mix of additives.

Edited: 05/08/2008 at 03:23 PM by 02magnum500