How long should a John Deere 345 last

[cartod]

I have a 1978 JD 400 with a Kohler and it is as strong now as it was 34 years ago.

 

[D7E]

I have a 1978 JD 400 with a Kohler and it is as strong now as it was 34 years ago.

But age is irrelevant . Is your mower mowing 5 acres of lawn 2-3 times a week ?

 

[cobracnvt]

I want a new tractor now, but the practical side of me is trying to determine how long the 345 should last. It has been a great tractor so far. I have a few sloped areas where a locking diff or 4 wheel drive would really help me, but the 345 doesn't have either.

I'll have to research the plastic cam gear. I hate to open up the engine, when it's running so well and not leaking. Does anyone know off hand if it's a non interfearance engine, or does the cam gear breakage end up ruining the engine if it happens?

 

[murphy1244]

But age is irrelevant . Is your mower mowing 5 acres of lawn 2-3 times a week ?

Ah yes, That is the question. My Simplicity Conquest just hit the 100 hour mark and I bought it last may.

 

[Fromjim]

I would like to advise you to check your fuel pump for leaks, on the older models, mine is a 1995 model I believe, and does not have a tubing to guide fuel leakage from a defective fuel pump to be directed to the ground and on my tractor caused a fire that ruined the tractor, this happened last fall, 2015, I really loved this tractor, we have been using it to mow and cut small brush on about 10 acres, minor repairs and very good service, but John Deere refused to help with what I had read about on the internet as being a fuel pump recall, I called John Deere in Canada and they said there was no such recall. Yet on the internet I have seen photos of the replacement kit supposedly issued by John Deere in the USA, it includes the hose to direct the gas to the ground in case of leakage. I still think the John Deere 345 is an excellent lawn tractor, we really loved and miss it. But I am now looking at buying the Kubota GF1800 to replace the John Deere, May God bless all, Jim

 

[Richard001]

Jim,

Your not the first to loose a 345 tractor to fire caused by a leaking fuel pump. And your correct that JD's replacement pump has a drain tube to direct any leaking fuel away from the muffler.

Richard

 

[radios1]

I want a new tractor now, but the practical side of me is trying to determine how long the 345 should last. It has been a great tractor so far. I have a few sloped areas where a locking diff or 4 wheel drive would really help me, but the 345 doesn't have either.

I'll have to research the plastic cam gear. I hate to open up the engine, when it's running so well and not leaking. Does anyone know off hand if it's a non interfearance engine, or does the cam gear breakage end up ruining the engine if it happens?

what could happen is a valve could stop at the time it is fully extended into the engine, meanwhile, the piston is still moving to top dead center, when this happens, you'll bend a valve, dent, and possibly puncture a piston, and possibly bend a connecting rod, I've seen all this happen before, on other engines, and it can be expensive to have someone replace all those parts, and repair the engine, so it's not worth risking that...

 

[Zebrafive]

I want a new tractor now, but the practical side of me is trying to determine how long the 345 should last. It has been a great tractor so far. I have a few sloped areas where a locking diff or 4 wheel drive would really help me, but the 345 doesn't have either.

I'll have to research the plastic cam gear. I hate to open up the engine, when it's running so well and not leaking. Does anyone know off hand if it's a non interfearance engine, or does the cam gear breakage end up ruining the engine if it happens?

I had the plastic cam gear fail on my 285. Maybe I was lucky and the valves were closed when the cam lost some teeth. I cranked the engine and it just spun. No other damage than just the cam gear.

 

[bruceatlam]

The 345 engine is a non interference engine. Most reports are that the cam gear fails around 800 - 1,000 hours and that there will be no other damage. But of course, if it does fail and you are faced with tearing down that engine at 800 hours to replace the cam gear, you will also want to replace other "wear" parts at the same time to avoid tearing it down again in the near future. I would guess that the average parts bill will be around $800 for the rebuild ---- this assumes that you provide the labor at no cost.

 

[RandyT]

Repaired a 345 with 1200 hours on it for a customer last year. Replaced the camshaft to the metal one, also had to replace the water pump gear, governor gear, and oil pump gear because they were also broken when the cam gear came apart. Total bill with just over $700 for the customer. I have heard JD charges as much as $1200 for this repair.

If you are doing the repair yourself the parts are not that expensive.