Trans, steering, 3 pt. hydro failure...

[dukunter]

Seen a lot of threads on hydrostatic issues, but none which seem to have all of the symptoms that I have. 2009 L5240, 1,100 hours, hydrostatic trans, 4wd. Here are the issues: 1) No reverse; 2) Trans jerks in forward gear; 3) With no pressure applied to the pedal, when the clutch is let out, it will creep forward; 4) 3pt continuously settles and "re-adjusts"; 5) power steering is jerky. Loader works fine, and 3pt lifts fine except for the continuous settling. A week ago I could feel something like "drag" on the drive-line when you set off and there was a reduction in power. It all came to a head after 2 hours of moving pea gravel successfully, we tried to bush hog with it and it started jerking almost immediately.

We've changed the filters and hydro fluid which has made NO difference. There were no metal shavings at all in the fluid, but the fluid was very discolored. Last change was at 837 hours when I bought it, so I don't know about prior history. We've already split it once to repair a $30 seal. Now, at 1,100 hours it sounds from all accounts as though this is a complete hydro failure which will require not only a split, but a new hydro tranny. Disappointing to think that at 1,100 hours it would have two splits and a new trans, along with a complete replacement of the a/c system, as that went out shortly after I bought it as well.

Anyone witnessed all of these symptoms and somehow discovered a fix that didn't require sinking $7,500+ into repairs?

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

Very highly unlikely that it has a "Complete hydro failure", very, very, rare!
Sounds like you have 2 sets of linkages that are out off adjustment
#1 the linkage to the HST needs to be set to get it to go into neutral.
#2 The feed back linkage on the 3 point need to be adjusted to within limits.

You are in need of the WSM for your tractor.
If linkage adjustment doesn't fix it, it could have a pump problem, you need to get a pressure reading off of the pump.

 

[dukunter]

Willing to try anything at this point. Although if it were a linkage adjustment would that be impacting the steering as well or does that make it more likely that it's valve failure or pump failure? I'll get the WSM and and check specs on the linkages and pump pressure to start trying to isolate the issue. Glad to hear that complete failure is rare. At the very least you've given me hope!

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

that pump is a 2 section pump, HST, GST and Steering are off of one section and Three point is off of another section so the likely hood of pump failure being your problem is also rare.
A pulsing HST control will effect the steering control as it robs fluid in pulses when it's not working right.
Also inspect the suction lines for any loose fittings or bad rubber hoses, as a system that is sucking air will do all of the things you are explaining.

 

[dukunter]

Think I finally tracked down the right fittings to be able to test the hydro. Took all day. Problem is the lousy translation of the WSM into English. I was having to decipher the different thread descriptions and make a few assumptions. One of the ports is listed as PS1/8 which I'm assuming is national pipe straight. Not exactly a part you can pick up at your local hardware store.

I should have my parts by this weekend and will hopefully have an update soon.

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

Most of Kubota's fittings are BSPT or BSTT, Be real careful if the fitting doesn't fit easy don't force it.

 

[dukunter]

It will be interesting to see if these work, but the two necessary adaptors are listed as PT1/8 and PS3/8. I will be sure to use caution when threading.

 

[dukunter]

Thought I'd jump back on and complete the thread on my hydro saga. Finally patched together all the necessary adapters to check the trans pressures. Pressures were jumping all over the place and it didn't take long to realize that the scope of the problem was way beyond my mechanical ability.

Had the tractor winched onto a trailer and hauled it in where the mechanics diagnosed a complete hydrostatic failure. It essentially just ate itself up. Only fix -- new hydrostatic transmission. It wasn't pretty. Full split and transmission replacement. The parts alone were around $5k and the labor was up in that ballpark as well. At only 1,100 hours, I'm left feeling a bit gutted.

HOWEVER, Kubota service was VERY good to me. In fact, the only reason I'm not selling it and migrating to a different color tractor is that the Kubota rep in our area really stepped up and took care of me. Tells me that they really recognize if a problem may be more of design issue and less of a user error.

Moral to the story -- sometimes sh*t just happens. It's good to know that Kubota will stand behind their products in such cases. It sucks that I'm still out of pocket a pretty good chunk of change, but I have a new trans that should be good for at least another 1,000 hours and hopefully more like three thousand hours.