4X4 on John Deere backhoe

[dodge man]

I have a co-worker with a John Deere 2005 310G Backhoe loader. It has front wheel assist and he thinks there is a problem with it. When he goes up a hill forward, he can see the front wheels spinning. When he backs up the same hill, it appears the 4 wheel drive disconnects, and only the rear tires spin.

Any ideas?

 

[chieff]

I have a 4x4 New Holland backhoe and I can see the front wheels spin when going uphill in 4x4 because backhoes are inherently rear heavy so the front tires have little to no weight on them so they will spin and break up the grass and dirt under the tires when going forward up a hill. However, when going up the hill backwards much of the weight has shifted forward and the front tires have lots of weight on them so you would have to be in very slick, almost pudding type of mud to see them break loose.

 

[dodge man]

The way he describes it, the backhoe won't climb the hill backwards because the rear tires are spinning yet the front aren't.

 

[chieff]

I would set the boom and bucket down so that all 4 wheels are off the ground and shut down the machine. Put it in 4x4 and turn one of the wheels and see if you hear any strange noises or feel any issues in the drivetrain. If that goes good start it up and engage it in forward and reverse and see if all wheels turn. That would be the first things I would check.

 

[MFRED]

It may be the weight to traction ratio is too much to over come and allow the wheels to slip. On larger FWA tractors, there is a clutch that will "give" so the front axle doesn't get tore up. Meaning there is a torque value almost. If the front wheels have too much applied, they will overcome the clutch & not spin.

 

[dodge man]

He ended up lifting the rear end with the stablizers, but left the front tires on the ground. It would pull the tractor forward, but not backwards. They could see the driveshaft vibrating at that point. They called a repair shop and it sounds like they will have to take it in. They just bought the machine too.

 

[finley86]

What gear was the operator in when attempting to go up the hill in reverse?