Help! Kubota went for a swim!

[breez3]

Hired help left tractor in gear and it rolled into pond. Submerged for 1/2 the day, we finally pulled it out of the water. Had to repair some electrical, starter, fluids drained & replaced. Hydraulic fluid is pouring from out of the front axle. Usually milky and thick, it will goop out the most when turning the tractor. Looks like it is coming from the steering box. Do I need to replace this component or are the seals just bad & needs to be rebuilt? What else do I need to do to get this tractor right again? It did have a small fluid leak before being in the pond, but worse now. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[atgreene]

Hired help left tractor in gear and it rolled into pond. Submerged for 1/2 the day, we finally pulled it out of the water. Had to repair some electrical, starter, fluids drained & replaced. Hydraulic fluid is pouring from out of the front axle. Usually milky and thick, it will goop out the most when turning the tractor. Looks like it is coming from the steering box. Do I need to replace this component or are the seals just bad & needs to be rebuilt? What else do I need to do to get this tractor right again? It did have a small fluid leak before being in the pond, but worse now. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Drain everything and start over. Change all fluids, including front end/trans axle, lower units etc..... Also change the air filter. Turn it over by hand first with a wrench on the front of the crank shaft to be sure there is no water trapped in the pistons.

Worry about the leaks later, get the water out and the fluids changed first. Change the fluids again after you get it up and running. Should be ok otherwise.

 

[art]

It might take a oil change or two to get it cleaned out and as much as I dislike cheap oils for a normal change don't worry about using a cheap oil and filter for the initial change that will maybe amount to five hours of running to get the water rinsed out!

The second change out get back to the good stuff! There will still be some nore left but not enough to hurt the good oil till your next change.

 

[mustangsallysdad]

Warm front axle and fluids being dunked into the cooler water created a vacuum which allowed the seals to be breached. I would think they will be okay after a fluid change and some operation to bring the fluids and seals back up to normal operating temperature.

 

[sweettractors]

After you get it cleaned out, Sell it. It will continue to dog you with problems for eternity. Ken Sweet

 

[TripleR]

Gotta agree with Ken on this one, been there and done that with a John Deere. We eventually replaced the whole dash and the engine blew a few months later. It spent a LOT of time in the shop over the years.

 

[rjkobbeman]

My initial thought was the engine. Did it suck in water and lock up? I assume the engine was running when it entered the pond.

 

[breez3]

Engine was not running when it went into the pond. We've already drained and flushed the oil and other fluids. It does run, just leaking worse than ever.

 

[dougtrr2]

Once you get the fluid situation sorted out don't overlook the electrical. You need to take apart every connection and clean them out. That is one reason if a car has been through a flood it is supposed to be shown on the title. The electrical problems won't come up right away, the connections will just slowly corrode overtime. Would be best to sell it, but then you would be morally obligated to let the new owner know what happend, and hope he doesn't read this board.

Take Care
Doug in SW IA

 

[CHDinCT]

One question - does ya have insurance?

 

[rjkobbeman]

After you get it cleaned out, Sell it. It will continue to dog you with problems for eternity. Ken Sweet

There you have it! Sweettractors will take it off of your hands!

He, he, he!

 

[sweettractors]

There you have it! Sweettractors will take it off of your hands!

He, he, he!

No thanks, We have a local dealer (so called) that brought in dozens water damaged tractors that had been pressured off and fluids changed. He bought them for next to nothing from the Insurance companies in the upper Mississippi flood plain about 10 years ago and then sold them for full retail. I seen enough then, that it made me sick. Ken Sweet

 

[Kevin M]

Try throwing some ATF with the first oil change , had some milky oil in the trans axle of my ford 1910 and it seemed to help pull the water out , I put a couple quarts in mine ran it to warm it up. Then dropped and put In fresh oil. I don't know about the motor , but try it in the rears and trans

 

[breez3]

Engine was not running when it went into the pond. We've already drained and flushed the oil and other fluids. Don't think pistons were affected at this point. It does run, just leaking worse than ever. I'm in the process of securing wiring, etc. Tractor runs a little rough, but still running Is it possible that the gear box could leak? We have to put 5 g. of fluid in just to move it across the pasture and back. It just pours out of the box.

 

[TripleR]

Once you get the fluid situation sorted out don't overlook the electrical. You need to take apart every connection and clean them out. That is one reason if a car has been through a flood it is supposed to be shown on the title. The electrical problems won't come up right away, the connections will just slowly corrode overtime. Would be best to sell it, but then you would be morally obligated to let the new owner know what happend, and hope he doesn't read this board.

Take Care
Doug in SW IA

I just spent several thousand dollars I didn't have to when I recently traded in a Case CX80 by telling my salesman these exact words, "If it was any good, I would keep it." I told him all that was wrong with it and got very little on trade in. Sometimes doing the right thing hurts, but we all sleep better when we do it.

 

[breez3]

insurance doesn't inc. tractor

 

[irwin]

Engine was not running when it went into the pond. We've already drained and flushed the oil and other fluids. Don't think pistons were affected at this point. It does run, just leaking worse than ever. I'm in the process of securing wiring, etc. Tractor runs a little rough, but still running Is it possible that the gear box could leak? We have to put 5 g. of fluid in just to move it across the pasture and back. It just pours out of the box.

If all you have to do is replace the steering gearbox and you have a usable tractor... you got off light.. First isolate where the leak is on the gearbox and see if it's repairable, might be one blown out seal... $20.00?

I'm assuming you drove it enough to know if the transmission is operating properly? Like others have said, clean the electrical connections.. I'd put dielectric grease in all pigtail and harness connectors. Replace all filters... You might have water/debris trapped in your fuel system somewhere. Then, repair the leak.

 

[breez3]

Trans shifting fine. Sounds like I'm on the right track! Actually drove it around for about 20 minutes today and it shifted fine. Thanks to everyone for the quick responses! I'll be back if I run into any problems.

 

[Dargo]

I shall make no derogatory comment...

 

[Ken45101]

I shall make no derogatory comment...

Ahh! The dangers of a zero turn near a pond

Ken