engine trouble

[DonStillwagon]

Hi Carl: My 1430 had similar hot start issues but would do it on level ground - it turned out to be the engine run solenoid. Mine does not have an electric fuel pump like the gas machines, but rather a mechanical one driven by the engine. The click when turning the key to "run" is the engine run solenoid releasing the fuel lever, not an electrical fuel pump. I took mine off after it failed and installed a mechanical link to shut down the engine and plugged the hole in the crankcase for the solenoid. (they are expensive!)

You can try doing as Terry suggested and listen for the click of the solenoid turning on the fuel, or just open the engine housing and hold it on with your hand - turning the engine over will cause it to start unless there is a fuel supply issue. If the solenoid has failed the engine will stop if you release the fuel lever, since it is spring loaded to shut the engine down - the solenoid overcomes the internal shutdown spring, so while the engine is running the internal electromagnet is working against the spring.

Good luck

Don

[ksimolo]

Electrical connections, solenoids, etc can be very tricky. The combination of heat and tilt could be enough to break an intermittent contact on a connector or inside a solenoid.

Ken

[woodlandfarms]

Originally Posted by ksimolo

Electrical connections, solenoids, etc can be very tricky. The combination of heat and tilt could be enough to break an intermittent contact on a connector or inside a solenoid.

Ken

I was about to head up north but the wife landed a great job (producing all the media for the US Pavillion at the 2010 worlds fair in China) so now I don't know what is going to happen. Lots of little things I wanted to finish up north before the rains set in. Rains came last week...

Terry had mentioned the Solenoid as well. It is located next to the fuel filter, right?

[DonStillwagon]

Hi Carl: The fuel solenoid is located under the alternator on the Deutz - I think all the Deutz engines in this series have the same layout, just more cylinders for more power on the bigger ones. Attached is a picture of the fuel solenoid from my engine, and I am now engaged in rewinding the coil one more time - my repairs on it last time did not allow the space for a full number of turns, and it overheated and failed due to internal insulation breakdown. Also attached is a picture of the location of the solenoid, which fits into a port in the crankcase (which is the reason for the o-ring on the solenoid housing in the first picture). I had to remove the idler pulley to get it out. You can see the wire and square connector that plugs onto the solenoid dangling loose just below where it would plug onto the solenoid. Tracing the wire or looking for the connector may be the easiest way to find the solenoid. You can also see the fuel shut off lever to the immediate right of the oil fill cap. It has a piece of galvanized fence wire attached that I used to make a manual shut down rod that extends outside the engine cover to a location just below the drivers seat left armrest. Just below the fuel shut off lever is the throttle lever, which now has an OMC outboard throttle cable connected - an upgrade to get rid of the lawnmower throttle wire which was very unreliable. I made up an operating handle and belcrank for the other end to go into the original PT dash location.

The fuel shut off solenoid connects to the internal parts of the fuel shut down system, and is spring loaded to shut off the fuel when de-energized, and that means it must be energized and functioning strongly enough to overcome the spring and turn on the fuel - if there is an electrical problem or if the solenoid is beginning to fail, the starter will still crank the engine over but there will be no fuel delivered even though the fuel pump is still working.

I should mention that the orange wire which will not show in any Deutz manual is connected to the alternator brushes and to an external Ford regulator that I installed after having the internal regulator in the Valeo alternator fail. This is a common fix for these alternators installed in various cars overseas - the replacement Valeo part is expensive, and the Ford regulator is available everywhere for a very reasonable amount. I found the necessary wiring modifications on the internet.

I agree with the comment that the electrical connections should be inspected for problems before replacing the fuel solenoid. The mechanical work-around that I show here will get you running again if the solenoid is bad, but you must devise a way to plug the hole into the crankcase (with a rubber freeze plug or the like) after taking the solenoid out. Once the solenoid is removed, the fuel lever is always on, and it must be manually moved to the off position (toward the rear of the engine) to shut the engine down. With the fuel on, if the engine is cranked over, it will start and run independent of the position of the dash "ignition switch".

[woodlandfarms]

Don, thanks for all the info. I am going to have to take your notes up north and ballance them against my tractor as I am still trying to figure out where the solenoid is.

I hate my throttle cable, would love to figure an alternate. Maybe like a new car, I can rig a wire drive ;-)