overheating... maybe?

[Ron Slamon]

hey all, new member here and fairly new to sledding in general.
really enjoy the forum, lots of useful information!
have question about my girlfriends 2009 venture lite, this past weekend we were riding the trails in Millinocket when she noticed some steam coming out from under the console.. at the base of the handlebars. thought there may be a failing hose underneath so I opened hood and took side panels off but could not find any leaks.
there was some steam coming out of what looks like some sort of breather tube that vents into the air box in front.. under the panel. is this normal? cause for concern? there is coolant in the tank, thanks for any advice!

 

[YukonMP]

You are correct, that is a breather tube. In all honesty I have never opened mine up when it was running or hot to know if mine 'steams' or not. I would say that likely it is not a concern. I have noticed that my sled does seem to give off a little cloud of steam/fog when I stop. What strikes me is that these sleds are not very tight in terms of keeping snow out from under the hood and I would expect the snow that gets in to melt and vaporize.
On the VK Pro, for example, the warm moist air rising up around the handle bars can be so bad it frosts the back/inside of the windshield.

Glad to have a new member. There is a lot of helpful information here, I found it a real confidence builder when I was just starting out.

 

[Mooseman]

Quite normal for steam to come up from under the sled. Likely snow hitting the exhaust pipes which are exposed under the tunnel.

And that vent hose is the one that comes from the oil tank. Also quite normal for a little vapour coming from there too into the air box.

Welcome to the TY!