Won’t start after getting stuck in mud.

[Farmer_Wannabe]

Newbie here. MT357HC under 10 hours I got stuck in some mud and forgot about the option to switch to 4wd so I spun the tires and kept reversing and forwarding trying to get out. Once I remembered 4wd I got out easily. I turned the tractor off to walk and check out the area. Got back in and it won’t start. Will turn on but won’t crank or even attempt to crank. I’ve read that safety switches commonly cause this. It just beeps. Battery is fine. Are there any specific safety switch’s you think I hit while stuck and trying to get out? Anything else you can think of? Thank you.

 

[airbiscuit]

Depending on how stuck you got, take a look underneath and look for a broken or disconnected wire. Glad you remembered 4wd. Also, don't forget that you have a differential lock.

 

[Farmer_Wannabe]

Depending on how stuck you got, take a look underneath and look for a broken or disconnected wire. Glad you remembered 4wd. Also, don't forget that you have a differential lock.

It was pretty stuck. I already cleared off large chunks of mud underneath and didn’t see anything obvious disconnected. I will get under again tomorrow.

 

[Cycledude]

Just a few things I would check
Is the power take off turned off ?
Is the shift lever in neutral ?
Is the parking brake set ?

 

[jyoutz]

Just a few things I would check
Is the power take off turned off ?
Is the shift lever in neutral ?
Is the parking brake set ?

I think you’re on the right track. The OP probably bumped the pto lever or gear lever.

 

[Farmer_Wannabe]

Just a few things I would check
Is the power take off turned off ?
Is the shift lever in neutral ?
Is the parking brake set ?

I did check those repeatedly because it’s acting as if one of those is the problem. Turned PTO on and off. Jiggled the shift in neutral and pushed up and down in the seat at the dealer’s recommendation. I removed all of the clumps of mud from underneath and there aren’t any sticks.

 

[airbiscuit]

I'd hose off the bottom of the tractor - do more than removing clumps of mud. Not sure what your safety sensors are like, but a bit of mud may be preventing contact.

 

[Farmer_Wannabe]

I hose off the bottom of the tractor - do more than removing clumps of mud. Not sure what your safety sensors are like, but a bit of mud may be preventing contact.

I’ll try that. It’s far away from a hose but I have a 25 gallon chemical sprayer I could clean out well and take out there.

 

[Cycledude]

Is the parking brake set ?
Are you sitting on the seat when attempting to start ?
You might want to try disconnecting the battery ground for a few minutes then reconnect it, sometimes if there’s a poor connection somewhere in the system that will get it to start working again.

 

[Farmer_Wannabe]

Is the parking brake set ?
Are you sitting on the seat when attempting to start ?
You might want to try disconnecting the battery ground for a few minutes then reconnect it, sometimes if there’s a poor connection somewhere in the system that will get it to start working again.

Yes the parking brake is set and I’m sitting in the seat. I’ll try disconnecting the battery ground today.

 

[Cycledude]

A very mechanically inclined friend had a similar issue , he suspected it was the PTO switch and after a lot of messing around he called the dealer, when the dealer showed up the tractor started just like normal, dealer said no charge but if it happens again he would replace the PTO switch under warranty, but it never happened again.

 

[oldnslo]

I had mud prevent the PTO switch from activating on my now gone BX1850. The switch was mounted on the left side on transaxle and operated by the PTO lever totally exposed to crud. Can you see the PTO switch on your tractor?

 

[GS650GL]

You don't have to be in the seat or have the park brake on to start it, although they are good ideas. The only safety switches that prevent starting are the pto switch, the hydro pedal neutral switch, and the range shift lever neutral switch. And the only pto switch is on the dash. Because this happened after being stuck, it's likely the pedal neutral switch, although it could be a coincidence and not related. The wires to the hydro pedal neutral switch or the switch itself could have been damaged when you were down in the mud. Their location under the tractor makes them vulnerable to sticks, branches, stumps, rocks, mud, etc. Make sure the pedals are returning to neutral and are not sticking. When you move the pedals out of neutral, the switch should click. Hold the key in crank position and move the pedals, and turn pto switch on and off. I have seen damaged wires, bad switch, bent switch bracket, pedal return linkage stuck or damaged, and blown fuse cause this. Also if you have a mid pto option, the lever has to be off for starting.

 

[Cycledude]

Dang I was hoping to see he got it started

 

[Bobrown14]

I had that happen when my tractor was new MT52SC - What I did was stand up in the cab and flop down hard on the seat a few times that loosens up the seating material enough to engage the seat safety sensor.

I went thru everything thought it was something serious but nope all I had to do was sit down hard when I first get in to start the tractor.

Yeah 4wd in the mud ftw - there's a switch on the floor behind your right go foot to engage the diff lock too which I found to work great in the mud.

Tips:
Be sure to disengage 4wd AND diff lock when on a paved road. Don't lock your steering wheel in either direction while in 4wd. Your turning radius is much wider in 4WD.

 

[Bearsixty7]

You don't have to be in the seat or have the park brake on to start it, although they are good ideas. The only safety switches that prevent starting are the pto switch, the hydro pedal neutral switch, and the range shift lever neutral switch. And the only pto switch is on the dash. Because this happened after being stuck, it's likely the pedal neutral switch, although it could be a coincidence and not related. The wires to the hydro pedal neutral switch or the switch itself could have been damaged when you were down in the mud. Their location under the tractor makes them vulnerable to sticks, branches, stumps, rocks, mud, etc. Make sure the pedals are returning to neutral and are not sticking. When you move the pedals out of neutral, the switch should click. Hold the key in crank position and move the pedals, and turn pto switch on and off. I have seen damaged wires, bad switch, bent switch bracket, pedal return linkage stuck or damaged, and blown fuse cause this. Also if you have a mid pto option, the lever has to be off for starting.

This is what I was going to say to check based on circumstance.
I can start mine while standing beside it with the parking brake on and in N so it can warm up while I do other things so it's not the seat safety, it only activates when in gear and the hydro pedals are pressed.

 

[RobertEH]

As stated above,

I had a very similar issue after driving thru brush on my MT235HE. There was a stick lodged under one of the fwd/revers pedals in the undercarriage. This kept the pedals uneven and activated the kill switch preventing it from even trying to turn over. My bet is there is something underneath keeping the hydro pedal neutral switch from being in the even position.

 

[GSVette]

Had a similar ( but intermittent) no start/no crank on my XR4155HC. Went through all of the usual suspects ( including the neutral safety switch-more on that in a bit)-PTO, seat pressure pad, etc. Nothing was obvious-intermittent condition persisted.

I had inspected the neutral switch and it appeared fine-it wasn’t until I crawled completely underneath, cleaned the switch thoroughly and inspected it much closer that I found the switch body had been cracked by some of the land clearing debris I had been driving over resulting in the plunger that actuates the switch no longer functioning reliably.

Anyway, I’d give the neutral switch and associated harness a good looking over- you can verify that the switch is operating ( at least on my model) by moving the pedal levers and verify that the switch actuates.

Hope you figure it out.

 

[5030]

One thing I never do is allow my tractors to remain filthy, topside or underneath. they get washed off almost every time I use them. Much easier to service or work on a clean (relatively clean) unit, than a filthy one and another reason why I pack all my electrical connections with Di-electric grease. I don't want any moisture related issues in any electrical connectors.

Same applies to our buggies. I dislike excess grease and crud on anything.

 

[Joe1]

Is the PTO switch off, and did any mud get up around the battery terminals?