M4700 PTO Clutch

[GaryR]

Hi Ya'll. Kinda hoping I can get some advice on an issue I have with my PTO. Last December I had my tractor serviced by the dealer and needed to have them look at my PTO which would just barely turn my brush hog.
They put a new PTO cable on it and sent it back. Last week I hooked up the hog and low and behold it will just barely turn. Now the dealer says it needs to be split and maybe new PTO clutches. Bottom line is $3000.00 labor
and they will tell me how much for parts when they get in there. What do you think guys are they on the right track
or completely off? Thanks for takin a look

 

[GeoHorn]

Well…. the Messicks site shows about $1k - $1.5K for the parts alone. How Many Hours on your M4700..??

Kubota M4700DT (Dual Traction, 4wd) Parts Diagrams

Kubota Parts Catalog Lookup. Buy Kubota Parts Online & Save!

messicks.com

 

[GaryR]

Hey GeoHorn thanks for chiming in. The tractor runs fine and there are no issues with the drive line at all or the way the tractor operates. It has 1680 hrs on it. They are telling me now that since the pto cable was not the problem then it must be the clutch and labor is $3000 and they can't tell me how much the parts
are because they don't know what parts they need. I have to wonder...have they ever fixed this issue before.

 

[GeoHorn]

Hey GeoHorn thanks for chiming in. The tractor runs fine and there are no issues with the drive line at all or the way the tractor operates. It has 1680 hrs on it. They are telling me now that since the pto cable was not the problem then it must be the clutch and labor is $3000 and they can't tell me how much the parts
are because they don't know what parts they need. I have to wonder...have they ever fixed this issue before.

As a former technician (mechanic) for a dealer… and subsequetly, as well as a former service-manager for a dealer… I can tell you that I could Never quote a customer a diagnosis OR repair estimate until my shop had disassembled and inspected the condition of the machine …. and determined the parts needed..and the labor required…to execute the repair.

Nothing you’ve posted so-far seems suspicious.

 

[GeoHorn]

BTW… I’m not surprised at the labor cost since the tractor has to be ‘split’ to do the job…

I Am surprised at how the PTO clutch is worn out at less than 2K hrs. It reminds me how simple my old 9N Ford was with it’s gear-driven-pto (no pto clutch).

(The Owner’s Manual recommends engaging/disengaging the PTO at IDLE engine-speed however…to reduce wear on the clutch.)

 

[TheOldHokie]

Hey GeoHorn thanks for chiming in. The tractor runs fine and there are no issues with the drive line at all or the way the tractor operates. It has 1680 hrs on it. They are telling me now that since the pto cable was not the problem then it must be the clutch and labor is $3000 and they can't tell me how much the parts
are because they don't know what parts they need. I have to wonder...have they ever fixed this issue before.

What if any of the WSM diagnostics have been run and what did they show?

Dan

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

To just jump in and say the PTO clutch is bad is quite the jump, first I would be testing the PTO clutch valve and pressures, both of those are external and cheap to do.

PTO clutch packs of this style very rarely "go bad", especially with that low of hours.

 

[TheOldHokie]

To just jump in and say the PTO clutch is bad is quite the jump, first I would be testing the PTO clutch valve and pressures, both of those are external and cheap to do.

My thoughts exactly.

Dan

 

[GaryR]

Thank you all for the comments. The dealer did not mention any tests being run at all. All they said that since the pto cable replacement did not fix the problem it must be the clutch. the tractor had about 1200
hrs when I bought and I just use it part time to do a little brush hogging. Is the clutch they say is bad the same one that works the transmission? I will be on the phone Monday to find out if any tests were run.

 

[logan1996]

I also have a Kubota m4700DT with the same problem. It will spin a brush hog but there is no power behind it. The pto stops spinning in just minor grass. Please let me know what they say. I was thinking about testing the pressures from the clutch. Does anyone know the spec? And where to hook up? I noticed a tube going from the valve to behind the dash to a distribution block so maybe I should test there?

 

[logan1996]

Thank you all for the comments. The dealer did not mention any tests being run at all. All they said that since the pto cable replacement did not fix the problem it must be the clutch. the tractor had about 1200
hrs when I bought and I just use it part time to do a little brush hogging. Is the clutch they say is bad the same one that works the transmission? I will be on the phone Monday to find out if any tests were run.

Did ya find out anything?

 

[GaryR]

My Tractor is still at the dealer supposedly getting fixed. They tested the system and the pressure was at 350 lbs which was where it should be. They split the tractor and found the PTO clutch facings had come off of the face of the plate. They quoted $2000 labor and about $1500 parts. At this point I have 0 % faith in the dealer as this is their 2nd shot at repairing this. Hopefully I will get it back soon and I'll let you know if it is fixed.

 

[logan1996]

My Tractor is still at the dealer supposedly getting fixed. They tested the system and the pressure was at 350 lbs which was where it should be. They split the tractor and found the PTO clutch facings had come off of the face of the plate. They quoted $2000 labor and about $1500 parts. At this point I have 0 % faith in the dealer as this is their 2nd shot at repairing this. Hopefully I will get it back soon and I'll let you know if it is fixed.

Get it back yet?

 

[JohnDB]

Get it back yet?

And did they give you the old parts they took out? I should have suggested this earlier, before you got the dealer to split it. Always nice to have evidence... if it exists.