MX-5000 transmission and hydraulics overheating

[jcaron2]

No, since the tractor has a common sump for the transmission, rear differential, and hydraulics, Kubota specifies that I use a multi-viscosity "universal" trans/hydro oil. I believe viscotity-wise it's basically 10W-40. I'm using the Traveller brand oil from TSC.

 

[ENC]

Get an infrared thermometer. It shoots a beam at it like a laser pistol to take accurate temperature of something that is hard to get to. Won't risk being burned that way and you can monitor while you are mowing, not to mention having an actual number instead of a guess.

Lowes or home depot or most auto/farm places should have them for around $40.

 

[VFT2003]

Jcaron have you had any more issues with this? I ask because I had the same thing happen. I've never had any overheating issues even after running the tractor for many hours. until the other day it was getting close to the red line so I shut it down and found the radiator to be covered with gunk. I cleaned it well, fired it back up and the temp was normal. continued to mow and a steering hose blew. I replaced the hose the next day added hyd oil and it set for a few days. was brush hogging yesterday after just a little over an hour engine temp was fine but I could tell the hyd system was way to hot and I was afraid of blowing another hose. I'm wondering if I need to drain and replace all the hyd oil. After the hose blew I replaced 2.5 gallons of lost oil with kubota hyd oil but it wasn't super udt2. Wonder if that has anything to do with it? thanks for any opinions

 

[Bob_Young]

Following this thread with interest. FWIW my '07 MX5000 always seems to run hot; near the upper end of the acceptable (white) band. Never checked the power steering/hydraulic temps.

Thought the hot running was because I was working it hard on a 10' bush hog. But lately I've been running it at 2500 RPM on a new chipper. Most of the time the chipper is just spinning. Even when cutting something up, I don't see the tach move, so the load isn't heavy. Still it runs hot.

I keep the front of the radiator clean, but haven't blown out the area behind the battery yet. Will give that a try.

 

[Jchonline]

Isn't the radiator in a tractor air cooled? IE no air movement, you reduce the capacity. Running a chipper would fall in this category. You need a box fan!

 

[5030]

No, since the tractor has a common sump for the transmission, rear differential, and hydraulics, Kubota specifies that I use a multi-viscosity "universal" trans/hydro oil. I believe viscotity-wise it's basically 10W-40. I'm using the Traveller brand oil from TSC.

That stuff is JUNK. Use the genuine Kubota SUDT or a synthetic hydraulic fluid. Quit cheaping out.

 

[5030]

Both my M9 Kubota's get all the heat exchangers cleaned EVERY EVINING when I get in from the field before dinner, NO EXCEPTIONS.

By that I mean the radiator, the oil cooler, the ATA heat exchanger (mine are air to air, charge air cooled), AC condenser and the front grill too. I use compressed air followed by my radiator Genie (have them on Amazon) until the water flows clean, then I thin about having dinner. Mine never get hot, no matter how hard they work or the outside temps.

Kubota's are notorious for popping head gaskets when overheated, keep that in mind and loose that cheap fluid too. You aren't doing you or the tractor any favors.

 

[Grandad4]

So many overheating threads over the years. It's easy to miss that you have do more than just clean off the outside surface of the radiator fins on equipment that does mowing. Very fine debris and dirt accumulates deeper... where the fins are bonded to the coolant tubes, which you usually can't even see unless you can look straight through from the side.

This isn't always what causes overheating problems but it can for sure happen to just about any equipment that mows.

Adding this suggestion so maybe someone can avoid or resolve another overheating mystery.

 

[Bob_Young]

My MX5000 has the down exhaust. I think most/all of them do. That means the muffler and its exhaust heat are under the hood with the engine. This may have been recognised as a heat problem at the factory because the underside of the hood over the muffler and the divider between the muffler and the fuel tank are both covered with reflective insulation.

However my older L4300 also has down exhaust with under hood muffler. Its hood design is much more open with fewer areas where heat can get trapped and build up under hood. It always has run cool except when the radiator screen gets clogged. Clean it off, and it goes right back to cool operation with a much smaller radiator. Haven't run it on the chipper yet, though

I think the hood design on the MX5000 traps air and heat in the engine area and impedes the flow of cooling air through the radiator. Next time I run the chipper, the hood will be open and we'll see if temperatures are lower.

By the way, I blew out the MX5000's radiator tonight. It was a bit dirty but nothing that would block air flow.

 

[5030]

You need to blow it out and then WASH IT OUT WITH CLEAR WATER. Use a nozzle or a Radiator Genie.

Both my M9's have their mufflers over the engine under the hood. One has a vertical stack, the other is the optional down exhaust pipe and both have foil insulation in the hoods over the mufflers and neither run hot because I keep the rad and HX's clean and clean them EVERYTIME I use the tractors.