Is a Rattling Timing Chain on My Yamaha UTV a Problem?

If the timing chain on your Yamaha side-by-side rattles a little bit on startup, do you have a serious problem on your hands? Probably not, but you should stay on top of it. 

Partzilla’s Yamaha UTV expert John Talley hosts live Q&A sessions on our YouTube channel every Friday at 3pm Eastern. In this session, John was asked if a timing chain that rattles for a second on startup on a Yamaha YXZ1000R side-by-side is something to worry about.  

Yamaha YXZ1000R Timing Chain Rattling Q&A

I have a slight timing chain rattle at startup in my Yamaha YXZ1000. It’s only for just a second, but is this cause for concern?

John Talley: No, not really because it’s needing to build up a little oil pressure before that tensioner really gets juiced up and pushes against the chain. Now I have heard of, especially ones that are a little bit worn, where the chain is a little stretched out, that it can jump time. Especially at startup. And when we built our YXZ1000 we actually used, instead of an automatic, in the oil-assisted tensioner, we went with a manual one. Now the trick with that is you can’t just set it and forget it. You’re going to have to go back and tighten it up every so often. And you have to do the adjustment as the chain starts to stretch. But if you stay on top of it, it shouldn’t be a problem. I mean, it’s no different than checking the chain on a motocross bike, if you’ve ever done that. But you may want to look at that. I’m not sure that we posted that bottom end or the head installation on the YXZ for that particular unit yet, but if we haven’t, it’s coming. 

Watch the video below to see how to rebuild the bottom end of a Yamaha YXZ1000R side-by-side.

Watch the video below to see how to rebuild the top end of a Yamaha YXZ1000R side-by-side.

Watch the video below to see how to tear down the engine of a Yamaha YXZ1000R side-by-side.

Want to see more live repair questions answered? See more motorcycle and ATV repair questions answered here.