Off Trail Bogging

Have you ever experienced where your sled bogs when you go off trail into deep snow conditions? As long as you’re running on the trail, it runs fine, but off into the powder and the problem occurs.
Solution? This can be caused by a number of things, but the first thing the gang at Starting Line Products asks is, “Are your exhaust joints sealed with a high temperature silicone, including the silencer-to-bellypan outlet?”
What they have found is the majority of riders are not sealing the silencer outlet to the belly pan. The sleds don’t come this way from the factory, it is something that you have to do additionally. When you run in deep snow, the silencer outlet can get capped (momentarily blocked) off by snow and the exhaust comes back in under the hood. You’d be amazed at how this happens in deep snow, where the spent gasses take the path of least resistance – often up through the airspace between the outlet and the hole in the belly pan.
The exhaust gases are then sucked into the airbox because, in deep snow, the air intake is often partially plugged with snow and the air box vacuum will increase. This exhaust gas has no oxygen in it and thus will not burn. The engine will immediately go rich and the sled will bog.
Sealing the exhaust at all joints and at the silencer to belly pan connection will correct this problem. SLP recommends Permatex brand “Ultra Black” silicone part number 589B, which can be found at most automotive parts stores or can be purchased directly from SLP. As simple as this may sound, it can make all the difference between a good ride in deep powder or a terrible one.