New Avenger Owner...... HELP!!

[Redfishman]

I purchased my first AATV, a 2005 avenger with 245 hours on it a few weeks ago. I have water leaking into the belly pan somewhere. Is there any simple way to find it, and where would you experienced owners start your search? I have looked under it and can't see any gouges or spots where it has been damaged.

I also noticed that it wasn't moving very well in the water while floating. Today I put it in reverse and sure enough it moved well BACKWARDS! So I guess the fix to that problem is to swap sides with the tires?

I am new to the forum and have just been scanning threads for the last month, hoping to find the answers before starting a thread. Thanks in advance for any information.

[wrench9]

Take out your plastics under your feet and in the rear it is probably around one of the outside axle seals go in the water and bring a flashlight it shouldn'r be hard to see. You may also be able to just jack it up and check for looseness in the bearings, You do have the rear drain plugs installed I hope.

[Mike]

Hi Redfishman, welcome to the forum. wrench9 put you on the right track for finding the leaks. You can also fill your tub up with water while you are on land and see where it leaks out. Most likely it is coming through your bearings. If it's just a little water, greasing your bearings may help. As for your tires, look in the gallery and see how everyone else is running their tires. For water propulsion, most tires do have to be run what most people would consider backwards. Here is a random photo I pulled from the image gallery showing an Argo and the proper way to mount the tires for the best water propulsion:

[Redfishman]

Thanks for the replies. I plan to look for the problem and swap the wheels around tomorrow.

[Redfishman]

Well I found my problem. Pulled out in the water and both front axles are running a stream of water into the body. Thanks for the tips on how to find it. Now just to find the time to fix it.

I had hoped to use my Avenger to duck hunt out of this year (2-3 two hour trips), but this leak has thrown a kink in my plans. I run a deer processing in Alabama and its almost impossible for me to find time to completely repair everything until February, so I guess I'll grease everything good and see if that helps.