L245 Starting Problem

[John146]

My L245 that I bought in 1977 just stopped running. It sounded like it was out of fuel but I had a full tank. I changed the fuel filer and tried to start it again. It will turn over but it will not start. Troubleshooting tips and advice will be appreciated.

 

[85Hokie]

My L245 that I bought in 1977 just stopped running. It sounded like it was out of fuel but I had a full tank. I changed the fuel filer and tried to start it again. It will turn over but it will not start. Troubleshooting tips and advice will be appreciated.

Fuel pump? Injector Pump? If you turn the key with the fuel filter loose, does it squirt diesel ? Crack an injector, does it squirt out?

 

[Daren Todd]

Had an issue like that with mine a few months back. Pops had it running, idled it down and had it quit. Ended up being the metering rod that controls how much fuel goes thru the injection pump. The first thing is to crack the lines at the injectors and verify when you crank it wether or not your getting fuel like 85hokie suggested. And work back to the injection pump. May be a clogged injector line. Which disconnecting the lines and hitting with an air chuck can cure. You can disconnect the lines from the injection pump and then loosen the ports that the lines attach too and this will allow fuel to free flow thru the injection pump. It will allow any crud inside the pump to flow out. Then tighten the ports back up. I was getting a little fuel thru the injector lines but wasn't enough to allow it to fire. Inside the inspection cover on the injection pump you will see a rod going the lengh of the pump. Has a spring attached to each end. The right side spring connects to the throttle linkage. The left side attaches to the pump and draws the rod back when the throttle is backed off. Mine wasn't moving when the throttle was moved. Had to work the rod back and forth after hitting it with some wd40 to get it to free up. You may have had a spring let loose in there as well. Keep us posted on what you discover

 

[Russell King]

Since you changed the filter did you bleed the fuel lines? There would be quite a bit of air in the filter (I am assuming a spin on filter like my L185 has)

There are two vents on the system that will allow air to escape. First is on the top of the filter housing. Loosen 2 to 3 turns. When bubbles stop, close the vent. The second vent is on top of the injection pump. Do same process as with first vent.

 

[John146]

Thanks to all of you who replied to my request for help. I followed up on your advice and found the following:

Fuel Filter and injection pump input line - OK - diesel fuel bleeds freely without air.

Injector line to Injectors loosened at Injectors - no diesel bleeding out when engine is being cranked.

Took all three Injector lines off of the Injector Pump and shot air through them. All OK

Replaced lines and with lines loose at Injector Pump output cranked the engine again. - No diesel fuel coming out of the lines.

It appears the the Injector Pump is bad. Is is hard to repair or should it be replaced. Is there a procedure I can use to repair it?

Thanks again for your help.

 

[Daren Todd]

May be the rod inside the inspection cover on injection pump. Theres a couple of springs that are hooked to it. If you pull the 4 bolts and remove the inspection cover you can see into the side of it. If you work the throttle back and forth you should see the rod sliding right and left. That rod controls the amount of fuel going through the pump. If it's not moving, then you should carefully be able to manually move it back and forth with a flat screw driver catching the end of it. There are a series of springs attached between the rod, the throttle, the crank case cover, and the injection pump. Might be something as simple as one of those springs coming loose and shutting off your fuel. You can get a service manual at www.kubota.servicemanualvault.com I...hen you know the injection pump is turning :)

 

[John146]

I checked the rod and it moved easily. I also checked the tach cable for rotation. It was rotating so I assume the Injection Pump is turning over. Still no diesel flow out to the Injectors. Have you ever taken the Injection Pump apart to repair it? Is this a difficult job? Should I have an expert do it? I can't find a procedure to rebuild it on the web. The Shop Manual I have does not really deal with rebuilding it. The shop manual I have is the I&T Shop Service manual for my Kubota (L245). It also covers a few other models but does not go into detail like the service manuals I have had for my trucks, cars & Scag mower. I'm not a mechanic so I need detailed instructions when I repair complicated items.

 

[Daren Todd]

I haven't removed the one on my tractor. Only done on john deeres and all they r is 4 bolts and a nut and a piece of key stock. These are a little more in depth. Disconnect the injector lines at the injection port. And then loosen the ports that the lines connected too. There is a spring in it so be careful not to lose the guts. By loosening them up it will allow fuel to free flow through the pump. It may be air locked. Or it could have a bunch of crud in it blocking the fuel ports. I did that to mine when i was having the starting issues. Got a big glob of diesel boogers out of it and actually a few pieces of grass. not sure how that got in there. After you bleed the ports, make sure and tighten them back down, leave the injection lines off and crank it over to see if it will spurt fuel. And actually it wouldn't be a bad idea to crank it over and see if it spurts fuel before you loosen the ports. When you reinstalled the injector lines, you may not have cranked it long enough to fill the lines with fuel. I'll look at my service manual and see what it has to say bout the injection pump

 

[Daren Todd]

Just went and looked at mine. I only have to two cylinder in my tractor, but the injection pump is part of the block. I got 4 bolts on the top of the injection pump to pull the ports. Plus the inspection cover. If you have to remove the shaft you would have to pull the crank case cover. You may get lucky and just have to remove and rebuild the ports if the bleeding doesn't fix the issue. Do you have a parts manual for your tractor? You can get one at www.kubotabooks.com. and with it being a pdf file you can expand the picture and see exactly what goes into it for parts and what goes where

 

[Daren Todd]

just looked at the parts manual for your tractor. looks like you can remove the bolts that hold the ports, and it will slide out in one piece. if the bleeding doesn't work then you can remove the port assembly and take it to a reputable injection pump specialist and see if the can rebuild it. while it's out it would be a good idea to check the shaft and make sure it's not broke, or signs of abnormal wear. here's the part number for the injection pump assembly 15321-51010

 

[D2Cat]

John 146, before you go to removing you IP I would suggest some patience. You indicated you had fuel at the output of your IP but not at the end of the fuel line at the injectors.

You opened the bleed screw at the new filter and left it open until fuel ran out? Close that screw and go to the IP where the fuel line attaches. Open that bleed screw and let fuel drip. Tighten the screw after you get a good flow of fuel. During this procedure you do not need to turn the engine over. Just gravity doing the work! NOW BEFORE YOU DO THIS MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A GOOD FUEL SUPPLY IN YOU TANK

Next loosen the three nuts holding the fuel line onto the injectors. Now use your starter to turn the engine over. Have the throttle lever set for full throttle. Let engine spin for 30-40 seconds. Let engine set for 30 seconds (this lets the starter cool so you don't destroy it during your time of frustration). The another cycle of 30-40 seconds, wait another cycle. By the forth cycle you should see some fuel start to bleed from a line, then another then soon the third.

When you have fuel from all three lines tighten the nuts at the injectors. At this point your engine will ignite!

If you end up needing a IP do not send your to a shop. I can tell you where you can purchase a new one with out a core at about 1/2 what Kubota wants for one delivered to you door. You have to remove the two nuts and two studs at the top of the IP lift it out, replace the shims off your old pump onto you new pump and reinstall. I don't think your pump is kapoot just yet.

 

[John146]

My old tractor is running again. I took the day off yesterday to spend time with my grand kids and daughters. I started experiencing sudden death symptoms while driving my truck on the interstate 2 years ago. My wife managed to get me to the emergency room and I died outside before they could wheel me in. Thanks to the Good Lord, the Emergency Room staff were able to shock me back to life. Now I appreciate every day and look forward to being with my family and friends.

Thanks again to all of you who took time to offer advice to a stranger. Here are the steps I took this morning to get it running again. (They are all covered in D2Cat’s recommendation above with one extra step (#5):

1. First be patient (thanks D2Cat)
2. Make sure that you have a good fuel supply in tank.
3. Bled the fuel filter again. Opened bleed screw on the side of the top of
the fuel filter and tightened it when steady stream of diesel fuel with
out air bubbles came out.
4. Bled the injection pump again. Opened bleed screw on the side of the
injection pump and tightened it when steady stream of diesel fuel with
out air bubbles came out.
5. Pull out the decompression know to allow the engine to turn over easily.
6. Loosen the three nuts holding the fuel lines onto the injectors.
7. SET THE THROTTLE LEVER FOR FULL THROTTLE.
8. Turn your engine over letting the engine spin FOR 30 SECONDS.
9. LET THE STARTER COOL for 30 seconds. (As D2Cat mentioned this will
keep you from destroying it during your time of frustration)
10. Then repeat steps 8 & 9 while watching for fuel bleeding from the
injector input line. By the fourth cycle you should see fuel starting to
bleed from a line, then another then soon the third.
11. When you have fuel bleeding from all three lines tighten the nuts at the
injectors.
12. At this point your engine should start.

 

[D2Cat]

John 146, glad you got it going. I appreciate knowing you a little better. I kinda thought there might ought to be a colon between the 4 and the 6!! Now I know.