New Holland 6610 with bad clutch

[joes_427_vette]

While speaking to an elderly gentleman this weekend I learned he purchased a new 6610 ( 80 hp 4x4 with loader ) four years ago. He stated when the machine reached 350 hours the clutch was not working properly. He took it back to the dealer where they replaced the clutch for the sum of $1500. They stated the clutch was not totally worn out but they had to replace it as an assembly. The tractor looks new, not even a scratch on the tires, and it is used to plow the drive and secure wood from a near by wood lot. With less than 100 hours a year I find it hard to believe any part of that tractor could be worn to the point of replacement.
As a result of this experience he was very down on New Holland and didn't believe the quality matched their retail price.
** This gentleman was so fussy he mounted the loader himself. The bucket didn't even show a sign of scraped paint. The three point contained a John Deere 7 foot heavy duty blade.

 

[RickB]

I'm betting that you don't really know any more about what happened to the clutch than I do; which isn't much at all. But I do know that if this nice elderly man spent the 350 hours riding around with his left foot comfortably resting on the clutch pedal he could very easily have trashed the clutch. I replaced clutch in a certain 4630 every six months for a year and a half until the owner fired the driver and hired an operator. Maybe I am ornery tonight, or maybe you need to better explain the motivation behind the post or the question it contains. Surely you didn't expect NH to extend its warranty to four years?

 

[SOS]

How many hours would one expect to get out of clutch on a medium use? Let's say a TC45a doing brush clearing and mowing on 13 acres, maintaining a 800 ft gravel driveway (not much snow work), moving some dirt, building some fences... tipical non-farmer work. I know this is a hard estimate but just curious.

Also is the cluch covered for 3 years under the warranty?

 

[JerryG]

Like RickB, I have seen many people that will rest their foot on the clutch pedal and wear the clutch out. I have personally replaced many where this has happened. Even if you tell some owners what they are doing wrong they will continue to do it because they always have or because it is comfortable and they want to .

 

[AndyMA]

How many hours would one expect to get out of clutch on a medium use? Let's say a TC45a doing brush clearing and mowing on 13 acres, maintaining a 800 ft gravel driveway (not much snow work), moving some dirt, building some fences... tipical non-farmer work. I know this is a hard estimate but just curious.

Also is the cluch covered for 3 years under the warranty?

Almost totaly depends on the oeprator, could be 50 hours or 3000. You need to get off the clutch quickly and "lock it up" to preserve clutch life.

Andy

 

[RickB]

Almost totaly depends on the oeprator, could be 50 hours or 3000. Andy

Exactly.

 

[joes_427_vette]

Beat me with a stick... I failed to mention the bolts holding the clutch pressure plate to the flywheel were loose. They may have forgotten to torque them at the factory and as a result elongated the holes. The clutch disk itself was fine and not worn as a result of constant foot pressure. I think in this case NH could have snapped for the parts as this should have never taken place if assembly was done correctly. I'm going on somebodys word and never seen the replacement parts so take it for what it is worth. MY POINT is...... sometimes manufacture errors can result in costly repairs. With 350 hours I personally feel NH should have bore some of the rersponsibility, even with a 4 year old unit that is definately not abused. This is why they have service technicans in the field to assist dealers with problems and authorize repairs that are beyond normal wear. This type of incident also gives the dealer a bad name and I'm sure this gentleman will discourage his friends from buying the blue color.
Yes Rick... you do sound ornry. Next time I mention a problem I will take a detailed statement from the owner so it doesn't slip my feeble mind.

 

[RickB]

Amazing what a moderate level of detail does to the amount of information conveyed in a posting.

 

[AlanB]

At work we call that Paul Harvey maintenance.... "the rest of the story"

Joe, you have to admit, that was a pretty darn central part of the story to base thoughts off from. All we can see here is what you write.

Yes, I would like to think that a "factory defect" (loose bolts that are not normally serviced nor checked, would be covered under warranty. And I think they would be, if the person complained loud and hard enough, although sometimes, it may not be worth the effort.

I would also like to think that the dealership would go to bat for him as well.

 

[Soundguy]

Amazing what a moderate level of detail does to the amount of information conveyed in a posting.

His 6610 ( probably a 6610s ) sound slike a 2002 model.. I have a 7610s.. 2002 model.. Pretty close tractor.

I've got? 800-900 hrs on it now... Oem clutch... been adjusted 1 time so far. Works fine.

Originally I was going to say operator error.. however.. after seeing your last post.. about the loose bolts.. wellt hat throws a different angle on it.

Still.. At some point before clutch failure.. one would think you would feel.. or hear some clamor from the clutch housing... and in the 56/66/7610s the clutch housing is the bulk of the operator 'platform'.. ( a la crotch rocket ).

I know when i hear a strange noise.. or 'feel' something different on my tractor I get off and check asap.. Too much money tied up there to let a small item become a big one.

For what it's worth.. i know what the prev owner felt like when he found a 'likely' factory flaw that presented itself -after- warranty expiration.

On my 7610s, i finally bought a batwing mower.. again.. after warranty expiration... then i found out only 1 of my 2 remotes worked. I rebuilt the pack once.. still nothing.. i took the pack in and the service dept rebuilt it.. still nothing. I had the dealer pick up the tractor and the service amnager rebuilt the pack.. still nothing. ( i was about 70$ into oring kits and service at this point ). Upon yet another disassembly, it was discovered there was a flaw in a shuttle portion of one valve preventing it from working.. or being fixed. I had to spring for a new spool valve set.. ( reused my old qd pack.. which by now had a couple sets of good orings and cleanings... ).

The service manager 'helped' me find a used spool valve set for half of 'new', and then wanted to work with me on the labor bill. I told him I needed a new fan belt, and they threy it on for just the cost of the belt. All In all.. I wasn't happy that it was a likely factory defective spool pack.. however.. i never tested it before the warranty ran out... so it was mine.

The dealer did a great job of helping mitigate this situation. i can't fault them for anything. Inthe end.. they saved me a good deal of money.

They lowballed the pickup and delivery fee as well.. less than half of what i was quoted for pickup and delivery.

I got good remotes now... and it's a good solid tractor... just like that 6610 is. Hopefully he won't have any more problems with it other than maintenance issues, and it may last him 'decades' ... I believe the xx10s series are some pretty solid.. if not spartan and somewhat 'no frills' workhorses..


Soundguy