Won't stay running John Deere Z997 ZTR Mower Year 2008

[Spanner]

Hi Hawkeye08
That unit seems neat. What I really need I saw on a UTube video. A mechanic was chaseing a short on a jeep. From the unit and a drawing he isolated it to a specific wire harness. Using a 12vDC probe he would get the short to trip the probe. Then knowing the short was in front of him he would use an amp meter which could tell him if the wire was hot. He kept doing that until he discovered a short from the Oxygen sensor without cutting any bundle of wires. The meter would tell him if a wire in the bundle was good or bad. Neat

This sounds like the 'Power Probe' device? You do not need one.
You need a basic 'test light' or the standard VOM. Test lights are of this form (A clip to 'ground' one end of the wire and a spike to probe with the other end. A bulb in the handle will illuminate if power is present.)


Remember electricity can travel both ways in a wire. There is no sense in your saying "knowing the short is in front of him".

Coyote has a valid question.
:wrench:

 

[Coyote machine]

This sounds like the 'Power Probe' device? You do not need one.
You need a basic 'test light' or the standard VOM. Test lights are of this form (A clip to 'ground' one end of the wire and a spike to probe with the other end. A bulb in the handle will illuminate if power is present.)
View attachment 514412

Remember electricity can travel both ways in a wire. There is no sense in your saying "knowing the short is in front of him".

Coyote has a valid question.

Yeah, what he said ^^^^ AND I'd like an answer to my question...because otherwise what exactly is going on with this endless search for some solution to a problem that hasn't that I recall even been nailed down to exactly WHAT the problem is?!

Can you update exactly what the current symptoms are?: An example: You turn the ignition key, the mower starts, you release the handbrake, it stalls, OR once brake is released and you engage one or both control levers the mower stalls....

Thx,

CM

 

[feoneill9]

Hi Coyote Machine and Spanner
UPDATE. I am trying

Oh what I have done.
Recap: The unit is down as the hydraulic temp switch needs to be replaced. On Monday early I ordered the part from John Deere. It was supposed to be in Athens, Al. after 2:00PM yesterday. They have a truck which goes to the Parts Warehouse in Murpfressboro, TN. ,about 240 miles round trip from Athens, Al.,everyday. But because of the Great Patriotic American Holiday of July 4th, it did not make the truck yesterday because of a general slowdown in preparation for the Holiday . Hopefully it will be on today's truck and I can pick it up after a 50 mile round by me and install it later this afternoon. The machine will not move with the switch broken. I am going to replace the relay also.

On the fuel solenoid: As you know I found a Woodward solenoid at a company in Colorado. They wanted a good bit more than a JD switch from a dealer plus $40.00 shipping PLUS a 2 to 3 week waiting period. I passed on the . I was going to order it from JD but I checked Ebay and they had a new one for less than $100.00 bucks including shipping. It left Boston last night. Should be here Friday or Saturday. Most likely Monday!

I might have to rent a ZTR today as the wife is stating that the place looks like a jungle. I cut the a good amount of grass Monday with my JD STX38 but it has carburetor issues now and will not start. Go figure.

 

[feoneill9]

Spanner:
It was not a Power Probe. It was an amp meter the the wire went behind it and it read through the plastic wire cover the amps. I can not find that UTube video now.

I also have a multimeter, which I am not real good on using.

Well I am off to buy a 12V pump so I can spray my yard this week again for mosquitoes and other critters in the yard around the house.

 

[Coyote machine]

Spanner:
It was not a Power Probe. It was an amp meter the the wire went behind it and it read through the plastic wire cover the amps. I can not find that UTube video now.

I also have a multimeter, which I am not real good on using.

Well I am off to buy a 12V pump so I can spray my yard this week again for mosquitoes and other critters in the yard around the house.

So you've ordered a fuel pump solenoid, but never tested the existing one to see if it was cutting out as the engine stalled out? Please confirm this specific question, without all the description of shipping and handling issues.
And as far as your VOM, put it on DC Volts scale and use black lead on ground and red lead on hot and see what readings you get when testing DC circuits.
And if testing something like a possibly blown fuse, put it on the Ohms scale and use it to test open or closed on non energized fuses and such. Every other scale is mostly irrelevant for what you're doing.

 

[feoneill9]

Hi everyone:

The hydraulic temp sender came in and I installed it. It stopped the high temp light and buzzer on the control panel. However it will not let me raise or lower the deck a new problem that came along with the bad hydraulic switch. So far I checked the proximity switch on the lift system by eyeballs only and the led light comes on. I have power on one of the 3 wires into the switch via light probe. But it seem I need 2 hot lines in so I have to trace the wires back to the tie in.

My VOM broke and the new one I got this morning is also broke.

I checked the Fuel solenoid before the 1st VOM broke and they were very close to specs if I remember spec on pull in relay is 0.04. The reading was 0.039 --- On the hold in reading spec is like 14.3 and it was 14.2 I think. So I have an extra fuel solenoid and egg on my face.

I ran the unit for an extended time in place with the mower running and it ran for 15 minutes and quite. The second time it ran for 7 minutes and quit- but I was moving the fuel tank pickup line and it seemed to quit. So once the heat of the day goes down I'll try to remove the fuel tank pickup tube and see it any muck inside. I have 3/4 tank of fuel so I may have to drain it to see much. I changed the H2O fuel filter previously and it looked fine. Same for the first H20 filter off the pump- no water in it when I drained it.

The line itself from the tank to the fuel pump is very clean inside- the little that I could see. Maybe the suggestion of muck in the fuel tank was a good one.

All in all not much progress. Thanks for the help and interest.

 

[jenkinsph]

Hi everyone:

The hydraulic temp sender came in and I installed it. It stopped the high temp light and buzzer on the control panel. However it will not let me raise or lower the deck a new problem that came along with the bad hydraulic switch. So far I checked the proximity switch on the lift system by eyeballs only and the led light comes on. I have power on one of the 3 wires into the switch via light probe. But it seem I need 2 hot lines in so I have to trace the wires back to the tie in.

My VOM broke and the new one I got this morning is also broke.

I checked the Fuel solenoid before the 1st VOM broke and they were very close to specs if I remember spec on pull in relay is 0.04. The reading was 0.039 --- On the hold in reading spec is like 14.3 and it was 14.2 I think. So I have an extra fuel solenoid and egg on my face.

I ran the unit for an extended time in place with the mower running and it ran for 15 minutes and quite. The second time it ran for 7 minutes and quit- but I was moving the fuel tank pickup line and it seemed to quit. So once the heat of the day goes down I'll try to remove the fuel tank pickup tube and see it any muck inside. I have 3/4 tank of fuel so I may have to drain it to see much. I changed the H2O fuel filter previously and it looked fine. Same for the first H20 filter off the pump- no water in it when I drained it.

The line itself from the tank to the fuel pump is very clean inside- the little that I could see. Maybe the suggestion of muck in the fuel tank was a good one.

All in all not much progress. Thanks for the help and interest.

When I read where the first meter "broke" and the second meter "broke" I get the feeling that is operator error. If you have the meters on an Ohms scale and then attach the probes across a live circuit you will usually blow an internal fuse (at least on my meters, Fluke). Now I have had some meters fail over the last 50 years but my newest meters are about 10 years old. Failure is not a common issue.

I have to say with all the parts changing you have done that you are grasping at straws. Don't feel bad about it as it takes a lot of time to be a good trouble shooter. I just feel you are in over your head/pay grade and should turn this over to someone who is trained in these repairs. Can you get everything back together the way it was before hand?

 

[feoneill9]

OMG. KISS

To all those real mechanics who said that it was a tank problem, a diesel fuel problem or a diesel problem, hoist a glass of your favorite beverage.

I pulled the fuel pickup tube in the tank and the screen was 100% BLOCKED with crud. I will start it in the morning to get it running as I need to fill up the tube and the line to the diesel pump with diesel fuel to prevent air in the lines. The diesel has no air bleed valve on the manifold.

I feel confident that this will solve that stopping problem. Now how do I get the dirty bits from the bottom of the tank?
Reminds me of a problem when I worked at Lockheed AC that the British AF had with the wings being eaten off their C130 Herc's by bacteria because of bad fuel practices

Drain the tank with a pump, add fresh diesel and do that until the fuel removed has no particles in it? Or what.

I still have the optional hydraulic lift deck problem but I'ii solve that with your help.

Thank you thank you

 

[Spanner]

For the moment... clean that pick.up screen, re-install the fuel tube
(Procedure: install rubber grommet on its own first. Then insert fuel tube with cleaned screen. Connect fuel hose. Turn ignition on and the fuel system of the 997 self-bleeds.)

Get mowing.
Come back afterwards and we will tell you how to clean your tank. The pick.up filter will take a few mows to clog up again.



I have more constructive criticism for you but it can wait a while.

:wrench:

 

[Spanner]

I don't mean to sound rude but I'll ask you to re-read my first post in this thread at #50 before you write anything more Frank.

'Three times around a tree and it stopped at the same place every time' ...

And so many parts that you have told us "Need" replacing. I'm beginning to doubt that they did...

Now 2 x VOM's 'breaking' sequentially ...

The latest - "I need to fill up the tube and the line to the diesel pump with diesel fuel to prevent air in the lines" ... Where do you get all these ideas?
Read your manual. It describes how to bleed the fuel system. (As I said - it is self-bleeding).
It also tells you how to remove the fuel tank for cleaning.

Let's talk about your 'Hydraulic deck lift" problem - when you're sure you do have a problem in that area.

Get some grass cut asap.

Regards,
:wrench:

P.s. So many posts criticising the machine and the manufacturer when actually some fuel hygiene is an 'Operator Issue".

As I said earlier - These 997's are a good machine. Overly complicated electrically in their early days but still pretty reliable.

Perhaps a small apology in the direction of Mr. Deere?