Kubota stuck in neutral?

[Kubota L3350]

Per my login name, I have a Kubota L3350. I parked it the other day to use the backhoe and when I got back in the drivers seat to drive away, the tractor would not move. I tried the shuttle shift forward and reverse, high and low range, and several gears, but nothing happens when I let out the clutch. It seems to be stuck in neutral. I took the seat off and the cover plate off around the shifter. Nothing appears out of place. My next idea is to unbolt the shifter from the top of the transmission. Any guidance would be appreciated.

 

[irwin]

Mmmm... is this a high hour machine? and is the transmission a forerunner to the glide shift?
Check the trans fluid level, check linkages, check clutch free play. A service manual will be a big help.

 

[AKfish]

When shifting the transmission/range levers do you hear gear noise from the transmission? As in - the lever and linkage are still a working unit?

Something working one minute and not working a minute later... a cotter pin or linkage arm came loose...

Does the tractor have a hydraulic activated clutch? Fluid reservoir OK? If you lost all your fluid - line or coupling fail - the clutch may not be engaging.

Best of luck.

AKfish

 

[Egon]

Can the high low range lever get placed in a middle position so no gears are engaged. Possibly lever slipping on shaft?

Can you move the machine forward or back using the hoe?

Lift rear wheals off the ground with the stabilizers and in two wheel drive try turning the rear wheels with the transmission in neutral or in a gear?

Note: not being a mechanic the above are all guesses that a fellow like me would try before calling the mechanic!

 

[Uncle Doug]

My L3000 one time while still under waranty had a similar issue. It turned out to be some kind of sensor I think. (its been a few years). I had to load it up and haul it down to the dealer. Fixed at no cost.

 

[tommu56]

does the pto drive (not just coast with transmission)?
is there any back presure on the clutch other than the return spring if any ?

tm

 

[Kubota L3350]

Tractor is a 1993 with 970 hours, which I expect would be considered low hours.

The pto is working fine to run the backhoe. The engine starts and runs normal.

When I let the clutch out there is a clear change in the sound of the engine as if the clutch is engaging.

We did move the machine forward a little bit with the hoe.

I don't hear anything when moving the shifter. I did not hear any sort of grinding or unusual sounds during operation.

I plan to work on it tomorrow. Appreciate all your feedback. Let me know if there are any other ideas.

 

[rbargeron]

Hydraulic shuttle or mechanical? (i.e. do you push in the clutch pedal before changing direction?) If hydraulic, check the fluid and the linkages for the lever and pedal.

The L3350 came out in 1985. In 1991 the L3350 and L3750 were replaced by the L4350. The L3 models were sold from 1984 thru 1998, including models from L3350 to L5450. Great machines with very low incidence of failures. There's probably nothing very serious wrong with it. Does the high-low range shift lever/linkage feel normal with notches for low, neutral, and high?

 

[Kubota L3350]

The tractor has a lever on the steering column for switching between forward and reverse. Only need to use the clutch to change gears. I was told it was a 1993, but it seems that it may be a little older. I will make the checks you suggested this afternoon. Thanks.

 

[tommu56]

Are you sure the backhoe is pto powered you might have power beyond on tractor?

The power beyond would pick hydraulics from the loader circuit and feed the hoe.

The pto driven would have a pump on the output shaft on the back of the tractor and a separate tank on hoe and you would have to keep pto in gear to run hoe.

Check the linkage back to rear from each lever to were it go's in to rear axle and make sure they move to that point.
tom

 

[rbargeron]

The tractor has a lever on the steering column for switching between forward and reverse. Only need to use the clutch to change gears. I was told it was a 1993, but it seems that it may be a little older. I will make the checks you suggested this afternoon. Thanks.

Is this tractor a new acquisition? Has the backhoe been with it a long time? I'm wondering about the condition of the hydraulic fluid. The older L3 has an orifice valve inside the cowl that controls the speed of the shuttle function - 3 settings for cold, average, or hot climates. It would perhaps act up if the fluid got dirty - or, if some water got in there it could freeze - was it cold when you've tried it? If the shuttle doesn't pressure up, there's no drive to the wheels. The pto would still work - it has a separate clutch disk.

 

[Kubota L3350]

The tractor is a new aquisition as of last weekend. Of course the problem occured during the first use after unloading it from the trailer. I think the tractor missed the former owner. The backhoe has been with the tractor a long time and it has it's own reservoir and hydraulic pump that runs off the pto.

In any event, I was successful in fixing it today. When we unbolted the shifter off the top of the transmission, I found a pin at the bottom of the shallow oil pan. The pin had fallen out when I was in neutral using the backhoe. I suspect the trailering to my house rattled the pin enough for it to fall out shortly after. We put the pin back in and anchored it so it won't have an opportunity to fall out again. After three attempts at aligning the shifter, we finally got it in the right place and re-assmebled everything. It's back to normal now. Thank you all for your help. Hope the solution will help someone else in the future.

Darin

 

[irwin]

I love to hear about the happy ending(s) Thanks for letting us know and I'm glad it wasn't serious...

 

[rbargeron]

I love to hear about the happy ending(s) .........

Me too! Glad the L3350 is healthy - good job Darin !

 

[Egon]

Good show!

 

[AKfish]

Bravo! That's very good news!

Thanks for posting the info regarding how things turned out for you. That helps other users if/when they have a similar problem.

AKfish