L3130 BATTERY HELP

[Skrizan]

I just purchased this tractor this fall and have completed full maintenance of all fluids and filters. Brutal cold lately here and this 2003 l3130 had either the original battery or a Kubota replacement. Been starting hard so I decided to get new battery. After reading a post here about Advance auto Gold I looked at those, but decided on Platinum AGM. Found a couple with similar dimensions and ended up buying a NG34. Fits perfect, but when I tried to start tractor after install major fail. Turn key and dash flashes for a second and goes dark. IF I try to turn it over I get a flash and nothing. The connections seem to be very tight. This battery has the right dimensions and plenty of CCA but is it not compatible for some reason? Measured 12.35 volts on the battery. The post about the Gold battery was a size 24, does it matter that this is a 34? Thanks in advance for any assistance.

 

[mddorange]

:welcome:
To the TBN forum. We are glad that you joined.

The most important thing is the Polarity. That is the the negative and positive terminals are correctly connected to the negative and positive terminals of the tractor.

 

[Skrizan]

Definitely connected with the correct polarity. Just checked again to make sure the red and black caps on the battery were not on the wrong posts or something. I guess I will try to clean up the connectors to make sure I have a good connection.

 

[mddorange]

The other thing I had happen once when I changes a battery in a car was that the cable was old and when I put it on the new battery, the wires in the connector was all corroded and no longer made good contact with the connector.

 

[DK35vince]

Sounds like a bad connection or cable.

 

[devildog1]

As others have said, connections, but also check to see if ground cables is tight and free of oxidation.
DevilDog

 

[Skrizan]

I charged the battery and got 13+ volts, removed and filed the connectors and reattached. Tried it and it fired up, the first time.... I had to run to town and when I got back I tried to start it and the dash flashed and went black and then nothing. Battery is reading 12.76 volts. Cables worked fine with the old Battery, so I don't know. Have a cab and heater and heater fan blows air if I turn it on. Bad new battery? Ground cable is tight, I guess I can take it off at the frame and try to clean it up.

 

[CharlieKtractor]

12.8 will start the L3130---12.36 will not--also run the tractor thru the start delay a cpl or three times(light goes out 3 times). I assume ya bought the NG34 from Advance Auto---not good!!!!! I'm on my 2nd batt for my 03 L3130 and it fired right up this am at 4*F---bought mine new

 

[Skrizan]

All connections clean and 12.76 volts. No lights, no dash lights so can't cycle through start delay. Taking battery back tomorrow to have them check it. All was fine with old battery except was getting hard to start with single digit temps, so I don't know how it can be anything but the battery.

 

[Redbug]

A fully charged lead acid battery should read in the range of 14 volts.

 

[rswyan]

A fully charged lead acid battery should read in the range of 14 volts.

... only while it's on a charger.

Normal resting voltage for a 12 volt lead-acid battery in good condition is around 12.7 - 12.8 volts.

 

[devildog1]

Yep should read about 13.25 to 13.35 volts on Battery Tender, keep us posted when new battery is checked under load.
DevilDog

 

[Skrizan]

12.8 will start the L3130---12.36 will not--also run the tractor thru the start delay a cpl or three times(light goes out 3 times). I assume ya bought the NG34 from Advance Auto---not good!!!!! I'm on my 2nd batt for my 03 L3130 and it fired right up this am at 4*F---bought mine new

Charlie, just curious, why is battery from Advance not good? (Beside the fact that I may have gotten a bad one )Another member was recommending the Gold battery from Advance with 25% off coupon, but I decided $128 After discount was good for platinum AGM. Taking it back to get checked today.

 

[bspeedy]

Bad battery is my guess. Maybe the old battery was good and the positive battery cable is in bad shape? I've had them give me fits. Have someone jiggle the positive cable around while you try to start.

Also, as stated, even though it's a 12 volt battery, 12.35 volts is way too low to start your tractor. It's troubling that this battery got so low even when new.

 

[Skrizan]

Bad news, battery tested as fine. So back to troubleshooting. A few notes to clarify based on some comments above. 1. Tractor was starting with old battery, just harder recently with cold snap. Old battery may have been the original from what I can tell, so bought new with 740 cca vs the 490 the old one had.
2. The new battery had to be charged up and the tractor started up once after the charge, but would not start again an hour later and ahowed 12.76 volts. 3. The connections to battery and frame ground clean and tight.

So, maybe bad cable? Why no power to Dash? Because not enough power for glow plugs? Lights don't work either, but wiper and heater fan run. I have not followed the hot cable from the battery to starter or any other connections. How does cable go bad, is it broken under the sheathing? Will try to wiggle it when I get a chance and see if it helps at all.

 

[rswyan]

Check the cable/connection to ground ...

 

[bspeedy]

Bad news, battery tested as fine. So back to troubleshooting. A few notes to clarify based on some comments above. 1. Tractor was starting with old battery, just harder recently with cold snap. Old battery may have been the original from what I can tell, so bought new with 740 cca vs the 490 the old one had.
2. The new battery had to be charged up and the tractor started up once after the charge, but would not start again an hour later and ahowed 12.76 volts. 3. The connections to battery and frame ground clean and tight.

So, maybe bad cable? Why no power to Dash? Because not enough power for glow plugs? Lights don't work either, but wiper and heater fan run. I have not followed the hot cable from the battery to starter or any other connections. How does cable go bad, is it broken under the sheathing? Will try to wiggle it when I get a chance and see if it helps at all.

Yes - internal corrosion. Sheathing is fine - cable is only carrying enough current to power dash lights or less. A jumper cable or other suitable cable temporarily running between the battery positive terminal and the starter will isolate this issue. It was quite a confounding problem on my tractor with similar symptoms.

Another thought. Sometimes a bad starter will kill a battery on it's way out. Use an independent starter / alternator shop for a rebuild if necessary.

 

[JRobyn]

A fully charged lead acid battery should read in the range of 14 volts.

False

 

[Redbug]

False

View attachment 534501

I stand corrected! Thanks JRobyn!

 

[moship]

Also keep in mind AGM batteries will have a slightly higher voltage when at 100% state of charge compared to conventional wet cell lead batteries, and both vary slightly with battery temperature.

There's also a difference between batteries supplied to colder climates versus warmer climates as warm/hot temperatures are really tough on their life span. To compensate for this the design (electrolyte to lead ratio) is slightly altered.

The OP should conduct a voltage drop test on the circuit in question. A bad cable will show a greater voltage drop when under load. As others have noted a wire assembly can look good but have internal corrosion that can not be seen.