bridge4
Platinum Member
So I am creating this thread because I could not find anything even CLOSE to this when I looked. Best I found was a TYM installation that was not really that similar as far as where things were.
Disclaimer: I did not find instructions that were for our tractors (or even too close) and I did this based off of other articles I read and the manual. I had never put one in before, and there could be a step or two that could be improved upon, feel free to tell me about it!
Tools used:
Drainage container for old coolant
New Coolant
High heat anti-seize for around heating element thread (Thermal paste and other products have been recommended online, this was best I could find near me)
Coolant heating element
Adjustable wrench
Zip ties
Pop the hood, and take the side panels off: If you pull forward and up slightly, they come off. A decent tug, but nothing too crazy, they attach via two poles into the cab area, and then two points in the front. No tools required for this.
Okay, so first thing to do is drain the existing coolant, if you have old coolant you should probably flush the whole system from what I have read. My tractor has 14 hours on it, I just drained and replaced. To do this there are two spots to open, one is the radiator cap up on top by the engine, and the second is a little plastic twist next to the coolant reserve bottle. This is black on black, and in the manual seems to be on the other side of the engine block, but I checked both sides and eventually found it. The manual is NOT very helpful.
PRO TIP: This little plastic guy does not fully come out, it has a spout hole part way up that will shoot the coolant out like piss from you know where. My advice is to get it streaming decently into your pan and back away. You can screw it over and over but it doesn't come out. The coolant all over my arms was proof.
So once all that is out, it's time to locate where the heating element will attach to the coolant area. Again, with no instructions or experience, it took a little looking. It is on the other side of the tractor and can be seen without taking the side panels off, but I took them off anyways. The brass square in the picture is the piece you remove, I used a wrench, came out with some decent but not crazy strength.
PRO TIP: These hoses and connection points it is screwed into are all plastic and malleable. I held on to the connection piece as I wrenched as to avoid causing any unintended damage.
This thing was pretty gross for 14 hours, not upset I got in there and cleaned it out while there was only a little build up from initial use
Next up was to screw in the replacement, I bought it from Bills Tractor, ( BLOCK HEATER FOR 2538 GE3602538X ), it fits the 2638, I called to confirm before order and I now can confirm from first hand experience. I put a little bit of the anti-seize on it at this point, but didn't over do it so extra didn't get into the system. The only thing I can say is I have seen element heaters like this for like 20 dollars, so I'm not sure why this one is $80.
Next is time to refill the coolant. My dealer did not sell the Mahindra Coolant because they said it was ridiculously priced and to go get any 50/50 pre-mix and put it in. I used red color STP Heavy Duty I got from Tractor Supply meant for heavy duty diesel and long term use. It did not mention extra SCAs or nitrates etc..., just normal one. The manual calls for like 1.85 gal or something, so I bought two. So I closed back the plastic twist drain, and refilled it until the radiator wouldn't take anymore, then as manual calls for, I ran it for 5 minutes. Then I put in more coolant until it was full again, filled up the reserve tank about 80% until max full and ran it again for another 5 or 10 minutes. It drank a little from the reserve tank and stayed steady and a little below 50% on the engine temp chart. I then put it in high and drove it around for another 6 or so minutes at about 2k rpm. It stayed at same temperature and didn't seem to be leaking anywhere. I probably used a little over 1.5 gallons, there was a little of the original green stuff I didn't flush out. I will keep an eye on it the next couple of uses though.
Finally, time to connect the power cord, and zip tie and place the plug where I needed it. I got some dielectric grease for the connection to keep it clean and water-tight, and then ran it to some other hoses that were zip tied, along up to the front of the tractor. There are a few spots where you can run the cord so everything closes nicely and you don't make gaps along the side, then I got it positioned how I wanted it and kept it there.
Anyways, there ya go! Hopefully this helps someone, feel free to add any tips or comments.:thumbsup:
Disclaimer: I did not find instructions that were for our tractors (or even too close) and I did this based off of other articles I read and the manual. I had never put one in before, and there could be a step or two that could be improved upon, feel free to tell me about it!
Tools used:
Drainage container for old coolant
New Coolant
High heat anti-seize for around heating element thread (Thermal paste and other products have been recommended online, this was best I could find near me)
Coolant heating element
Adjustable wrench
Zip ties
Pop the hood, and take the side panels off: If you pull forward and up slightly, they come off. A decent tug, but nothing too crazy, they attach via two poles into the cab area, and then two points in the front. No tools required for this.
Okay, so first thing to do is drain the existing coolant, if you have old coolant you should probably flush the whole system from what I have read. My tractor has 14 hours on it, I just drained and replaced. To do this there are two spots to open, one is the radiator cap up on top by the engine, and the second is a little plastic twist next to the coolant reserve bottle. This is black on black, and in the manual seems to be on the other side of the engine block, but I checked both sides and eventually found it. The manual is NOT very helpful.
PRO TIP: This little plastic guy does not fully come out, it has a spout hole part way up that will shoot the coolant out like piss from you know where. My advice is to get it streaming decently into your pan and back away. You can screw it over and over but it doesn't come out. The coolant all over my arms was proof.
So once all that is out, it's time to locate where the heating element will attach to the coolant area. Again, with no instructions or experience, it took a little looking. It is on the other side of the tractor and can be seen without taking the side panels off, but I took them off anyways. The brass square in the picture is the piece you remove, I used a wrench, came out with some decent but not crazy strength.
PRO TIP: These hoses and connection points it is screwed into are all plastic and malleable. I held on to the connection piece as I wrenched as to avoid causing any unintended damage.
This thing was pretty gross for 14 hours, not upset I got in there and cleaned it out while there was only a little build up from initial use
Next up was to screw in the replacement, I bought it from Bills Tractor, ( BLOCK HEATER FOR 2538 GE3602538X ), it fits the 2638, I called to confirm before order and I now can confirm from first hand experience. I put a little bit of the anti-seize on it at this point, but didn't over do it so extra didn't get into the system. The only thing I can say is I have seen element heaters like this for like 20 dollars, so I'm not sure why this one is $80.
Next is time to refill the coolant. My dealer did not sell the Mahindra Coolant because they said it was ridiculously priced and to go get any 50/50 pre-mix and put it in. I used red color STP Heavy Duty I got from Tractor Supply meant for heavy duty diesel and long term use. It did not mention extra SCAs or nitrates etc..., just normal one. The manual calls for like 1.85 gal or something, so I bought two. So I closed back the plastic twist drain, and refilled it until the radiator wouldn't take anymore, then as manual calls for, I ran it for 5 minutes. Then I put in more coolant until it was full again, filled up the reserve tank about 80% until max full and ran it again for another 5 or 10 minutes. It drank a little from the reserve tank and stayed steady and a little below 50% on the engine temp chart. I then put it in high and drove it around for another 6 or so minutes at about 2k rpm. It stayed at same temperature and didn't seem to be leaking anywhere. I probably used a little over 1.5 gallons, there was a little of the original green stuff I didn't flush out. I will keep an eye on it the next couple of uses though.
Finally, time to connect the power cord, and zip tie and place the plug where I needed it. I got some dielectric grease for the connection to keep it clean and water-tight, and then ran it to some other hoses that were zip tied, along up to the front of the tractor. There are a few spots where you can run the cord so everything closes nicely and you don't make gaps along the side, then I got it positioned how I wanted it and kept it there.
Anyways, there ya go! Hopefully this helps someone, feel free to add any tips or comments.:thumbsup:
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