The beast is a pig!

   / The beast is a pig! #1  

kiotiken

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 29, 2011
Messages
2,425
Location
Dunrobin, Ont
Tractor
2012 Kioti DK45 HST Cab
So far, I only have about 38 hrs on my DK45, but I'm really starting to notice the HUGE difference in fuel consumption from my CK30. I finally got around to building the fire pit I've been planning to do all summer, and got to use the tractor for a longer run of time then I normally get. I started with about 3/4 of a tank, and about 3 hrs later, I looked down to see I was breathing fumes. It seemed that my CK30 only needed fuel every 8 hours or so, and the tank was a lot smaller than the one on my DK45.

I will say that this tractor is a brute. The FEL is VERY strong and it seems to have unstoppable traction. I have no complaints so far. Here's a couple pics of the fire pit. I still have to go collect another rock and roll the back fill around the rocks. It's hard to tell, but it's about 12" deep and probably 10-12 feet in diameter.

P1017687.JPGP1017688.JPG
 
   / The beast is a pig! #2  
My DK45S sips fuel except when I'm delivering power to the PTO, like mowing. Loader work seems to use minimal fuel. However, my gas gauge isn't very linear: 5 gallons takes it from empty to 3/4 full (tank is 15 gal). I think there is still about 5 gallons in my tank when it reads empty. I suspect your apparent fuel consumption is more an issue of the gauge than actual fuel consumption. Recommend you start noting what the gauge does when you add known amounts of fuel. Of course, your hydrostatic transmission (I assume) will be less efficient.
 
   / The beast is a pig! #3  
Keep track of how much fuel you put in over the next 5 fill-up. Subtract the starting hours from the ending hours and then see what your fuel consumption looks like - it's really the only accurate way that I know of.

ritcheyvs make a good point about linearity of the guage. Often the guage just measures fluid height in the tank. If the tank is an odd shape, then the readings will look wonky until you average it out over several tanks.
 
   / The beast is a pig!
  • Thread Starter
#4  
I agree, I don't think the gauge is linear at all, the last 1/4 seemed to simply evaporate, one second it was there, the next my heart missed a beat because I was about to run it dry. One thing I find hard on fuel is road travel, and I did a good 45 minutes of that fetching rocks with it almost wide open in high. It was also a hot day and the A/C was on for almost all of it. I'm sure HST is harder on fuel than gear, but my CK30 was HST as well, and that's really what I have as a comparison.
 
   / The beast is a pig! #5  
+1 on the gauge. The last three times I added a 5 gallon tank, it took it from empty to dang near full on the gauge. I just came off the field after adding a tank and was gonna ask here if anybody else noticed the gauge must have been a meterologist in it's first life - sorta close counts..:p
 
   / The beast is a pig! #6  
I have a similar tractor,L4240 Kubota @44HP,at 550hours on the clock.At PTO speeds it burns 1.25 gal./hr.Your Kioti should be similar.
 
   / The beast is a pig! #7  
Diesel fuel consumption is almost directly proportional to the horsepower the engine is producing. They'll idle forever on almost nothing. Of course if you are running AC, that's several HP even if nothing else is using power. So gal/hr needs to be qualified by engine load.
 
   / The beast is a pig! #8  
My dk45 is great on fuel, could be because I have a clutch.
 
   / The beast is a pig! #9  
Ditto on the great fuel consumption and clutch. Whether mowing, or tilling or grappling it does grreat. I can easily go most all day if not longer on a tank. I give out before it does.
 
   / The beast is a pig! #10  
Like the others, our DK45S uses very little fuel, but when the fuel gauge indicates empty, we still have 5 gallons in the tank.
 
 
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