newbie and 3 simple questions

bud light · Mar 10, 2014

Hello, I am bud from north Georgia. I am a machinist and for some reason most people I know seem to think I can fix anything. So when a friend of mine asked me to help him out with his tractor, I said sure. No, I don't actually own a tractor. I hope you all wont hold that against me.

Anyway, he was given a Mitsubishi MT372 and he loves it. This spring he decided to do some TLC maintenance on it but he has no owners manual. First thing he tried to do was drain the oil. After rounding the plug off with wrenches he asked me to try. After chewing the rest of it off with a pipe wrench I ended up here.

So, first question, is the oil plug a right handed thread or a left handed thread? And, what size thread is the oil plug? I told him to pull the oil pan off and bring it to my shop so I can work on it there.

Also, he pulled the fuel filter / water separator off, dumped it out, wiped it out, and put it back on. The tractor started and ran for a few seconds then died. Now it wont start and it has never had a problem starting. Any ideas? or suggestions?

I will admit up front, I am a dimwit when it comes to diesel engines.

I would really appreciate any help I can get.

bud

joshuabardwell · Mar 10, 2014

Every oil pan plug I ever met was standard thread. But sometimes a good ol' boy with an impact wrench goes a little overboard putting it in. May I suggest ignoring the drain plug entirely and getting one of those pumps that sucks the oil out the filler hole? I'm not a machinist, nor a mechanic, but I have never heard a story that started with a rounded off drain pan plug end well for the owner's pocketbook.

Regarding the fuel filter: the fuel petcock on my tractor has three settings: off, on, and air. The air setting is used to remove air from the system after removing the filter. To remove the air, you move the lever to the AIR setting, then start and run the tractor for about 30 seconds, then stop the motor and turn it back to ON.

joshuabardwell · Mar 10, 2014

Here's a photo of the relevant page from my manual.

bud light · Mar 10, 2014

Thanks joshuabardwell. Definitely helpful. will get with my friend tomorrow and check it out.

Does anyone know the thread size and count for the plug?

Tractor Seabee · Mar 11, 2014

First step is get the plug out. If you can get a new one from the Tractor dealer for that brand. Problem solved. If it will not budge after using heat he is probably stuck with buying a new pan; but, with the pan off you can probably find a replacement assembly at NAPA or weld a nut on the pan and get a bolt and copper washer.

Ron

oliver28472 · Mar 11, 2014

The 372 has a different method of bleeding than the Bobcat. There is a bleed screw on the filter assembly. Open it and let it run until there are no more air bubbles, then close it. Next, there should be another, larger bleed screw on the injection pump. Basically you are following the flow of the fuel. On the pan plug, I had that problem on one of mine. I took the pan off and took it to a welding shop where the guy used heat to remove the plug. A new plug can be bought at any auto parts store if you take the old one with you.

bud light · Mar 11, 2014

Thanks for the additional suggestions guys. My friend had to work late today and it will be raining for the next couple of days so I don't know when we'll get to it again but I'll keep you all updated how it goes.

bud light · Mar 25, 2014

OK, my friend brought the oil pan to my shop and I managed to get the plug out with some heat. Man, that thing was tight! Once it broke loose it just spun right out.
The new plug has a washer with it. The old plug didn't. Maybe that's why it got stuck. ?

Thread size for the plug is M18 1.5

He hasn't worked on the fuel problem yet and we're in for a cold spell next couple of days.

I'll keep you posted.