John Deer 997 diesel won't start
- Thread starter Dave27
- Start date
Roadworthy
Elite Member
You give little information but my first step would be to charge the new battery. Clean the terminals and the connectors on the cables. Reattach cables and tighten securely. If you can move it it's not secured. Follow the ground wire to the frame. Clean and tighten there as well. Check the battery voltage. It should be about 12.6. Have somebody monitor the voltage as you attempt to crank. It may drop to 11 but not much lower. From this point we can start troubleshooting or the problem will already be fixed.
BigBlue1
Veteran Member
Well, if the battery is known good then fuse or safety switch are the likely culprits. Check all fuses for blown ones. Try to jumper safety switches to bypass them. As mentioned above, make sure battery terminal connections are in good shape and tight.
A lesser possibility is the health of the battery cables themselves. On my x758 diesel garden tractor the negative cable was not securely connected to the cable clamp. It led to random no-start conditions for a while until I finally figured it out. This was the factory cable and only a little over a year after the unit was new.
Rob
A lesser possibility is the health of the battery cables themselves. On my x758 diesel garden tractor the negative cable was not securely connected to the cable clamp. It led to random no-start conditions for a while until I finally figured it out. This was the factory cable and only a little over a year after the unit was new.
Rob
RancherGuy
Gold Member
- Joined
- Feb 2, 2010
- Messages
- 301
- Location
- Rosenberg, TX
- Tractor
- Kubota L3710; JD 5425, 6105R, 7130-P; IH 1086
@Roadworthy is right - need more detail, and need to charge and verify voltage with the new battery.
"Nothing works" means no lights, no gauge activity, no cranking, nada?
If nothing works, you need a voltmeter (multimeter) to check voltage at different points. Start with (1) across battery terminals, (2) between battery cable at the starter and ground.
If everything electrical works but no cranking, then you may have a sensor / safety switch that is not allowing engagement of the starter. Don't forget to verify that all of the safety issues are in place for whatever your tractor has: PTO is off, clutch is depressed, left-hand reverser is in neutral, transmission is in neutral, etc.
FWIW, I have a Kubota that has a 40A in-line (wire) fuse that powers everything except the starter. When it blew, "nothing worked". When you report back, maybe someone who knows your tractor can indicate if you have something similar.
Report to us your findings.
etpm
Veteran Member
When I bought my old Yanmar I got a good deal partly because it wouldn't start. Just clicks, sometimes. Turns out there was rodent pee on the battery negative cable where it was bolted to the frame. The pee caused corrosion. I had to remove the cable, clean all the corrosion away. After reattaching the cable everything worked.