Opening hood on Foton 404

Acky · Nov 2, 2013

My daughter, recently separated, has asked me to do some maintenance on her Foton 404 tractor. Her ex used to take care of all this .

It sure would be good if I knew how to get the hood raised so I can take a look at this machine. I've read the owners manual which came with the tractor but that was no help.

I've worked on our own John Deere for years and the hood release is right in the front. Also, the JD manuals are written in "readable" English. No such luck with this Foton.

Can someone here give me a quick tutorial on getting this **** hood up ??

Many thanks

Acky

Wa11banger · Nov 2, 2013

My hood release is a little pull knob lower left side of the cockpit plastic. A few inches up and towards the middle from the left step and almost directly below the emergency engine kill

Hickory Creek · Nov 3, 2013

2000 model hood release, see picture below, BLACK knob ,lower left, hard to pull, hood will pop up on its own when released as it has two pressurised(sp) struts to hold it up. Not sure but picture may enlarge if double clicked.

Wa11banger · Nov 3, 2013

Yupp exactly where mine is

zonta223 · Nov 4, 2013

Well my 2012 tractor seems to have the bonnet release in a different place if I am reading the above correctly. Mine is on the left side of the tractor ( as you sit on it ) and is a black T handle just to the rear of the front wheel just below the bonnet panel itself. Its a lot easier to see if you bend down slightly and follow the edge of the bonnet from front to rear.

Hickory Creek · Nov 4, 2013

Be thankful you have a "T" handle, as this animal can be hard to pull.

Wa11banger, does your tractor have a compression release lever?

Hickory Creek · Nov 4, 2013

Be thankful you have a "T" handle, as this animal can be hard to pull.

Wa11banger, does your tractor have a compression release lever?

Wa11banger · Nov 4, 2013

Hickory Creek, not that I know of by function, I am a first time tractor owner and the manual is a bit lacking as well. However if you look at the picture you provided in the center bottom I have a lever there that kills the tractor immediately when turned. It looks like yours is missing in the picture but mine has linkage that connects to the valve cover. I thought it was a different kill switch than the red switch because it kills the engine.

Rich Waugh · Nov 5, 2013

That lever is the compression release used to facilitate easier starting. When you turn it, it lifts the exhaust valves so they stay open, relieving the cylinders of compression. The kill knob shuts off fuel flow to the fuel injection pump. You really need to order the manuals (three of them) for this tractor if you are going to use it properly and service it correctly.

Wa11banger · Nov 5, 2013

Rich, there must be varying releases or prints of these manuals. I have three manuals for it, they look like they were printed the year of the tractor and they are very hard to read. Not as in foreign language hard to read but as in written incompehensible. Also I have read them cover to cover and this control is mentioned nowhere in any of them.

I have a medium thick owners manual (White) mentions nothing of using that lever in start or operations process.
a thinner engine manual (Silver)
And a parts catalog ( silver) which only seems good for part numbers.and that is only if you can recognize the part in a drawing. There is no table of contents just sort of "function ordered" sets of drawings in the catalog.

All of them are translation into english and are incomplete refferences. The catalog still has both chinese and amercan.