Doing activities in winter, including snowmobiling and skiing, can be expensive. Doing proper maintenance regularly will help avoid spending more.
This includes maintaining your air filter and the engine’s cooling system. Without a coolant, your snowmobile may overheat in a concise amount of time.
So, let’s learn about the coolant and how it affects your riding experience.
What is a Snowmobile Coolant?
A snowmobile with a liquid-cooled engine with an improved cooling system is not revealed. The engine is connected between the inlets and the outlets of the first and second coolant circuits.
These are comprised of one or more interconnected heat exchangers. The coolant circuits like the ethylene glycol and propylene glycol circulate the coolant pumped from the engine and dissipate the heat that is generated by the engine during this operation.
A thermostat valve is operatively connected to one of the second coolant circuits. This blocks the coolant flow in the circuit when the engine temperature is lower than the threshold level.
The first coolant circuit will provide the primary cooling circuit for the engine, and the second cooling circuit will offer a parallel cooling path to enhance the cooling capacity of the cooling system when the engine temperature goes beyond the threshold.
What is the Purpose of Snowmobile Coolant?
Antifreeze, also known as coolant, is a solution that goes into the machine’s cooling system to help it balance the engine’s temperature.
During low temperature or cold weather conditions, it helps to lower the freezing point of the water that contains liquid. This will extend to the whole engine system that operates a lot of heat transfer.
During high-temperature conditions or hot weather, this antifreeze gel will increase the boiling point of the liquid. This will turn to prevent the machine’s system from crashing and heating.
How to Burp Snowmobile Coolant?
Raise the front of the sled. Now slip a long flat blade screwdriver between the coolant exit hose and the thermostat housing.
This should be done without the hose clamping in place of clamping the hose. This will give the air a little place to let go. Now fill the bottle with coolant till it is 90% full, or the antifreeze runs out around the screwdriver.
Pull the screwdriver, put the hose clamp and bottle cap in, and fire it off. Feel the rear cooler for the heat. If no heat occurs after 2-3 minutes, repeat the same till the circulation occurs.
How to Fill Coolant in a Snowmobile?
Putting the coolant into your snowmobile can be a bit of a mess if you try to do it alone. You need to start this by getting your sled ready.
- First, buy a coolant as per the specifications and prepare the mixture. The manual will let you know what conditions a good antifreeze has to meet. The water-agent radio will depend on the producer’s specifications and the guidelines.
- Now drain the coolers of the existing solution. Pull off the lowest hose of the cooling system. You can raise the sled’s rear end to help drain on a jack stand. The track has to stay on the ground.
- Now pour the antifreeze mixture slowly by using a hose. The slow pouring will let the air escape and not go inside the reservoir.
- Ensure all the air is out of the reservoir. While you pour the coolant, you may feel it’s full already. You are done when you see a steady stream of liquid coming back! You should watch the head vent to know if the air is out and the tank is full.
How to Drain Coolant from Snowmobile?
While performing this task, ensure the engine is off, and the wheels are blocked. Never rely on a jack if you lift your Polaris, Ski-doo, Arctic Cat, etc. Use a reliable lift or a jack stand.
- Buy a handheld pump from the local mart store or an auto part store. Remove the radiator cap and put the suction hose end down the neck.
- Ensure the suction hose is down to the bottom of the radiator below the lower radiator hose.
- You may also use a shop vac with a similar setup, take off one of the upper hoses, and vacuum out the antifreeze. If things are dirty, put a garden hose to the radiator hose and flush it for some time until everything comes out clean.
How to Check the Snowmobile Coolant Level?
It would help if you removed the hood to check the coolant level. The hood is held in place by a few screws that you can take off in your yard or garage.
You can see the entire coolant reservoir after opening the hood. This now depends on the type, year of fabrication, or the brand of your snowmobile.
The reservoir may have level lines. A few sleds come without markings for the liquid level.
Go check your manual if you are still not convinced of what you see. It will specify the recommended amount of coolant or give you some markings to follow.
How does the Snowmobile Cooling System Work?
The Snowmobiles with liquid-cooled engines often have auxiliary radiators. This is spaced away from the engine itself.
The radiators are positioned within the drive tunnel within the snowmobile chassis. The drive track, which is disposed within the drive tunnel, circulates and carries the snow within the drive as the track moves.
The radiators are positioned adjacent to the track so that a little snow carried by the track will be thrown at the radiators to provide heat exchange.
The melting of snow requires a considerable amount of heat removed from the coolant circulating in the radiators.
Apart from circulating the snow within the tunnel, the drive track in typical snowmobiles will throw the snow to the snowmobile operator’s foot area.
As typical snowmobiles provide recessed footwells for the rider’s feet, the snow lashed out by the movement of the machine tends to accumulate in the recesses of the footwells.
The accumulated snow will not only add unwanted weight to the machine but may also cause the rider’s feet to slip from the snowmobile.
How much Antifreeze does a Snowmobile hold?
The antifreeze depends on the brand of the snowmobile coolant. If you have no idea about the antifreeze you use in your snowmobile, it is good to seek help from professionals.
It is advised to handle the antifreeze carefully by using gloves. You can also go for a facemask to avoid inhalation of the toxic components.
It is also safer to ask for professional help if you have no idea how to use it. Ensure you do not play with the ratio when mixing the antifreeze.
Using less than 50% of the coolant and a lot of water may cause severe damage to the snowmobile. Use good antifreeze, too, apart from the usual service check-ups and fixing the damages to the snowmobile.
Final Words
A snowmobile coolant helps in balancing the temperature of the engine. It prevents your machine from crashing and overheating.
Mentioned above are some ways to burp, fill, and drain the coolant of your snowmobiles. Regularly checking your coolant is helpful to your snowmobile’s engine.
You can also check your coolant level by looking at the coolant reservoir when you open your hood.
Handling the antifreeze should be done carefully. So if you are not confident in doing all these on your own, you can always check your snowmobile’s manual or seek professional help.
