Mahindra 4540 blowing fuse/dealer issues

[WillyTSmith]

I just bought a Mahindra 4540 a couple weeks ago. We have about 17hrs on it. It blew a 40a fuse after about 15hrs. Blew it again a day or two later. Now at it’s blowing just about every time we turn it off. The dealer we bought it from said to just swap the 40a for a 60a. We didn’t feel comfortable with that so we called Mahindra directly and they said that would void the warranty so we should get it in writing. The dealership service department seems hesitant to even give us that even if that’s the route we want to go, which we don’t. Has anyone dealt with this sort of thing? Any suggestions?

 

[Williy]

Sounds like a short as that will pop a fuse
very fast. Have you looked for any bare
wires in that line?

willy

 

[Roadworthy]

It's a new tractor. It's on warranty. It's defective. Have the dealer track down the short. If the forty amp fuse blows quickly the sixty will probably fail as well. That is NOT the repair!! After you get it back be sure to check what size fuse the dealer used to "fix" the problem.

 

[WillyTSmith]

So the salesman sent me a forwarded email from the sales and finance manager at the dealer with an attachment of comments from a Mahindra “field technical manager” that said “replace the fuse with a 60. There will be a letter coming out on this. When I can not say” it’s from a few weeks ago with a different customer who had the same issue. I’m still hesitant to just throw in a bigger fuse and hoping there are others who have heard anything about this.

 

[Rich B1]

Until you have it in writing and names authorizing the “update”, don’t do it. Better yet, have the dealer change the fuse. That way, it it goes pear shaped, it is on them.

What circuit specifically is the 40A fuse located?

 

[Roadworthy]

If the change is acceptable to Mahindra there should be an update to their technical or service manuals. I doubt any "field service manager" is authorized to initiate such a recommendation. If the tractor runs normally but only blows the fuse on shut down you may try to learn exactly why this happens. It could be a poor design or it could be a mistake was made during assembly. The "why" could be very important here. You appear to be looking at some kind of current surge or spike.

 

[WranglerX]

Odd the it blows on shut down..... Indicates to me a fault in electrical system .... Putting a unauthorized 60A fuse in system may lead to a lot of smoke and extensive electrical system repairs/replacement. Let dealer handle it because its still under warranty.

There really needs to be some diagnostics why fuse blows, not just putting a band aid on problem....

 

[2manyrocks]

If there is any computer system on that tractor, I would not throw another fuse in there. There's a short somewhere that needs to be found. Worst case of not properly finding this short could be a fire involving your tractor and your barn with it.

Did the dealer even remove the cover and look at the wiring to see if the wiring is chaffed or broken?

 

[LittleBill21]

my WAG is some kind of short in the fuel rack solenoid.

 

[tshep]

my WAG is some kind of short in the fuel rack solenoid.

Real electrician here.
Fuses typically blow for overloads (a bit o' time here), including shorts (faster the better). Bigger fuses typically do not improve shorts, but allow time for overloads to ramp away.
If yours is like my little tractor, there is a "Pull" lever in case "off" circuit fails. Find it, put a rope on it (good improvement anyway), test is a few times, and then remove "Stop" wire from that solenoid. Start, pull to stop, turn off - no blow indicates solenoid was drawing too much current, still blows indicates wiring to/from has worn to ground.