diesel exhaust & shortness of breath

timsch

Member

Equipment
'49 8N, L275DT
Jun 11, 2018
113
21
18
Houston, TX
I've been enjoying my L275, but unfortunately when I'm done I notice a significant shortness of breath. The exhaust pipe comes up from the manifold, releasing the exhaust in front of me when I drive. I've seen pictures of L275's that had different routing of the exhaust. What are my options and where can I find out more about this. I'd like to have the exhaust low and behind me.

thanks (wheeze, wheeze)
 

Russell King

Well-known member
Lifetime Member

Equipment
L185F, Modern Ag Competitor 4’ shredder, Rhino tiller, rear dirt scoop
Jun 17, 2012
5,371
1,418
113
Austin, Texas
Look at Kubota.com illustrated parts list to see options on what was built

Call tractor salvage yards like West Kentucky tractor and see if they have any parts

Or order new parts from dealer, they are probably available

On my L185 similar to your the exhaust goes fairly straight down then out the back a few inches past the axle


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 

lugbolt

Well-known member

Equipment
ZG127S-54
Oct 15, 2015
5,214
1,899
113
Mid, South, USA
you are not alone.

Years ago I took a day off work (which is quite rare) and decided I wanted to go watch the nitro cars over at Memphis. Of course it was hot being in September, IIRC in the upper 90's in the shade and some of y'all know as well as I do, ain't a lick of shade at the drag strip. Well we got there and walked around drooling over all the money that those guys burn up. THey're all pulled in specialized 18 wheeled semi-trucks and they all had diesel powered generators running the tooling, lights, and air conditioners-and each team had 2 or 3 trucks. There is ZERO breeze to boot so the diesel fumes are just lingering amonst the nitro fumes. I made it about an hour and passed out. Never again.
 

chim

Well-known member

Equipment
L4240HSTC with FEL, Ford 1210
Jan 19, 2013
2,126
1,244
113
Near Lancaster, PA, USA
My old Ford tractor puts out some strong diesel smell, and the factory exhaust shot it out in front of the tractor. That was bad enough, but when the muffler started leaking it was intolerable. I couldn't find a factory or equal horizontal muffler. The solution was to fab up a vertical pipe with a Cherry Bomb muffler and a flapper cap. I find myself using the Ford much more now. It had been resigned to winter duty - parked at the church all winter for snow removal.
 

shootem604

Member
Lifetime Member

Equipment
L245DT with Kubota (Arps Model 22) FEL and Kubota B/L4520B (Woods 650) BH
Apr 23, 2018
875
18
18
British Columbia
My L245 is a similar tractor but has the manifold face downward and piped out behind me under the axle. Just need to put a 90 on it so it doesn't cover my 3pt hitch and implement with soot over time. I've seen other L245s with the manifold installed upward - don't know if the part is the same and can be flipped?
 

troverman

Well-known member

Equipment
MX6000 HSTC; 2020 Kubota Z421KW-54 zero turn mower
Jun 9, 2015
1,188
275
83
NH
I know its not always possible for people to buy newer equipment, but one advantage of modern tractors equipped with a diesel particulate filter (DPF) is that they no longer produce a diesel smell. It isn't the "smell" that's giving you the shortness of breath anyway, it's the particulate matter you are breathing which settles in your lungs. Tractors equipped with a DPF filter these out...they no longer emit any smoke or particulate, and the associated smell is all but gone. My new MX4800 is pretty nice to run for a few hours compared to the older L4310 that came before it.
 

Botamon

Well-known member

Equipment
M7060HDC12, John Deere 2020 diesel
Mar 26, 2018
283
512
93
Winnemucca, Nevada
I know its not always possible for people to buy newer equipment, but one advantage of modern tractors equipped with a diesel particulate filter (DPF) is that they no longer produce a diesel smell. It isn't the "smell" that's giving you the shortness of breath anyway, it's the particulate matter you are breathing which settles in your lungs. Tractors equipped with a DPF filter these out...they no longer emit any smoke or particulate, and the associated smell is all but gone. My new MX4800 is pretty nice to run for a few hours compared to the older L4310 that came before it.
I didn't know diesel exhaust could be so clean until I got my Kubota. My old John Deere is parked under a shed that is open on three sides. When I fired it up I tried to hold my breath until I backed it out into the open. No visible smoke, just the fumes are awful. The Kubota stays in the barn and even though it is closed in I can fire it up and not smell fumes or feel the need to hold my breath before I back it out of there.
 

shootem604

Member
Lifetime Member

Equipment
L245DT with Kubota (Arps Model 22) FEL and Kubota B/L4520B (Woods 650) BH
Apr 23, 2018
875
18
18
British Columbia
I didn't know diesel exhaust could be so clean until I got my Kubota. My old John Deere is parked under a shed that is open on three sides. When I fired it up I tried to hold my breath until I backed it out into the open. No visible smoke, just the fumes are awful. The Kubota stays in the barn and even though it is closed in I can fire it up and not smell fumes or feel the need to hold my breath before I back it out of there.
Just don't do it too long! :eek:
 

Pau7220

Well-known member

Equipment
L3650 GST, Landpride TL250 FEL w/ Piranha, 6' King Kutter, GM1084R Finish
Aug 1, 2017
785
278
63
Scranton, PA
I'll take the smell of properly burned diesel fuel any day (no exhaust haze), over what comes out of today's "clean" engines. When you're cruising down the highway and all of a sudden you're choked by what smells like a can of Brake-Clean that exploded in your trunk, you know there's a big truck ahead going through a regen cycle..... and this is better for you? And then these filtered particulates go where??? :confused: Out the exhaust and into the air!
I'll keep burning wood instead of hugging trees.
 
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lugbolt

Well-known member

Equipment
ZG127S-54
Oct 15, 2015
5,214
1,899
113
Mid, South, USA
DPF/DOC tractors will also make fumes, but they're different fumes. You can't smell CO and CO2, the ash (from regen) does have an odor but it's an odd odor that's hard to describe. They say it's "harmless"-but I have my doubts. The guys I work with all smoke cigarettes and the cig smoke is far more "brash" smell to me than the DPF tractors are.