How loud is loud, for a 2006 L48

[pmmully]

I put a new muffler on the old L48, still loud as hell. Looking for exhaust manifold leaks/holes/gasket. Am I chasing a ghost and this vintage was just loud? I heard a newer one, holy crow, quiet.

 

[rbargeron]

Mine (2002) makes a normal low sound - simlar to other Kubotas, bigger and smaller. Maybe there's a chunk out of the manifold or gasket where it's hard to see? Is the new muffler OE style?

 

[pmmully]

Mine (2002) makes a normal low sound - simlar to other Kubotas, bigger and smaller. Maybe there's a chunk out of the manifold or gasket where it's hard to see? Is the new muffler OE style?

Not sure what style it is, I just ordered it from a local Kubota dealer.

 

[fried1765]

I put a new muffler on the old L48, still loud as hell. Looking for exhaust manifold leaks/holes/gasket. Am I chasing a ghost and this vintage was just loud? I heard a newer one, holy crow, quiet.

My guess would be that you have an exhaust leak somewhere.
I have the same vintage (2006) L48 TLB, but mine has only 253 hours, and the original muffler.
I consider mine to be relatively quiet.

 

[Username Taken]

Not sure what style it is, I just ordered it from a local Kubota dealer.

Is there room for you to jury-rig an additional muffler onto it, maybe downstream?

The new one you heard, did it have a DPF on it?

 

[fried1765]

Is there room for you to jury-rig an additional muffler onto it, maybe downstream?

The new one you heard, did it have a DPF on it?

Last new L48 was built in 2009......without DPF.
There is no location for adding a second muffler to an L48.
The OP needs to locate the exhaust leak/noise!

 

[rScotty]

I put a new muffler on the old L48, still loud as hell. Looking for exhaust manifold leaks/holes/gasket. Am I chasing a ghost and this vintage was just loud? I heard a newer one, holy crow, quiet.

I've been on this forum pretty much constantly since buying our Kubota M59 TLB about 12 years ago. Lots of Kubotas in the 45 to 60 hp range use that same basic engine. In fact, your L48 and our M59 both have the same engine except the M59 has an exhaust turbo to boost the HP.
As far as I know, they all sound about the same. At least I don't recall anyone saying that theirs had an exceptionally loud exhaust note. Could it be an exhaust leak? On most diesels an exhaust leak is pretty easy to spot by the smoke stains.

 

[pmmully]

Dealer I bought it from supposedly put a gasket on the exhaust manifold. I just do not know what exactly is "normal". I can tell you some of the new stuff I hear is really quiet for what they are. My ex-ASV was not that quiet when at operating speed.

I just do not know what exactly is "normal" for the vintage. I have to believe in 15 years, things got quieter to some degree. My 2012 dodge 6.7 Cummins is significantly quieter than 2004, and the new 2021 are way quieter than my 2012.

In boats, the big aspect of quietness is the injector pump. My 5.9 12 Valve is loud, but the newer electronic QSB series is so much quieter its not even funny.

Are the new L47's electronic injection? I would assume so to hit emission tiers. My L48 appears to be mechanical.

 

[fried1765]

Dealer I bought it from supposedly put a gasket on the exhaust manifold. I just do not know what exactly is "normal". I can tell you some of the new stuff I hear is really quiet for what they are. My ex-ASV was not that quiet when at operating speed.

I just do not know what exactly is "normal" for the vintage. I have to believe in 15 years, things got quieter to some degree. My 2012 dodge 6.7 Cummins is significantly quieter than 2004, and the new 2021 are way quieter than my 2012.

In boats, the big aspect of quietness is the injector pump. My 5.9 12 Valve is loud, but the newer electronic QSB series is so much quieter its not even funny.

Are the new L47's electronic injection? I would assume so to hit emission tiers. My L48 appears to be mechanical.

I have the EXACT same year and model.
I had to remove my muffler to get the (muffler) drain plug out for cleaning.
Obviously, I replaced the muffler gasket for reassembly.
The original gasket (251 hours) was good, and exhaust noise was "normal".
Same "normal" with new gasket!

If your dealer replaced the gasket before you bought your machine, the bolts should still be easy to remove, so you could try just replacing the $8 gasket.

 

[Smokeydog]

I have a 1996 5.9l Cummins in the truck. Most of diesel noise comes from 6 cylinder inline fuel pump. Don’t like the noise but love the reliability and low maintenance cost.
Adding Stanadyne fuel treatment helps keep it quieter. Also add to the the Kubotas.

Some mufflers get quieter when the get a layer of carbon inside.

Small manifold exhaust leak makes big noise.