RTV Stuck in Reverse

[bobm737]

I found the problem with my transmission.* Thanks to Cory,the Kubota Dealer at Heber City, Utah. I called them and he said he had seen it on the 900 but not the 1100, he said to raise the bed and follow the shift cables to where they attached to the mechanism that shifts the gears.* Remove shift cables, and clear the wire harness's that are fixed to 3 of the 4 bolts that hold the shift mech to the top of the trans then remove the 4 bolts, verys easy, lift off the shift mech and there is a rod with a ball on the end of it that fits in a fork.* It had been forced out of the fork by my trying to force the shifter out of reverse when I iniatially got the gear stuck when plowing snow.* The slots where the ball then slides into when you put the shift mech back on the trans have to be lined back up first and this was done by using a small pry bar with tape on it to keep from scratching them, and I carefully put the shift mech back on top of the trans making sure the ball went into the slot, bolted her back on, hooked up the 2 cables and was back in business.* All done with a 5 min phone call to Cory and one hour of my labor.* Cory saved me a lot of time and money and even said he would take my 1100 in on a trade, I will let you all know how that go's.* Bob*

 

[Old Coot]

I glad you found a fix. It sure helps to have a good dealer to work with.

 

[purplehiss]

Thanks for the post. It pointed me in the right direction. My problem was different though. My RTV900 was stuck in reverse, but the rod you spoke of was correctly seated inside the fork.

When I looked into the transmission to see what the rod on the linkage engaged, I noticed that the two slots on the internal shift mechanisms were not aligned. That is what was causing the linkage to bind so it wouldn't move fully. I put lust a slight amount of pressure on one of the slots and it popped right back into alignment. I rebolted the linkage and all is well!

 

[Sparkyca]

The magic of shifting an RTV900 is 'Wait 10 Seconds while you hold your foot firmly on the brake'. The RTV is a hydro transmission, tied to a slidding gear transmission. You have to give the hydro 10 seconds to unload then it shifts like any other transmission. The gear transmission is trying to hold the machine in place. You have to transfer the load to the brakes before you can shift it. 100% fix for RTV shifting.

 

[NorthPoint Construction]

Is it me or did Kubota finally produce a product that was not ready for the market, I own and have owned many Kubota products. I have always bragged to my friends how the Japanese have perfected their products before releasing them to the market. Until now, i have the RTV 900 and I have heard horror stories of transmissions causing major problems. Well it's my turn now, I sent the kid out to plow this morning and about an hour later I didn't see him or hear him, soI went out looking only to find him up on a snow bank with the transmission jammed in reverse. The machine should never have been released to the general public. I'm mechanicly able but most people are not, they don't realize (Kubota) it's not like the 50's or 60's where you had to pull a choke to start something or remember when the hi/lo headlight switch was on the floor. Any way I read all the writings about this problem (transmission) I will let you know how I make out. Mark

 

[9973720wb19]

The magic of shifting an RTV900 is 'Wait 10 Seconds while you hold your foot firmly on the brake'. The RTV is a hydro transmission, tied to a slidding gear transmission. You have to give the hydro 10 seconds to unload then it shifts like any other transmission. The gear transmission is trying to hold the machine in place. You have to transfer the load to the brakes before you can shift it. 100% fix for RTV shifting.

I'll try this - thanks. I have not had any problems with my 2008 RTV900, but it is sometimes hard to change gears...it's the only complaint I have about it. I also found turning the wheel left and right helps and pulling on the pressure release valve on the dash

 

[NorthPoint Construction]

Were beyond that...... the adults know how to drive this thing, the pressure release knob when pulled at the correct time is more than enough. it's the kids, they have no mechanical backround and don't seem capable to wrap their heads around it. Mark

 

[DIXIEDOG]

Were beyond that...... the adults know how to drive this thing, the pressure release knob when pulled at the correct time is more than enough. it's the kids, they have no mechanical backround and don't seem capable to wrap their heads around it. Mark

Although this is true I really don't think Kubota is marketing this unit in anyway to be operated by children. They likely didn't think about it at all.

 

[redharley]

I agree with Sparkyca,if you take your time between shifts with foot on brake most of your problems will disappear.The other big difference I notice is when plowing snow most of us to not allow enough time for hydro to warm up before we start plowing.Start right out pushing snow up onto a pile then try to get it out of forward to reverse as fast as we can but we dang near break off the shifter.10 to 15 min's of warm up will help for sure,but if you have presure on the blade time is your answer for sure or that little black knob if you have an earlier model. Often wandered why these hydro's don't work like my BX just rock the pedal for forward and reverse.

 

[SpudHauler]

I have had great luck lately with my RTV1100 09 (`90hr) after having the dealer adjust the neutral pressure as described in the WSM. Mine was always hard to shift from day one compared to my 08 RTV900. Then I adjusted the HST arm as per the WSM. Huge difference in shifting. They said the neutral pressure adjustment was off quite a bit.
And yes, PATIENCE is required, but not 10 seconds, 2 or 3. Just don't be in a big hurray. And a FEEL for the trany helps.
Then because I plow snow, I opened up the shift gate to make reverse easier to get to. Not really sure why that piece of metal is even there.