3520h suddenly won't start

[ning]

I was using my tractor earlier to move many wood chips (tree crews have been active clearing power lines and left a nice huge pile of chips for me), probably about two and a half hours worth of tractor running at 2k+ rpm. I pulled over and parked the tractor for a bit - 10 minutes to take a break - and when I came back and turned the key, there was a solenoid clunk and no engine turnover. I turned off the key, tried again, no clunk, no dash lights. Tried again 10 minutes later; dash lights on, brief click and nothing else again.

I was thinking maybe my battery somehow went bad (despite it showing 12.74v) and tried jumping with my truck.
Trying the key again a couple times, I had dash lights and heard a rapid fire clicking, but the engine didn't turn over in the least bit.

Thoughts?

 

[Peter 315]

Bad battery cable connections check ground at the frame ..............and both at the battery

 

[K5lwq]

One technique I have used to find bad connections is hold the key over and let it click for a good bit then feel the connection with your hand. If it is hot or warmer than other connections then that one is the issue.

 

[ning]

Bingo!
Thanks, the ground was slightly loose at the battery.

Bad battery cable connections check ground at the frame ..............and both at the battery

 

[FastEddieR]

Same thing happened to me yesterday. The engine turned over about 1/2 rotation while starting then click click click.

I have a NOCO Genius Boost Plus GB40 1000 Amp 12V UltraSafe Lithium Jump Starter, hooked it up and still wouldn't turn over. I thought "wow the battery is completely shot" even though I just ran the tractor the day before. I also have a NOCO Genius G3500 6V/12V 3.5A UltraSafe Smart Battery Charger which can rejuvenate lead/acid batteries in addition to smart charging them, pretty cool.

Anyway, as I was taking out the battery the connector on the positive post just fell off as I was loosening the bolt. Couldn't see any corrosion or rust or anything but dust & dirt on it until it broke - totally corroded/rusted out under the grime. Short trip to O'Reillys for new connectors and I was back in the seat again.

I highly recommend the NOCO Genius jump starters and smart chargers. So much smaller than the old school charger/jump starters on wheels (I still have one gathering dust in the shop!). It has enough juice to start my Dodge pickup with 5.9l Cummins engine. The NOCO jump starter is charged via USB and fits in the glove box of your truck or your wife's car, it also charges phones/tablets and has a flashlight on it too. The smart chargers can charge or maintain 6v & 12V lead/acid, AGM, & gel (wet cell) batteries and the lithium (dry cell) batteries. Also has a repair function which charges and discharges the battery a time or two which supposedly releases electrons or something (haven't really tried it yet) and allows the battery to work again for awhile.

 

[Branson Bob]

I was using the 3520 as a bulldozer (I know, I know). I was uprooting and pushing scrub growth and brush away from the house and property line. I stopped for lunch and of course the Branson wouldn't start when I got back to it. Turns out a branch or something got into the engine compartment and the starter wire was ripped in two. I did a temporary fix and parked it for the weekend. I'll do a wire repair next weekend.

 

[MoKelly]

I was using the 3520 as a bulldozer (I know, I know). I was uprooting and pushing scrub growth and brush away from the house and property line. I stopped for lunch and of course the Branson wouldn't start when I got back to it. Turns out a branch or something got into the engine compartment and the starter wire was ripped in two. I did a temporary fix and parked it for the weekend. I'll do a wire repair next weekend.

View attachment 684972

I have always been surprised tractors don’t have better underside protection. Even brush hogging can expose the underside to taller “stuff” before it gets to the cutter.

Maybe I’m just not understanding the why’s of tractor undersides.

MoKelly

 

[Slowpoke Slim]

Well you got down to the cause of it pretty fast. That's good. At least it won't be expensive to fix. Also good.

 

[K5lwq]

I was using the 3520 as a bulldozer (I know, I know). I was uprooting and pushing scrub growth and brush away from the house and property line. I stopped for lunch and of course the Branson wouldn't start when I got back to it. Turns out a branch or something got into the engine compartment and the starter wire was ripped in two. I did a temporary fix and parked it for the weekend. I'll do a wire repair next weekend.

View attachment 684972

Glad it is an easy fix!

I noticed what appears to be coolant leaking from your block. Any idea what is going on there?

 

[Branson Bob]

Wow K5! I'll have to check that out. Thanks for the marked up photo! I check coolant about every month and it hasn't been going down. Also in spite of the extreme summer temps here she's never run hot, even when the radiator needs a good cleaning. I'll check it out and let you know what I find.