LK3054 Problems Need Help

[TractorBall]

Just bought my first Kioti.
LK3054, FEL, New turf tires, 655 hrs. Really straight tractor for its age. But it has some problems.
1. Hard Starting, but fine once warm. Abnormally hard starting for a summer day.
2. Large amount of blown by coming from vent tube and oil dipstick when removed.
3. Moves and reacts very slow when clutch is engaged, especially in the rabbit gears.

How do I find out what year it is? It seems like a 90's vintage
Are all these problems related, possilbly lack of power from the blow by? What are some checks I can do to pinpoint some of the problems?
Is rebuilding the motor my only option for repair?
How costly is replacing the piston rings and what is entailed.
Something is obviously not right, but I don't know where to start.
Is 5000 a good price for a tractor with these problems?
I have learned a lot on this forum for the few days I have read and I am excited to get this tractor running right hopefully.
I LOVE TRACTORS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[bluechip]

The first digit (if a numeral) indicates the year of manufacture. A compression test is a good way to find out the condition of teh rings/valves. Check your local dealer or shops near you for price for overhaul. We diid one in our shop last year and it was a little over 2K parts and labor. a full rebuild would be more and probably worth the extra investment. complete new engine is another option, higher parts and lower labor. but a compression test will tell you a lot about the engine.

 

[Patches]

I have an '04(?), bought new and it has been a hard starter since new. I use the glow-plugs at any temp under 70*F, and really have to use them in freezing temps, along with the lower hose heater I installed. My dealer adjusted the injection timing, which helped, but lost me some needed HP. I've left the timing alone, rather than experience the "miserable" starting I had when new. Just the nature of the beast

 

[JoelD]

AS with some tractors with glow plugs I use mine for every start, whether it's -10 F out or 95 F out I use the glow plugs.

Maybe as simple as using your glow plugs.

Would need a little more info on the moving slowly question, are you saying the clutch is slipping?

Good luck,
Joel

 

[bluechip]

The LK3054XS had the old style glow plug indicator, actually a heating element in the dash that will glow red when the glow plugs get hot. If it burns out, the circuit becomes open and the glow plugs dont work.

 

[TractorBall]

The glow plug issue may be as simple as the dash indicator light missing. I do use the glow plugs before starting, but it seems like they aren't heating. The spot for the light exists but no light exists. This will be the first thing I look into tomorrow. Thanks for all your input.
I also need to test the compression for the blow by. Is blow by enough of a power drain to make the tractor move sluggish when in gear or is that a sign of the clutch slipping. The loader shows no sign of power loss and picks a full load no problem.

 

[bluechip]

Its not actually a light, in the hole there is a thick wire, when you hold the key in the glow plug position for a while, the wire will glow bright red, indicating the glow plugs are hot and it is ready to crank. if the wire is broken, there is no connection between the key switch and the glow plugs. when the glow plugs are off, it just looks like a hole in the dash.

 

[JoelD]

This may sound silly but moving slow, could it be as simple as you are in low range?

The only other explination I can think of is slipping clutch, I'd expect you'd smell that fairly quickly, and see the smoke.

In order to run slow due to weak engine I'd expect the motor to lug down in RPM, if RPM stays up then only other reasonable explanation would be clutch slipping.

Joel

 

[carpenter383]

Hard starting and eccessive blow by go hand in hand, blowby means cylinder pressure is getting past the pistons/rings. Any engine will have SOME blowby, but if it's eccessive there is less compression for the engine to run on but this is not to say it won't start easier with functioning glow plugs. A dirty air filter or fuel filter could cause hard starting and lack of power too.

 

[bbse]

I bought a 1995 LK3054 model with similar problems. I am sorry to say that after I pulled the head the cylinders were shot. Someone had run it a long time with dirty oil and filters. Good news is parts were reasonable. I called John Depratt at Depratt Equipment and he fixed me up on parts. I did have to split the tractor and take the block to a local shop. The block has tin can liners so they had to be cut out and new ones pressed in and cut to size.

If I just wanted to use the tractor as is you could try some of the oil additives like CD2 or others that stop oil burning. I know that is a big no-no but if it works in short bursts it is a lot cheaper that re-building the engine.

BTW, my total cost on parts and shop fees was only about $1200. Starts and runs like a champ now. Took about 120 hours before it was completely broke in. I was shocked at how reasonable the parts were. However, I had to do all the labor myself. If I had to pay for labor I might have looked at a crate engine for $3500 and just changes that myself.

 

[TractorBall]

Thanks, for all your posts. It has really helped.
So I don't think the glow plugs are working. The indicator coil never glows red after quite awhile heating the plugs. So what would need to be checked to see whats not working. The next thing is to go buy a compression tester and see what my compression is. I think I am coming to the realization I am going to just break the tractor in half and rebuild the motor. I was hoping to use it more this summer, oh well I guess it is better than no tractor at all.

 

[JoelD]

Thanks, for all your posts. It has really helped.
So I don't think the glow plugs are working. The indicator coil never glows red after quite awhile heating the plugs. So what would need to be checked to see whats not working. The next thing is to go buy a compression tester and see what my compression is. I think I am coming to the realization I am going to just break the tractor in half and rebuild the motor. I was hoping to use it more this summer, oh well I guess it is better than no tractor at all.

I would not jump the gun on rebuilding the motor. I do not start without glow plugs, even in summer, motor starts with glow plugs. My kubota B6000e was the same way. Designed to start with plugs used all the time. Summer I use for 30 seconds and winter I use for more like 45 to one minute. Either way always starts right up with normal diesel blow by.

Maybe as simple as glow plugs.

Joel

 

[DeNiro]

I have the same starting problem with my LK3054 and I think it is a common problem with most.
Do not assume that the glow plug is not working. To test it place a bare finger over the glow plug indicator hole and hold the switch to the left about 30-45 seconds. Your finger should feel the heat. Give it a lot of time; I thought mine was broken also because I did not wait long enough for the plug to heat. It may take over a minute.

 

[To20Chris]

I have a 2003 LK3054 - I never bother with the glow plugs in the summer. It fires right up after a couple of revolutions every time. Perhaps the injectors are dirty and not atomizing the fuel properly.