ATVPT

Jim Anderson has put his review together about how the new Carlisle Ultimax ATV Belts performs in the field. Jim is accustomed to riding in the rugged Minnesota environment where winters are long and the mud is think during the spring.  A great place to put these cvt belts to the test.

ATV Product Review

Product:                    Carlisle Ultimax Belt UA418

Test Duration:         11/05/05 to 2/23/06

Machine:               2003 Kawasaki Prairie 650

Review Date:           2/23/2006

Location tested:     Minnesota

 

Today CVT “Constant Variable Transmissions” are becoming the most common design of transmission for ATV manufactures, most likely due to consumer demands. The advantages of this system are clear; they are very simple to operate, there is no need to operate a hand lever clutch or foot shifter. This may contribute to an operator spending more time concentrating on safer operation of the machine rather then shifting gears. An important advantage of this system is the options for a user to customize performance utilizing different choices of springs and weights, the user may customize performance to meet their specific needs. This is not an option with other automatic centrifugal clutch systems and manual transmissions. However this CVT transmission does come with some possible disadvantages called maintenance. Drive Belts, springs and weights require routine inspections and replacement. I will discuss the use of the Carlisle belt in this review.

Before installing a new belt its good practice to take your old and new belts side by side and just do a quick comparison to size them up. Since at some retailers belts are hung on racks and have a loose cardboard sleeve on them, you never know when one might get switched up. Of course this wouldn’t have been a bad idea to verify at time of purchase that the Part Number on belt matches the package sleeve.

First Impressions

 Looking at this belt I see the design matches the OEM design very closely. This belt has “cogs” (gear tooth like ribs) on both the inner and outer sides of the belt. I was told by a belt manufacturer engineer, “Cogs” on belts add to “column strength”. Think of this analogy, corrugated cardboard being stronger then single layer cardboard. On a “V” belt design like this one, cogs reduce the squeezing effect of the belt from the force of the clutch sheaves closing in. Also a design benefit of cogs is reducing rotational stiffness. This may help free up some horse power from the engine vs. a non cogged style belt, but minimal. Cogs also increase surface area on the belt which will help the belt shed heat more effectively. One can also suspect these ribs are creating a small “fan” like effect, increasing air circulation and cooling of the belt. But this one is my own personal theory; take it for what its worth. My experience in thermal dynamics is just telling me this.

The guts and glory

With this particular CVT system, it is recommended to remove both drive and driven clutches for a safe and stress free belt installation. Total shop time was around 1 ½ hours. With this particular CVT system, some shim changes and adjustments were needed. If you were just simply replacing the belt, it would probably be around 1 hour. I was replacing my OEM belt which had 1000 miles of use at the time of this installation. The OEM belt performed fine and was within the manufacturer’s specification. I did notice some small cracks between the inner cogs though on the OEM. After proper installation and checks on manufacturer’s belt tension specifications, I was ready to go.

Note:  Always remember to clean your clutch sheaves with clutch/belt cleaner to insure no contaminants will disrupt proper belt break in and performance.

On the trail

 When installing a new CVT belt I would recommend easy gradual accelerations, no towing or excessive loads initially. Give the belt some time to mate with the clutch sheaves, and any possible contaminants to get worn away. In fact before every ride I would recommend allowing the belt to heat up before excessive load or aggressive riding. Think of it like tires, it’s a rubber compound that performs better when heated, let it warm up before you expect it to perform properly. If you demand too much from a cold belt, or allow too much stretch, the belt may slip and cause premature “glazing” of the belt. This causes the belt to lose its tack to the clutch sheaves.

I am an aggressive to moderate rider; this belt has performed well for me. After putting around 500 miles on this belt I can say it is performing well. I have not experienced any ill effects like slippage. My machine is performing just as well as it did with the OEM belt. I have ridden my machine through a temperature range of 0F to 70F degrees. Trail riding conditions varied from dirt, mud, water to frozen ground and deeper snows. I have tested this belt on my machine with passengers, pulled trailer loads in excess of 2,000lbs. It’s been worked hard and hasn’t failed me. I will continue using this belt to test longevity.

So why buy an aftermarket belt instead of OEM? In this case, cost. Buying a Carlisle belt saves me about $30usd. Can I say it’s a proven value? Not really until its proven equal in quality to the OEM belts. From my research the OEM belt has lasted up to 5,000mi., but for this year and model the average user is probably more around 2-3,000miles. Really depends on the user and how they are utilizing their ATV.

Recommendation

I was satisfied with the quality and performance of this product. It had performed as good as an OEM belt until it blew up.

Belt Failure at 500 miles due to worn out OEM clutch.

Note:  The belt used in this test review was provided by Carlisle Power Transmission Products Inc.

 

 

Carlisle Ultimax ATV Belts Web Site/ Ultimax ATV Belts.