3016 HST with a couple leaks; hoping for a discussion

[Tkblacktail]

A "cherry" 3016 with 65 hours.

Coolant leaking from somewhere (hidden) above the engine oil drain plug (and behind the fuel filter) when the engine is running. The level in the reservoir is at the "Low" mark. We would call it a class II leak in the army as the area is wet but does not wash off the dirt.

Hydraulic oil leaking from a small rectangle slot at the bottom of the HST about below where the dipstick is located. The level on dipstick is fine, the leak forms a drop so I am conditioned to call this a class I leak.

Any discussion before I take this in for warranty work would be helpful and appreciated.

TB

 

[arrow]

A "cherry" 3016 with 65 hours.

Coolant leaking from somewhere (hidden) above the engine oil drain plug (and behind the fuel filter) when the engine is running. The level in the reservoir is at the "Low" mark. We would call it a class II leak in the army as the area is wet but does not wash off the dirt.

Hydraulic oil leaking from a small rectangle slot at the bottom of the HST about below where the dipstick is located. The level on dipstick is fine, the leak forms a drop so I am conditioned to call this a class I leak.

Any discussion before I take this in for warranty work would be helpful and appreciated.

TB

Sorry Trask but I have the 3016 gear and the tractor only has 15 hrs on it. I also thought I had a hydraulic leak in the same place you describe ( if you are describing motor oil dipstick that is) as I came in one day from the wood lot and saw drips plopping before my eyes onto the garage floor. For the last month I've beeen noticing these small oil drips. Come to find out, the motor oil was coming out of the dipstick tube as it was not seated quite all the way down and would shoot oil in any direction. Because the motor oil was so clean still and showed leaks in several places, it looked clear as hydraulic fluid and is why I thought I had a hydraulic leak. My hydraulic fluid on the dipstick was fine, however my motor oil dipstick was almost a quart low.The coolant leak i have not come up against but I'll look at the thing tomorrow to see what might develop a coolant leak in the area.

 

[Jim Dodgins]

A "cherry" 3016 with 65 hours.

Coolant leaking from somewhere (hidden) above the engine oil drain plug (and behind the fuel filter) when the engine is running. The level in the reservoir is at the "Low" mark. We would call it a class II leak in the army as the area is wet but does not wash off the dirt.

Hydraulic oil leaking from a small rectangle slot at the bottom of the HST about below where the dipstick is located. The level on dipstick is fine, the leak forms a drop so I am conditioned to call this a class I leak.

Any discussion before I take this in for warranty work would be helpful and appreciated.

TB

Has your tractor ever over heated?

 

[Tkblacktail]

Has your tractor ever over heated?

Thanks fellas,

The tractor never overheated, never below 39 degrees (so far), kept in a shop. 65 easy light-forestry hours.

I followed the "run-in" procedure, the 50-hour, and the PMCS to the letter; I caught these leaks because it was raining, so I was working ahead on my 10 hour routine.

I cannot see any external damage to the engine or HST.

 

[arrow]

Thanks fellas,

The tractor never overheated, never below 39 degrees (so far), kept in a shop. 65 easy light-forestry hours.

I followed the "run-in" procedure, the 50-hour, and the PMCS to the letter; I caught these leaks because it was raining, so I was working ahead on my 10 hour routine.

I cannot see any external damage to the engine or HST.

May be time for the dye and a black light Trask.

 

[Tkblacktail]

May be time for the dye and a black light Trask.

10-4,

I rented a surge-braked trailer from a rental house ($57) and took the tractor into the shop where the dealer welcomed the warranty work with open arms. I should know what happened soon but the holiday may slow-down the actual work. I'm busier than a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs anyway; no time to play rock quarry until mid December. I was surprised how well the surge-brakes worked on that trailer, they want $4K for it out-right, but I'm looking for a lighter-duty (cheaper) rig; perhaps a car-hauler.

I'll post what the results of the tests are. It sure is nice to have a fantastic dealer close-by.

 

[Tkblacktail]

22+ working days into the project and they have not found the source of the HST leak; the coolant leak has been resolved but I haven't been briefed on the source of that leak (ancillary at this point).

The dealer has split the tractor in half 3 times now; they used dye & the black-light, they replaced all the seals, all the O rings, and checked the transfer-surfaces for match (all copacetic). They took pictures yesterday and sent them off to a service rep (Texas?) for review; hoping for a determination today. The latest dye-test and/or pictures do not reveal where the leak is coming from.

The luxury of having customer-patience and an honest/capable Mahindra dealer cannot be overstated; I lucked-out on the second luxury..... The dealer has full-faith in Mahindra but he pledged to make the tractor "right" no matter what the manufacturer's determination on the final outcome/any unrecoverable-costs.

It "says" a lot when businesses honor their warranty pledge to a small-time owner like me (a one tractor-owning, transplanted brood-stock, catch and release army retiree..............).

I should know something today.

 

[arrow]

This is peculiar Trask. They are probably shining the light on every seam and mating surface they can find. I'm wondering if it could be a porosity in a metal casting somewhere. I experienced this in a front 4wd housing once. Drove me crazy as to where this leak was coming from. I finally found it when the housing split in two while using the tractor one day. There was a line in the casting as if put there by a metal eating worm. It would slowly seep out of this "orifice" over night enough to drip on the garage floor. As this was near the bottom of the housing where it would get scraped up from under brush and such, the paint would act like the finger in the dam until it got scraped away. These things are cast in sand. Anything could happen to a casting.

 

[Tkblacktail]

They performed a bench test on both pieces today and still could not find the leak(s); the ball is in the service rep's "court" and he won't be here until next week. The fact that the leak only occurs when the components are assembled and with the engine running leads me to believe the leak is occurring where there is an exchange of oil occurring between the two components.

"Hats off" to the dealer for keeping their cool and keeping me informed.

 

[Tkblacktail]

It appears that I may never know what was leaking on the HST; the area service rep decided to replace the entire HST.

I suppose they will take the leaky HST back to a lab (and "water-board" it) to find out for themselves.

I should have the tractor back by next week. :thumbsup:

It pays to buy a reputable product from a reputable dealer.