[[email protected]]

Just wondering how many 8000 owners are happy with the quality of their flagship 2 stroke engine that everyone seems to be raving about. Here we go. We picked up a new leftover 2018 zr 8000 limited 137 and the first ride up at less than 400 miles we had an engine failure. The oil pump failed and took out everything. Arctic cat did the right thing and replaced the entire engine and oil pump. Second trip up no problems, but we didn't put on alot of miles due to extremely cold temps. Third trip up it wont start. We had to pull the relays out and warm them up. Reinstalled them. Boom started right up. Put on roughly 150 more miles and the belly pan caught fire due to what i now see is another common problem.We have been an arctic cat family since 1994 and i have never been so disappointed. Is there a lemon law for snowmobiles?

 

[carkhz316]

I'm going to guess that most owners are happy with theirs, as the 800 ctec isn't known be problematic. In your case, it is unfortunate that you've had troubles, but it's a good thing you (presumably) have a machine with an intact warranty and a dealer to fix it.

 

[tenacious84]

I too am sorry to hear that you are having problems, we all hope the dealer treats you well. As far as your problems are concerned, neither is related to the engine. The oil pump is an electronic unit that now sits in the oil reservoir and the flaming issue is a poor fuel calibration (needed to meet epa requirements). They have a fix for the fuel calibration, but for whatever reason still haven't released it. There are aftermarket fuel calibrations that clean up the flaming as well as add a little performance.

I certainly agree that no matter what someone says, it still leaves a bad taste in your mouth.

 

[[email protected]]

I understand that there are calibrations that increase performance. But in my opinion you should never have to worry about your snowmobile catching on fire every time you come to a stop. My son has to pull the side panel before he puts fuel in it just to be sure it isn't burning. Same thing when putting it in the trailer after riding. We purchased an extended warranty when we bought it. Most likely they would void our warranty if the factory calibration was changed unless it was a factory approved calibration. I feel that there is no way cat never had this happen to them with the years of claimed testing. This is a huge safety concern and possibly an environmental concern if one of these starts a forest fire.

 

[Let it Snow!]

Why didnt you do some research before you bought the sled?

Flamethrower problem is well documented.

 

[mnstang]

That sucks. I'm looking at getting a 8000 ctec and the flame issue is kind of a bummer. To spend a bunch of hard earned cash on something that catches on fire and no real fix, that's not right.

 

[tenacious84]

I understand that there are calibrations that increase performance. But in my opinion you should never have to worry about your snowmobile catching on fire every time you come to a stop. My son has to pull the side panel before he puts fuel in it just to be sure it isn't burning. Same thing when putting it in the trailer after riding. We purchased an extended warranty when we bought it. Most likely they would void our warranty if the factory calibration was changed unless it was a factory approved calibration. I feel that there is no way cat never had this happen to them with the years of claimed testing. This is a huge safety concern and possibly an environmental concern if one of these starts a forest fire.

I absolutely agree that the situation is unacceptable. I was just identifying that your problems as well as other issues people have discussed on here aren't related to the engine itself. Before something else happens, please make sure your intake tract is properly sealed so you don't ingest snow and go through another engine. The flaming and snow ingestion are two well know problems. I don't recall hearing much about failed oil pumps.

 

[Frankie406]

In all seriousness, all of these issues from any of the brands is getting kind of ridiculous. You can buy a decent car, with waaaay more parts, waaaay more machine time, parts, paint, glass, seats, gadgets, wiring, radio, heat/ac, power windows, power door locks, etc etc, for $20ish thousand. How is a top of the line snowmobile getting close to that? Ever part out a snowmobile? Or see one that was? You say to yourself: "Really?". This thing is as cheesy as they come, how does it not break in half? I have seen newer Etec Skidoo's, Artic Cats and newer Polaris sleds tore down, they aren't awe inspiring. The older ones, are even worse. Are we all suckers? Have to modify, update, rebuild, re valve, clutch, etc, to make them what they should be.

Granted, they are run in a pretty harsh environment, but, so is my car. When it's -30F.

 

[12meter joe]

My brothers 2018 8000rr has 2700 miles and has yet to have this flame issue. Not sure why some do and some dont? Half of those miles are at night time and I have ridden next to him for all of those miles.

 

[F8HO]

1100 miles on my 18 and zero issues other than 2 y pipe springs breaking.

 

[Fun11cat]

1100 miles on my 18 and zero issues other than 2 y pipe springs breaking.

For your exhaust springs breaking have you tried hi-temp silicone across the springs it seems to helps them from the springs breaking.

 

[F8HO]

For your exhaust springs breaking have you tried hi-temp silicone across the springs it seems to helps them from the springs breaking.

Yes I have and that has I hope fixed the issue. Last 300 miles have been ok.

 

[favoritos]

Those Y pipe springs must be a problem. I wanted to pick up a bunch since I already had one fail early. Nobody had them on hand anywhere close to me.


How do you guys put on the silicone? I tried a thick bead on the coils and still lost a spring.



I hate losing those springs in the belly pan. Pain to retrieve the parts. I usually run a loose coil of SS wire through the spring and the hook loop when I replace springs. The wire can't be tight though. You would be surprised how much those springs stretch.

 

[shimxtr1]

Close to 3000 trouble free miles on my 18 zr8000 limited.

 

[jumpjunky]

I have a flame thrower. When I stopped on Saturday, my friend threw snow on the burning bellypan. I didn't see it and am lucky it didn't escalate quickly.

 

[[email protected]]

Call your dealer. We need to light a fire under arctic cats ass. Someone is going to get hurt. Remember we're sitting on the gas tank. I got my dealer involved this morning. They have been very good so far . We had 3 fires over the weekend in ours. There is a YouTube video of one shooting flames online.

 

[[email protected]]

Cat only gives a year warranty. We need this resolved!

 

[shimxtr1]

Cat only gives a year warranty. We need this resolved!

I have a 3 or 4 year warranty IIRC...I know it is at least 3.

 

[[email protected]]

So do we. But i don't think an extended warranty will cover cosmetics.

 

[Michman 1]

I have a 2018 ZR8000 RR 137 with nearly 3,500 miles on it and have had no problems what so ever. No flame issues only an occasional pop after a long hard run and rapid shut down. I've had numerous 800 Suzy's since 2007 including the 2010 HO and none of them can hold a candle to this engine in any way.:thumbsup: