M8540 Flood Damaged

[j.t.brownlie]

Hi,

I have a M8540 that went through a major flood (a lot of silt deposits) and was fully submerged.
Replaced all fluids, filters ect.

Ran fine for about 6 months and now won’t go into gear and power steering is very rough. Understand the power steering, hydraulic shuttle and PTO engagement are all run of the same hydraulic line.

What will be my problem? Where should I start and what’s the likelihood of it being flood related?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Tx Jim]

Welcome to this forum
I think it's a high probability that your tractors problems are flood related! Have you changed hyd filters lately? Have you checked hyd oil level lately?

 

[mikester]

Being submerged is the problem. There is a reason why submerged vehicles get written off and auctioned out of state far from the scene of the crime to unsuspecting buyers.

 

[sunpyi]

It is probably related to the mud or silt that remained in the hydraulic circuit despite the emptying. I would start by checking the suction strainer, it may be partially clogged. A complete cleaning of the circuit and a change of the filter could improve things.

 

[GreensvilleJay]

I'm betting you only changed the hydraulic oil and filter(s) ONCE right after the flood ??
As others have said, replace them all again. You also should disconnect hoses and manually remove the oil still in all cylinders( that's the messy part of the job). Right now every cylinder is 1/2 full of contaminated oil and the line. The more oil you remove the cleaner the system will be. Some( most ? ) guys just do a 2 round purge right after the 'dunking'.
Hopefully another round of filters and oil will get it 'up and running'.

 

[Spam Bot]

Did you have insurance on the tractor? If so, did you put in a claim? If not, you will spend a significant amount of money or labor to restore the tractor to its original state. I used to repair flood-damaged cars, and many times, when there was silt in the water, we would perform a partial or complete disassembly of the automobile's mechanical parts to remove all the silt. A teaspoon of silt is enough to destroy engine bearings and any other moving parts on a tractor or an automobile.
Running the tractor without entirely removing the silt was a significant mistake, as it makes removing the contamination more difficult, since the contamination has now spread to components that might not have been damaged initially.

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

Check fluid quality and quantity and filters.
If all that looks good it's very likely that you coulld have damaged pumps.

 

[j.t.brownlie]

Hi,

Thanks for the reply’s. Oils have been changed multiple times and has been running fine until Hydraulics failed pulling a tip trailer.
The hydraulic pump does not sound right.

17 June 2025

youtube.com

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

Wholy mud batman!
A pressure washer would really help!

 

[shybuck]

Hi,

Thanks for the reply’s. Oils have been changed multiple times and has been running fine until Hydraulics failed pulling a tip trailer.
The hydraulic pump does not sound right.

17 June 2025

youtube.com

So,so,sorry

 

[mikester]

Wholy mud batman!
A pressure washer would really help!

LOL

Like a pressure washer would fix a meth addict

 

[#40Fan]

Wholy mud batman!
A pressure washer would really help!

And it has been SIX months!! Completely obsurd to still look like that.

OP, post a picture of the entire tractor.