fuses?

[rag]

I used the L3300 tractor yesterday to move huge hay bale, put it away. Over night it went to -23, normally we have to plug it in when it is that cold, so I did. 3 hours later tried it again. Absolutely nothing, no check lights on or glow plug, no sound. Went through the manual to make sure I have all the levers in the right place, all were good.
I put the charger on 3x for 30 min each, still no sound or lights. The charger sounded like it was working. The only thing I can think of that might make it start is to check the fuses but I can't find where they are on the tractor. Any help appreciated

 

[Magicman]

I have certainly never witnessed that kind of cold but my guess it that you have some moisture somewhere that has frozen and keeping a contact from making.

What does a volt meter say about the battery? I would rather test than throw ideas at a problem.

 

[rag]

I will test in the morning, too dark and cold right now. Thanks for the suggestion.
My husband passed away a month ago so now it is up to me to figure out the tractor problems.

 

[Magicman]

Please accept my condolences and do not be hesitant to ask. The only dumb questions are those not asked.

 

[Dave_eng]

I will post a page from the Owners' manual showing the fuse locations.

Since you say everything is not working, then it is possible the main fuse located near the alternator and marked with a green arrow is blown.
It is called a "Slow Blow" fuse and it supplies everything on the tractor.

Auto parts places sell them. They come in different colours so be certain to get the same green colour as you now have.

Note the reason the slow blow fuse can blow. Connecting a charger to the battery with the connections reversed might do it.

There are many Canadians on the forum so adding more info about where you live might mean someone is close enough to visit and help.

Dave

 

[Russell King]

First thing to do is verify the battery connections are good by removing them and cleaning them. The ground cable connection at the other (frame) end needs to be cleaned up also.

If that doesn’t fix it take the battery out and get it tested while you are buying the fuse. Hopefully the battery is easy to get out.

Remember to remove ground first and put on last. Basically just be safe.

 

[rag]

Thank you so much for suggestions. There are some small fuses in the bag with the manual but not like the one you are showing (green) . off to Napa I go tomorrow.
The battery was bought in 2019. I will check the terminals . I did clean off the ones that he had sticking out of the tractor in a fancy connection so he didn't have to go under the hood to connect .
I read in the manual which cable to take of and put back on first, even wrote it down.
I found a battery blanket that I might try along with some sort of plug that goes in for the engine to heat it. This tractor has always been so good at starting. . when it is warm. It sits out in the hay shed out of the wind.
I live near Winnipeg.. Oakbank.
Vic went on to this site every day and often told me stories of adventures with tractors and laughed.

 

[GeoHorn]

I suspect you may have a dead battery (maybe left the key on overnight? Or the battery was not fully charged and froze? Or..??)

Anyway, if you have NO lights or ANYTHING.... have you tried jump-starting it like you would a car? If you still get nothing... take that battery Out for testing as already suggested by Russell King. That slow-blow fuse should be tested also.

 

[Henro]

I suspect you may have a dead battery (maybe left the key on overnight? Or the battery was not fully charged and froze? Or..??)

Anyway, if you have NO lights or ANYTHING.... have you tried jump-starting it like you would a car? If you still get nothing... take that battery Out for testing as already suggested by Russell King. That slow-blow fuse should be tested also.

I would think if she still gets nothing after doing what you suggest Geohorn, that this would indicate the main fuse as more likely a possible problem, not the battery.

Another idea, take one battery terminal off and connect your jumpers to the other battery terminal and to the wire you removed. See if the lights come on then. If so, your battery is likely the problem.

 

[GeoHorn]

I would think if she still gets nothing after doing what you suggest Geohorn, that this would indicate the main fuse as more likely a possible problem, not the battery.

Another idea, take one battery terminal off and connect your jumpers to the other battery terminal and to the wire you removed. See if the lights come on then. If so, your battery is likely the problem.

It COULD or. MIGHT be the fuse... or it could be the ignition switch, or a broken wire, or a bad/corroded terminal or.... the list goes on...
I”m reminded of the time I was driving a “spare“ car I would leave at the airport because it was old but reliable. One day it wouldn’t start (no turn-over)....acted like the battery was dead. We jumped the battery from another running-car.... still no start... (it was daytime and the lights were not tried....but the horn would blow...convincing me that the battery was not the problem.)
This led us (all 3 of us were “mechanics” who should be able to diagnose such a simple problem) to decide it was a bad starter or solenoid. That Buick Skylark was low to the ground and parked in high-grass so we decided to rent a car and address it another day. Drove the 100 mile round trip, bringing back a new starter... still no start. Replaced the battery cables entirely...still no start. Each time another fully-charged battery was jumpered to the car for the start attempts.
Some passer-by-yay-hoo told us we had a bad battery, and of course we 3 “mechanics” (we all worked on aircraft in our day jobs) thought we had an idiot on our hands. I finally broke down and paid AAA to come get the car and tow it in (30 miles) and told them to call me when it was figured out, I had to get back to my day-job.
AAA called that next day saying it was fixed. All they did was install a new battery.
The OLD battery had two shorted cells that would pass current thru from the jumper-battery...but drew so much current itself that there was insufficient capacity to turn that engine over.
I had never before experienced a situation where a shorted-battery would short-circuit a jumping-battery.... but it darn sure did.
Not exactly THIS threads situation, but I’m provoked to consider that this may not be as simple as a blown fuse.... because if it IS a blown fuse....then bigger problems exist than that fuse! It blew for a reason.... that is likely still existing.
Just sayin’...

 

[rag]

Still no start on tractor today, only -12 right now so temp is not a factor. I put the battery charger on to the battery not just to the leads that had been installed. Did a quick charge and a trickle. The trickle charger said it was at 99% when it was connected straight to the battery. Battery is just a year old.
I took out the green slow fuse and checked it with a meter.. it is good. and the little bar that you see in the fuse is still intact.
The tractor doesn't get used alot, a little rototilling in summer and now the snow blower is on . In the fall when Vic was sick a neighbour came and put the snow blower on but I only got it to work one time , just the auger, I didn't know I had to have the rev up so it just dribbled snow out the shoot. Then after reading the manual about the rev I tried it but then nothing worked. The fellow that put the snow blower on came to see why it wasn't working and that is when we discovered nothing works. after trying the snow blower I did move a big bale, had some difficulty cause the last 2 bales just kept moving back into the shed. Finally stuck the forks down into the bale and moved it forward.
It almost seems now that it just needs to get a good jerk as if something is stuck. is that possible ? I think I might have been a bit rough trying to get the bale but it still worked fine.. till the next try to start.

 

[Henro]

Agree, there are many possibilities. But one step at a time is best I think.

(reply to geohorn’s post)

RAG, if you can, measure the voltage on the battery terminals( not the connections) when you try to start(or even try just the lights).

if the battery stay at proper voltage but nothing works, the problem is elsewhere. Solution will require step by step measurements.

 

[rag]

Success !! turns out the ground wire was at fault. We ( neighbour with a Kubota and I ) put a black to black battery cable to battery and raw metal on tractor and that started the tractor. For now we are doing a MacGyver till summer when we can get under the tractor to the plate the ground is presently attached to and probably corroded. The shop manual shows the ground goes to the bar that holds the battery in place, not to a plate with 3 bolts down the side and under , really hard to get to and even then not sure that is where it ends up.
Many thanks for all the suggestions .
I'll have to write this in the manual for next time tractor just quits. Write it down of I will forget.

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

Success !! turns out the ground wire was at fault. We ( neighbour with a Kubota and I ) put a black to black battery cable to battery and raw metal on tractor and that started the tractor. For now we are doing a MacGyver till summer when we can get under the tractor to the plate the ground is presently attached to and probably corroded. The shop manual shows the ground goes to the bar that holds the battery in place, not to a plate with 3 bolts down the side and under , really hard to get to and even then not sure that is where it ends up.
Many thanks for all the suggestions .
I'll have to write this in the manual for next time tractor just quits. Write it down of I will forget.

Excellent to hear you got it running...
Remember OTT in the future if you run into issues, there is a bunch of really good guys / gals on here that are always willing to help.

 

[Dave_eng]

You can always run a completely new ground cable and abandon the existing one.

Many owners run the battery ground to one of the starter mounting bolts.

Dave

 

[GeoHorn]

Rag, it would be good to keep in mind that an alternator can be damaged if the battery ground is removed while running. Since you have added a ground... do not disconnect your new ground with the tractor running until the original is repaired. (This is an unlikely action, but it occurred to me to mention it so you don’t inadvertently ruin your alternator.)

 

[Magicman]

For now we are doing a MacGyver till summer when we can get under the tractor

I would not wait. As mentioned above the alternator might be damaged plus with the battery not properly grounded, it's not being properly charged while the tractor is running either.

 

[Henro]

I would not wait. As mentioned above the alternator might be damaged plus with the battery not properly grounded, it's not being properly charged while the tractor is running either.

I am having trouble visualizing how a bad ground or even removing the battery while the engine was running would cause damage to the alternator...guess the alternator could be driven to maximize its output voltage by whatever control is system is in place, but still would not expect the alternator to self destruct. Just my gut speaking...

Little doubt that the battery would not charge though if the ground is bad...edit: unless the charging circuit connects to the battery terminals directly. I do not think that is so on either of my tractors...

 

[GeoHorn]

I am having trouble visualizing how a bad ground or even removing the battery while the engine was running would cause damage to the alternator...guess the alternator could be driven to maximize its output voltage by whatever control is system is in place, but still would not expect the alternator to self destruct. Just my gut speaking...

Little doubt that the battery would not charge though if the ground is bad...

The alternators will sense a low-voltage condition and overvolt which will shut down the regulator in the best scenario...and will burn-UP the regulator in about half the instances. Since the Kubota alts are internally regulated it means a replacement or overhaul must be accomplished. To better visualize this, simply keep your ignition switch ON and remove your battery ground cable a few times and it will become more convincing.

(I suspect this is what occurred to the previous-owner of my tractor and he covered it up by installing a new battery and selling the tractor to me., because a new aftermarket battery-ground cable is on the tractor. I (foolishly) did not take a VOM with me and check alternator output when I inspected it for purchase. (It started fine and ran all the lights fine and he’d removed the combination “fuel-low-level/charge-indicator” lamp so that a red warning light on the instrument cluster would not draw attention. In-fact, he didn’t just remove the lamp... he tossed the entire lamp/fixture! When I discovered the failed alternator a week later when it wouldn’t start and researched the Operator’s Manual which states the fuel low level indicator does double-duty as a ”no-charge” indicator, I opened up the cluster and discovered his subterfuge. I had to order the lamp-holder from my dealer... and “thank you” to Kubota for maintaining even small parts like this and not charging a fortune for it. ($8) I ordered a cheap aftermarket chin-ease alternator copy ($69) and installed it (still working fine after two years) and also found a cheap regulator-chip online ($18) and repaired the OEM and have it on the spares-shelf. That’s my story.).

 

[rag]

The key was out of the ignition while we added the additional ground wire. The fellow that helped was a maintenance mechanic for grass and snow machines for the city till he retired. Good man to know ( and I like his wife too) I will certainly keep in mind not to have the tractor on while doing any maintenance work.
GeoHorn .. sorry to hear a fellow Kubota owner was so devious.