here's the details:
bought a mach z 800 triple yesterday, its a 1998 with about 5000km's on it, and it hasnt been driven in about 3 years. What steps do I take to get this thing prepared for driving, aside from maybe new plugs and wires, and cleaning the carb out, and new fuel and oil?

The other thing is, I am looking to find out where to get a good "deal" on a new track for it, and probably some new wheels since 2 on the left side have some slight damage. Also, are there instructions around on how to change a track?
thanks, any info would be appreciated.

What mods could be done to replace crappy oem parts (due to poor design), that inhibit the sleds performance?
-C

I would check the compression just to make sure all three cylinders are up to par still. Not that they wouldn't be but you definitely want to know that before you hit the snow. Run through and grease the suspension at all the grease points as well as the steering system (all in the shop manual) As far as a track goes, I bought a 2 year old camoplast with studs for $100.00 (from a good friend) . Normally for a used track I would say anywhere from $150.00 to $200.00 depending what you're looking for. The biggest problem with the 98's were the stator's so you might want to have that checked or just ride it and see if it feels right (not missing or hesitating) and also there were some issues with wiring harnesses grounding themselves out on the underside of the motor here and there. As far as installing a track, I had a buddy show me the ropes the first time but I would definitely invest in a shop manual (approx. $60). Fair warning though, the manual is written for ski-doo tech's but it definitely does help. Besides that, the motor is bulletproof. WELCOME TO THE MACH FAMILY! ENJOY SMOKING EVERYBODY ELSE.

thanks for the reply tcryder,

I found a manual on cd in pdf format on ebay.
hopefully that will be sufficient....I will do as you mentioned.
I found a new track for 450 cash, brand being camoplast with 1 inch paddle. good enough for me i think to start.
If you can think of anything else let me know.
thanks again
-C

Where was your sled stored over the past three years (indoor or outdoor)? If you are going to replace wires, I believe ski doo only sells them as in a set with all three coils. The installation of the coils and wires sucks because in order to plug the coils in to the CDI box, it is all DIRECTLY under the motor (WHAT A BITCH). Be prepared to bend your wrist every which way to get it in there. How many studs are you looking at doing? Let me know how everything goes.

i phoned an authorized bombardier dealer to find out info on the sled, the guy who owned it has the recall work done on it, as well as the wiring harness replaced that sits under the motor, i guess there was a tendancy to for this to rub.
The sled was kept indoors (heated) most of the time, and has been in the guys garage for the last 6 months, not heated, but atleast out of the elements.

I got that track today, a camoplast with 1 inch paddle. Im not sure what model it is...lol...but i paid 450 (canadian)cash and it is still wrapped.
I'll try just replacing the spark plugs first I think and see how it runs after cleaning the carb out. Then do as much greasing etc as necessary. I was also thinking I may as well replace all the wheel bearings since they've been sitting so long.

As far as the studs go, i got a price of 1.99 cdn each including the backer. This has a carbide tip and is the brand stud boy of length 1.075

I should be able to get'r done this weekend i hope, or atleast started. Looks as though or weather is gonna get warm again for the next 2 weeks, there talking a possibilty of 20 degress (for F sakes) So I definetly have time to get prepaired.

Thanks again for you time,
-C

Sounds like it was well taken care of. Post a picture if you have one.

ha...i will when i pick it up.....i should have it here by weekend though, and i'll do that.
-C

got the sled yesterday...tried pulling it over with no luck. I put my spark check on my plug wires and there was definetly spark on each cylinder. So i went out and bought new plugs. I put a little fuel in each cylinder as i changed the plug. After a few pulss it fired up right away. SWEEETTT! Sounds to run fine, think i'll hold off on cleaing the carbs and just run some cleaner through it since it "seems" fine. Any concerns about this?????? Anyhow, i'm gonna concentrate on changing most of the wheels since many are either damaged or look to be pretty aged and rusty in around the bearings, and of course put the new track on it i bought and woody's studs. Anyone have good directions for this?, my main question is, do i remove the drive shaft? It looks as though i have to. The rest looks pretty basic.

thanks
-C

The driveshaft will definitely have to come out. Check the bearings on the driveshaft as long as they don't make that "grinding noise", you should be good. Also, check the chaincase, sprockets and chain for any abnormal wear and grease the shit out of the skid, which is easier to do when you have it out of the tunnel and track off of it. I think there are 7 or 8 grease fittings on there. Have you engaged the clutches and spun the track at all yet? Where's the


where's the picture?

doesnt seem to wanna let me upload the file, its only 395 kb but it wont attatch...wtf is with that, anyway hopefully i can figure it out and get it up.
-C

Well even though it runs I would still perfer going though the carbs, because pilots get plugged, and gasoline becomes gummy after about a year of not moving. Drain the gas and oil tanks. For studs I would perfer rotein hornets in it, but watch the clearance. because there isnt very much. Also, make sure you have tunnel protectors in it, perferably true 1" from Ski-Doo.

ahah...just had to find the allowable file size..here it is, unfortunately not sitting in snow like yours tc-ryder...and its not looking to promising either. Everytime they show snow in the forecast its gone, and is now showing temps well above 0 for the next 2 weeks. suppose to be 8 degrees celcius tomorrow a little lower through the week then back up to 8 againnext week. I cant beleive this crap.
-C

That's a nice one.

Brother definitely replace the gas. Very important!!. Your carbs are also a must. Clean everything out as much as you can. Drain as much gas that is humanly possible (The fuel started breaking down about 15 days after it was poured in there) put new gas in and definitely run gas line antifreeze or else you are going to run into trouble. Also when cleaning your carbs make sure you do one carb at a time (you don't want to intermix parts). Check for scoring and seat breakdown on jets and needles. It does not take much buildup to change your jet size. Check your bowl's float adjustment (you will definitely find this info in the manual you have), as well as for seals on carbs. When re-installing remember to have someone synch the carbs for you (if not familiar with the methods) and put your airbox on properly or else you may find a lean condition and bang!!. As for the oil check for moisture (slight milky look to it, or water layer at bottom of oil canister) and make sure to add same oil as was last used, or drain and add new oil. My preference is to run synthetic, but make sure you do not intermix the oils

This was just a quick basic guideline. There is much more to prepping than I have mentioned, especially for a sled that has sat for the last 3 years. Read your manual and it will give you the best way to check over your sled.

Welcome to the Mach family!! Best of luck.

Blackie (06 Mach Z 1hr 20 minutes on it)

thanks for the tips,

i guess then i will dive into the carbs since so many are recommending it.
I got my new wheels yesterday, i just bought new oem ones, as much as i love the aluminum ones by tricked toys. my money may be needed elsewhere in the machine since i havent broken into it yet to see what else it may need.

updates will come later.

oh yeah, is there any upgrades i can make to the carb since i'll be in there??????

thanks
-C

Looks to me like you have a 1999 Mach Z.
The hood and the front suspension are deffinately 99. Not sure on the seat.
98 Mach Z's look like my 98 Mach 1. I don't have any pics tho.
99's look cool! My favorite year!
99's have the better electronics in it as far as stators and CDI boxes
go. 1998 was the year of the bad electronics. Right now my Mach 1
has a bad stator and CDI box. $700.00 to fix at the dealer. :banghead:

RBT700
:div20:

well,

looks as though my oil container has a small crack somewhere in back against the "firewall" (for lack of a better term) it seems to be up high though so i can atleast keep it 75 percent full without it leaking. I cant get it out for it looks as though the steering shaft has to come out for it to be removed. Think i'll wait till next year for this one.
-C

I have an oil tank lsited on ebay.

auction link