L3300 oil change

[moday]

Did an overdue oil change on my L3300 last week. The Service Manual says 3.7 quarts. It says to check the dipstick and add more as needed with a filter change. I put in 4 qts and still low on the dipstick. I had about 8 ounces extra and now over halfway between the low/high marks on the dipstick but still looks low.

I wonder if dipstick is wrong or is book incorrect.

Anyone run into this? I'm the second owner so maybe a dipstick got swapped out along the way.

Thoughts??? Thanks in advance, moday

 

[redmaher]

Post a picture of the dipstick with a measurement. Maybe someone can compare. My research says 3.7 quarts.

Sent from my LG-H901 using Tapatalk

 

[clay45]

Run it a bit to help burp the system and then shut it down and let it cool awhile. Check dip stick again.

 

[Bulldog]

I'm surprised that's all it takes to begin with. My L3000 hold 6 qts.

 

[whitetiger]

Did an overdue oil change on my L3300 last week. The Service Manual says 3.7 quarts. It says to check the dipstick and add more as needed with a filter change. I put in 4 qts and still low on the dipstick. I had about 8 ounces extra and now over halfway between the low/high marks on the dipstick but still looks low.

I wonder if dipstick is wrong or is book incorrect.

Anyone run into this? I'm the second owner so maybe a dipstick got swapped out along the way.

Thoughts??? Thanks in advance, moday

Go by the dipstick not the Manual. I have never saw the manual correct on capacity's for Kubotas yet.

 

[PhilHewitt]

I know this thread is 6 years old, but there is no definitive answer. I'm in the same situation - just put in 4 1/2 quarts and the level is only a little over halfway between the two marks on the dipstick. But the dipstick in the tractor does not look like the one in the owner's manual - so I'was thinking it might not be the right one. The owner's manual shows a flattened 'spade' shape at the end of the dipstick, and the two marks are pretty close together. My dipstick is a straight blade with the two marks quite a long way apart - at least 2 inches. I checked the part number stamped on it (16457-36411) and that is a genuine Kubota part - but I don't know what tractor models it is for. And it looks like if I filled it to the upper mark I would be over 5 quarts.
Does anyone know what the answer is?
Note - I also checked the Shop Service Manual and it is the same as the Owner's Manual. Both the L2900 and the L3300 are shown as engine crankcase capacity 3.7 US quarts, and the L3600 and L4200 are shown with a capacity of 6.3 US quarts.

 

[Russell King]

You can go to messick’s or Kubota USA parts list and search for the part number and they will give you the model numbers that part fits.

OR

look up your tractor model number and see what part number they show you for the dipstick

 

[woodsy]

I went through this same thing couple yrs ago when
my L3300 came home.
Sounds like the same dipstick and it is 2 inches between the lines but
its in the crankcase at a shallow angle .
I put 4 qts in and that put it in the middle of the lines.
Added another 1/2-3/4 qt. and that brought it up to about the 3/4 range
between the lines and thats where I'm running it.
Wonder what a dealer or Kubota mechanic would have to say the oil capacity vs. what the manual says.

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

I went through this same thing couple yrs ago when
my L3300 came home.
Sounds like the same dipstick and it is 2 inches between the lines but
its in the crankcase at a shallow angle .
I put 4 qts in and that put it in the middle of the lines.
Added another 1/2-3/4 qt. and that brought it up to about the 3/4 range
between the lines and thats where I'm running it.
Wonder what a dealer or Kubota mechanic would have to say the oil capacity vs. what the manual says.

There are a few of us on here that have worked on quite a few Kubota's over the years, Never go by the book!
Unless the dipstick is damaged or swapped into the wrong unit, its right and the book will be wrong!

 

[PhilHewitt]

Thanks for these quick replies. An update... I did a search on Messicks. They don't have quite the exact same part number, but they do have one that's almost the same except the last two digits are 10 instead of 11. And that does list my L3300DT-GST as one of the models. (Although Kubota USA site doesn't recognize either of those two part numbers.) A general search on that part number finds one on eBay that uses both the 10 and the 11 versions of the part number, so it looks like they are the same thing. I'm going to try to call my local Kubota dealer to see if they have an 'official' answer, and if so I'll post it here. Otherwise, I feel more comfortable with the information I've received here, that the dipstick is correct for the model, and I will go by the dipstick reading and not the manual.

 

[woodsy]

There are a few of us on here that have worked on quite a few Kubota's over the years, Never go by the book!
Unless the dipstick is damaged or swapped into the wrong unit, its right and the book will be wrong!

Thanks for that.
I just stumbled upon this which I have been unable to find in the past.
It has other D series engine specs as well.

Kubota D1703 Engine: Technical Specifications and Service Data

Kubota D1703 Diesel Engine: Displacement, Power and torque, Compression ratio, Bore and stroke, Oil type and capacity, Service data

tractorgearbox.com

Its the technical/maintenance data for the D1703 Kubota engine thats in the L3300.
Says engine oil capacity is 5.6 L which is 5.9 qts. So, seems about right given
where my < 5gts. oil is on the stick .
But, don't take my word for it, anyone should do their own research on such issues .

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

Thanks for these quick replies. An update... I did a search on Messicks. They don't have quite the exact same part number, but they do have one that's almost the same except the last two digits are 10 instead of 11. And that does list my L3300DT-GST as one of the models. (Although Kubota USA site doesn't recognize either of those two part numbers.) A general search on that part number finds one on eBay that uses both the 10 and the 11 versions of the part number, so it looks like they are the same thing. I'm going to try to call my local Kubota dealer to see if they have an 'official' answer, and if so I'll post it here. Otherwise, I feel more comfortable with the information I've received here, that the dipstick is correct for the model, and I will go by the dipstick reading and not the manual.

The part numbers stamped or cast on Kubota parts are almost always never the "actual" part number, I have never found out a reason for this.

 

[whitetiger]

The part numbers stamped or cast on Kubota parts are almost always never the "actual" part number, I have never found out a reason for this.

Suppliers part number v Kubota's part number.

 

[PhilHewitt]

To follow up. I did talk to my local dealer. He didn't have any different information - the engine crankcase capacity listed in the owner's manual is the same as his information - 3.7 quarts. But he said that the actual amount of oil needed would be more than this because of the amount needed to fill the oil filter, and also as it gets circulated it does not all reside in the crankcase - which makes sense. In other words, the capacity listed in the manual is specific to the crankcase capacity, not the actual amount of oil to be added. (It would be more helpful if they listed the actual amount needed. I don't know if this common practice with all engine specs, but unless you know the 'secret', it's confusing.) So, as has been stated in this thread, the dipstick is the real measure. But he also said to be careful to not overfill because if you add up to the top mark when the engine has just been running, the oil will not have fully drained back, so the reading will show lower than it actually is.

 

[lugbolt]

the simple answer is: The books are often wrong. Fill til it's full on the stick.