TC40DA Fuel Problem

[The Baron]

My tractor has 370 hrs on it and recently (last 3 months) when I run it higher than 1700 rpms for an extended period of time the fuel bowl starts emptying. The first time I saw it there was only 1/2" of fuel left in the bowl. The tractor never runs out of fuel, yet. I removed the filter bowl and filter to find small drillings of black plastic in the bowl. I removed the line going into the filter bowl and let it run into a container and seems to move a lot of fuel. i contacted the dealer who said this usually occurs under warranty and sent me a fuel cap to try. It did not help. When I look at the filter bowl assembly I can't even tell how I could make sure crud is not caught inside it. Is there a way or do this or do I just buy a new assembly? Today I ran it for 2 hrs moving dirt and it is down by 2/3rds again. When I go back out it will most likely be full, if not I will bleed the air out and keep going. There are no leaks of fuel. I am looking for any suggestions as to what to try or how. Thanks for the help. Tim

 

[jinman]

There have been several tractors with manufacturing debris from the fuel tank getting into the lines and partially plugging them. You could try back-blowing into the tank with low pressure (fuel cap off) to see if you can dislodge the obstruction. Since your tractor runs fine if the fuel filter bowl is full, I don't think you have fuel pump or injector pump problems. I think something is clogging your lines from the fuel tank.

 

[wrenchguy]

Sounds like some of those shavings might be clogged up in the filter housing. I would suggest removing inlet and outlet lines,filter and bowl from the filter housing. Blow out the filter housing and re-assemble. After you re-assemble,if there's any delay in bowl fill,you may need to pull the small return line off the top of the filter housing. Allow fuel to fill bowl completely and spurt out of the return line nipple before re-attaching return line.

 

[Jackfr]

I know you tried a new cap but the next time you see the fuel level down shut down the tractor quickly try opening the cap and listen for a hiss of air rushing in. We had a similar problem with our TC45DA to the point it would stall the engine and partially collapse the tank. Now each time we refuel I clean the vent on the cap and this has taken care of our problem.

 

[wrenchguy]

Has the fuel bowl ever been run out until the tractor actually shut off from fuel starvation? Not necessarily run the tank dry but could have also come from leaving the petcock turned off? Sometimes the bowl will appear to be full when actually a small bit of air is trapped at the top when filling the bowl from a low or empty level. This will cause the fuel bowl to drain down if RPM's are a little more than standard idle. The air can be purged by removing the return line as I described above.

 

[The Baron]

If I blow air backwards through the fuel line Won"t that just push the problem down the road? I thought there was a screen at the bottom of the tank before the fuel line exit? I had thought of this but didn't try it because of these thoughts. No, the tractor was never run out of fuel. I change the fuel filter annually and never had a problem with air until this year. I do not shut the fuel petcock off except for when I change filter. The New Holland dealer sent me their new "redesigned" fuel cap but I will still try and listen when I shut it down. Thanks for all the ideas, I will give them a try. Tim

 

[jinman]

If I blow air backwards through the fuel line Won"t that just push the problem down the road? I thought there was a screen at the bottom of the tank before the fuel line exit?

Tim, that is exactly right. If it cleared the problem, you would have a clean fuel line, but you'd have to pull the tank to get the stuff out. Some of the early tractors were reported to not have a screen. The "DA" models like yours had that screen in the tank I believe. Here's a good thread that describes somebody with a similar problem.