900 muffler question
- Thread starter hmgary
- Start date
My '05 spark arrestor was externally screwed to the end. Some others models are internal and become clogged - usually removed by the owners. If you have an internal one then it should be some bolts visible there for access to it. Mine promptly fell off when the screw came out of the tailpipe end . The heat guard on mine used to rattle (it says hot on it)and is visible with the cargo bed up. There is also a small safety shield between the fan and muffler that will rattle sometimes. There is a allen plug in the bottom of the muffler that is used to remove soot from it. It is unscrewed, the engine revved and then replaced. The procedure is mentioned in the owners manual. Some folks never do this though and it shouldn't be a noise maker. Does the machine rattle when in motion or just at idle?. The drive shafts rattle like crazy on these models too. If they have never been replaced , that may be the source. The rear shaft is very near the muffler. An egg shaped bearing called the carrier bearing connects the front and rear shafts on the all but the new '11 models. Sometimes, it will go out when the shafts are worn and produce noises. I get under mine every so often with the machine off and wiggle,poke and prod to see what is moving and shouldn't be. Then , I look at it with it in park with the motor on and see what gives. How many hours are on it? bordercollie
I bought this machine used, it has 800 hours on it. The first thing I did was replace the driveshaft witht the beefier updated version that eliminates the carrier bearing. It seem to just make the noise while idling. When the machine is shut off I can grab the tailpipe and move it slighly and hear the squeak that becomes a whiny rattle when idling. I'm going to have to try some of your suggestions to find out what the problem is.
I have pushed prodded etc and can make the muffler make noise but don't really see a cause. I wrapped some high temp tape around the last four inches of the tailpipe and the noise stopped. There is no spark arrestor, I checked internally with a piece of heavy gauge wire. The weld looks good on the tailpipe. Very strange.
Two more things to check. First the heat shroud above the muffler. It will crack around the bolts that are used to mount it. Second would be the bracket on the bottom of the muffler that mounts it to the frame. I've seen these crack, or the bolt come loose. Either of the case have made rattling noises for me before.
Ricochet
Member
Yep, the muffler will crack around the flange where it bolts onto the engine (exhaust manifold). I have seen this happen many times...it was a design flaw and I'm pretty sure it didn't get fixed till after 2005. They added internal stiffener in the resonator portion to help prevent these fatigue cracks/failures. I bet replacing the muffler will fix this issue for you.