Chilly807
Elite Member
My L3400DT had been acting a bit odd lately, as if the clutch was dragging and not fully disengaging.
One time after an extended mowing session it didn't want to come out of high range, and kept edging ahead with the clutch depressed. Shut it down, and everything freed up immediately.
If I was in gear for an extended period (as in moving down the road for example), the shuttle was sticking in gear and was reluctant to move to neutral with the tractor running. In high range it just wouldn't shift, in low gear it was pulling.
Two weekends ago we were setting fence posts, I nearly ran over the wife twice with the clutch pressed hard to the floorboards in low range. Incidentally, if you think the brakes will stall/stop the tractor in 4wd low range 1st gear, you'd better have a lot stronger right leg than I do. The L series has great brakes, but they're no match for that.
So, she's thinking I was trying to kill her, albeit slowly.. and I'm thinking it's time to let the dealer have a look at the tractor before someone DOES get hurt.
After calling the shop, one of the mechanics came out and had a look at it that same day. He tried a few adjustments without solving the problem, and hauled it back to the shop for a closer look.
After calling Kubota's tech service people, they discovered that there had been another one very recently, maybe even the same day, that had done something similar to mine. Turns out both were 2009 model year tractors that had sat for a long time before being sold, the splines on the clutch shaft had rusted enough that they would occasionally jam and not allow the clutch to release.
Apparently the serial numbers were very close, probably same day or week of production.
They split the tractor and cleaned the rust away, lubed the shaft lightly to keep the rust off. Less than a week later I have the tractor back, cleaner than when I gave it to them and at no cost to me.
Having something under warranty when you have a problem like this makes a huge difference, and I can't say enough good things about the folks at Nova International. The service department did a great job in a short time and I'm back to setting posts and moving soil.
Anyone that thinks Kubota doesn't stand behind their machinery should have the experience I did. It would have been easy to simply say that the warranty didn't cover rusted parts and pass me the bill.
I'm a mechanic by trade but I'm not set up to split tractors, and I have other things that have to be done too. So at least in this case buying new just paid off.
Sean
One time after an extended mowing session it didn't want to come out of high range, and kept edging ahead with the clutch depressed. Shut it down, and everything freed up immediately.
If I was in gear for an extended period (as in moving down the road for example), the shuttle was sticking in gear and was reluctant to move to neutral with the tractor running. In high range it just wouldn't shift, in low gear it was pulling.
Two weekends ago we were setting fence posts, I nearly ran over the wife twice with the clutch pressed hard to the floorboards in low range. Incidentally, if you think the brakes will stall/stop the tractor in 4wd low range 1st gear, you'd better have a lot stronger right leg than I do. The L series has great brakes, but they're no match for that.
So, she's thinking I was trying to kill her, albeit slowly.. and I'm thinking it's time to let the dealer have a look at the tractor before someone DOES get hurt.
After calling the shop, one of the mechanics came out and had a look at it that same day. He tried a few adjustments without solving the problem, and hauled it back to the shop for a closer look.
After calling Kubota's tech service people, they discovered that there had been another one very recently, maybe even the same day, that had done something similar to mine. Turns out both were 2009 model year tractors that had sat for a long time before being sold, the splines on the clutch shaft had rusted enough that they would occasionally jam and not allow the clutch to release.
Apparently the serial numbers were very close, probably same day or week of production.
They split the tractor and cleaned the rust away, lubed the shaft lightly to keep the rust off. Less than a week later I have the tractor back, cleaner than when I gave it to them and at no cost to me.
Having something under warranty when you have a problem like this makes a huge difference, and I can't say enough good things about the folks at Nova International. The service department did a great job in a short time and I'm back to setting posts and moving soil.
Anyone that thinks Kubota doesn't stand behind their machinery should have the experience I did. It would have been easy to simply say that the warranty didn't cover rusted parts and pass me the bill.
I'm a mechanic by trade but I'm not set up to split tractors, and I have other things that have to be done too. So at least in this case buying new just paid off.
Sean
