LTX 1046 Smoking on Inclines & Died during use of PTO

[Betsey2]

I have several acres of land I mow and very little of it is flat. Prior to purchasing this mower in May 2011 I had a 19 yo John Deere which was used when we bought it. With the CC right away I got heavy white smoke. I made the dealer come to me and they claimed the manufacturer had over filed the engine. They drained the oil and refilled it. It still does it occasionally and I have decided it is a design fault. I am not mechanical but it seems to me that the oil in the engine on an incline is no longer bathing whatever the way it would on level ground so it puts out the smoke. As if that wasn't bad enough a week ago I was mowing and using the PTO to kill the blades when I turned on rough ridges on gravel drive. Got it back onto the lawn and ready to roll, pulled the PTO out and the engine stops. Try to start again, nothing. I mean nothing. Key turns but it's like the battery is dead. So here's what I've done. New fuel filter, new fuel, new air filter with oil soaked pre-cleaner, wipe all areas down with cloth that has a bit of oil on it. Recharge the battery which doesn't need it because it has nearly a full charge and this (Kohler) engine isn't even turning over. It looks like it needs an oil change with but 20 hrs on it but I would like to have it moving before I attempt that. Where is the fuse and what size is it. The fuel tank has no shut off so that's a pain especially after having just put in 3 gallons. The PTO has shut down the deck a few times when I moved slightly this year which seems a fit different. I would never disengage it as the terrain here is so up and down and I'm here alone mostly when mowing. I want the GD thing to shut off the deck before it rolls over on me! In three words this mower is "a piece of ****". The Kohler manual sucks. And what's with this design fault with the engine & smoke. Scares the **** out of me. I paid $2000 cash for this? I should be mowing 4.5 acres instead of barely around the house and now nothing. The only other thing I do is put a cheap red cart on it and haul some weeds to the woods. Oh, and someone else commented about the self-cleaning thing they think is so great. Not, it doesn't work at all even with the engine at warp speed for 5 minutes. I use the garden hose and my hands on the top part of the deck where the hose may not push it off. When I took off the deck last fall for storage, it was clean as a whistle using that method. So what am I missing? Get down and look at the deck to see what's up with the belts? What am I looking for other than the obvious. And is there any chance it can be done without a trip to the dealer and a big drain in my pocketbook? Remember it has 20 hrs on it and thank you very much.

 

[rcbe]

IMHO, you ain't got a "dealer"... you got a shyster.
Integral to delivering a new machine is the dealer checks all fliuds. Unless someone else got in there and added engine oil, dealer's claim that factory overfilled it doesn't wash. Should have been right when delivered.

hilly ground - best check your property using that diagram in the operator's manual. If your property incline(s) exceed it, you may be allowing engine damage from lack of lube while also running a chance of rolling over. The 1046's are a lawn tractor with a relatively light duty hydro tranny - pulling up sharp inclines of any substantial length can overheat the oil - early life failure.

engine cutting out when PTO re-engaged - if your butt was coming off seat during/just after turnaround, engine will die. But, since you say it won't re-start or even turn over, sounds as if the main fuse has blown - indicating an electrical short most likely in the PTO circuit. Look for damaged wires where harness runs out to PTO clutch itself. Check with engine OFF!! The main fuse is located behind the dash - 20 amp.

If fuel tank is located under seat , no need to worry about inline fuel cutoff. if fuel is clean, can be siphoned back out of tank.

IMHO, the 1046's are a decent machine for their intended market. Your needs based above comments make me think a good used GARDEN tractor or commercial ZTR might be a better fit.. Good luck, hope you find a better dealer that can better advise you on best product fit.

 

[burnieman]

Sounds like you need to pound a few beers and take a breath. You're gonna blow an O-ring. And what is warp speed on that thing? I mean I know what it is on mine, just comparing.

 

[Betsey2]

warp speed = full throttle

 

[Betsey2]

TYVM for your comments. I will try looking for the fuse and the only other thing is: where is the PTO clutch & what does it look like?

 

[JTKub]

Most of the fuses and relays are under the hood by the battery. I've seen sticks/twigs tear wiring up while mowing (usually by the PTO), but that may not be the case here. Although- If your property is rough and you let the deck bang around (ride) on the ground, things could have gotten jostled with the PTO wiring. I'd probably start by looking over all the wiring and connectors I could see, then I'd pull and check each fuse. Remember to not let the deck ride the ground when mowing. The gauge wheels are only intended to ride over high spots.

The smoking on inclines thing can generally be rectified by lowering the oil level to between the "full" and "add" lines in the dipstick. If you keep the level up at "full", you're going to get plumes of smoke on these engines, when used on inclines.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but like said, ~4.5acres is asking way too much from a $2000 mower, especially when your talking inclines and rough areas.

Joel

 

[Betsey2]

The battery on this model is under the seat. There is a screw missing on the track of the seat adjustment. In between the 2 tracks is the auto shut off for the mower deck. The fuel tank sits right behind the dash. There are 3 sets of cables in this area. 1 goes to the ignition the other goes to the panel where the hrs., low oil, etc and the 3rd runs from the fuel tank and is of a different nature than the other 2 (black & red). Manual says: "The fuse is located under the hood, mounted behind the top of the dash panel on the support bar." [No picture provided.] There is a harness of wires on the R side which has an inline plug. Male side has 5 and with the female side having 6. No big deal. I can't find the fuse. There are brackets around the fuel tank area and that's about it. Any ideas. TYVM

 

[rcbe]

TYVM for your comments. I will try looking for the fuse and the only other thing is: where is the PTO clutch & what does it look like?

The PTO clutch is located directly under the engine - the belt from same drives the mower deck. Prolly easeir to see if front end is jacked up a bit as clutch is hidden between the main frame rails.
Your note that the fuel tank is up behind the dash ((not undr the seat) is interesting. Could you lift up your tilting seat looking for a ID plate /decal in that cavity and tell us the full model number of your machine? Mebbe then we can better decipher where those fuses are located.

 

[Betsey2]

Good idea about the ramps. Forgot all about them but will need second pair of hands to push the darn think up onto them. I do have my manual but it's lacking as far as I'm concerned. Glad I'm not doing surgery based on how these are drafted. Oh plenty of cautions to help prevent them from getting sued. Danger, Will! Will check out ID/decal for the full model number. TYVM

 

[Dave5264]

I have several acres of land I mow and very little of it is flat. Prior to purchasing this mower in May 2011 I had a 19 yo John Deere which was used when we bought it. With the CC right away I got heavy white smoke. I made the dealer come to me and they claimed the manufacturer had over filed the engine. They drained the oil and refilled it. It still does it occasionally and I have decided it is a design fault. I am not mechanical but it seems to me that the oil in the engine on an incline is no longer bathing whatever the way it would on level ground so it puts out the smoke. As if that wasn't bad enough a week ago I was mowing and using the PTO to kill the blades when I turned on rough ridges on gravel drive. Got it back onto the lawn and ready to roll, pulled the PTO out and the engine stops. Try to start again, nothing. I mean nothing. Key turns but it's like the battery is dead. So here's what I've done. New fuel filter, new fuel, new air filter with oil soaked pre-cleaner, wipe all areas down with cloth that has a bit of oil on it. Recharge the battery which doesn't need it because it has nearly a full charge and this (Kohler) engine isn't even turning over. It looks like it needs an oil change with but 20 hrs on it but I would like to have it moving before I attempt that. Where is the fuse and what size is it. The fuel tank has no shut off so that's a pain especially after having just put in 3 gallons. The PTO has shut down the deck a few times when I moved slightly this year which seems a fit different. I would never disengage it as the terrain here is so up and down and I'm here alone mostly when mowing. I want the GD thing to shut off the deck before it rolls over on me! In three words this mower is "a piece of ****". The Kohler manual sucks. And what's with this design fault with the engine & smoke. Scares the **** out of me. I paid $2000 cash for this? I should be mowing 4.5 acres instead of barely around the house and now nothing. The only other thing I do is put a cheap red cart on it and haul some weeds to the woods. Oh, and someone else commented about the self-cleaning thing they think is so great. Not, it doesn't work at all even with the engine at warp speed for 5 minutes. I use the garden hose and my hands on the top part of the deck where the hose may not push it off. When I took off the deck last fall for storage, it was clean as a whistle using that method. So what am I missing? Get down and look at the deck to see what's up with the belts? What am I looking for other than the obvious. And is there any chance it can be done without a trip to the dealer and a big drain in my pocketbook? Remember it has 20 hrs on it and thank you very much.

The Smoke issue is the same one I had on my 1052 when mowing donw hill, the problem is known by Cub, my dealer replaced the crank case vent under warranty (has to split the mtor) and its working fine now.

re the Deck shutting off, mine jsut started that