Hello all from sunny (at last!!) UK.
I bought my first Kubota tractor in December 2019 - L1500DT, 880 hours, Bomford flail mower on back. I have a small 1.5 acre paddock and only used the tractor 4 or 5 times to cut the grass since March this year. Its been running great. On last cut (July 2020), after about 2 hours trouble free i noticed a whistle (ish) sound and some crap coming out of bottom left hand side of radiator. Stopped immediately and turned engine off. Noticed oily mess. Once cooled i opened tap at bottom of radiator and right side of engine and after water drained it was followed by oil (looks more like black engine oil than gear oil). Cant see any sign of oil in the block via the dipstick. Ive lifted the valve cover (above cylinder head) and no sign of water there. It only seems to be in the cooling system.
Ive watched Vic's excellent video on the same topic but at the moment i don't suspect its the frost plug behind the timing cover (although can't rule it out fully until cover taken off of course, and i have experienced a gasoline engine (UK Ford Pinto) before where a frost plug behind gearbox bell housing had rusted through) as its been running ok for 10 hours or so after a mild winter.
I can't find any mention of an oil cooler on these tractors so guess i can rule that out.
Would i be best to spend time lifting the head off and investigate gasket failure / head crack / bore liner cracks, or go straight to the timing cover to check the frost plug?? Unfortunately i don't have access to a pressure tester. Are there any other areas where oil can be forced into the coolant?
Thanks in advance for your help,
Best Regards,
Darren - Tractor newbie.
I bought my first Kubota tractor in December 2019 - L1500DT, 880 hours, Bomford flail mower on back. I have a small 1.5 acre paddock and only used the tractor 4 or 5 times to cut the grass since March this year. Its been running great. On last cut (July 2020), after about 2 hours trouble free i noticed a whistle (ish) sound and some crap coming out of bottom left hand side of radiator. Stopped immediately and turned engine off. Noticed oily mess. Once cooled i opened tap at bottom of radiator and right side of engine and after water drained it was followed by oil (looks more like black engine oil than gear oil). Cant see any sign of oil in the block via the dipstick. Ive lifted the valve cover (above cylinder head) and no sign of water there. It only seems to be in the cooling system.
Ive watched Vic's excellent video on the same topic but at the moment i don't suspect its the frost plug behind the timing cover (although can't rule it out fully until cover taken off of course, and i have experienced a gasoline engine (UK Ford Pinto) before where a frost plug behind gearbox bell housing had rusted through) as its been running ok for 10 hours or so after a mild winter.
I can't find any mention of an oil cooler on these tractors so guess i can rule that out.
Would i be best to spend time lifting the head off and investigate gasket failure / head crack / bore liner cracks, or go straight to the timing cover to check the frost plug?? Unfortunately i don't have access to a pressure tester. Are there any other areas where oil can be forced into the coolant?
Thanks in advance for your help,
Best Regards,
Darren - Tractor newbie.
