Max 28: No Start

[dadreier]

I am in the middle of a project to clear several acres of heavy brush and vines. All this week I have been using the Max 28 Hydro equipped with a Ratchet Rake and progressed rapidly until this afternoon.

Everything was going well until I decided to take a short break. I shut off the tractor and got a cold beverage. I returned to the tractor after about 20 minutes and when I turned the key, the starter did nothing. I quickly checked to see if all the levers/controls were in the correct position for starting: they were.

The battery seemed fine. Lights worked. Glow plug light came on/went off as usual. Fuses looked OK.

Since I had been moving the Max through the tall brush, I thought that I may have snagged and pulled off some safety interlock wiring somewhere. Crawled underneath, but didn't see anything obvious like a hanging wire (and I really know little at this point about what wires run where).

I definitely did not want to leave the tractor in the brush, so I did the old "pliers to starter" trick to bypass everything and the starter spun. I did it again with the key on and it fired up. Turned off the key and it again wouldn't start without the pliers on the starter.

Now the Max is in the barn and will at least be more convenient to work on. There's no troubleshooting section in the owner's book and I don't have a shop manual. Plenty of warranty left, but I'd rather not go that route for now, especially because I have a suspicion that I may have caused the problem myself while operating in the tangle of vegetation.

Any suggestions as to where to begin?

Dennis

 

[murphy1244]

start at the bottom of the Tractor for loose wires. and re check your safety switches.

 

[madmax12]

Check the position of the forward/reverse pedal. if not in "neutral", I've had that prob too.

 

[dadreier]

Murph: Will do.

madmax: After I got the tractor restarted, I did run it around a fair amount and went through several fwd/rev cycles without any change. I'll have to look, however, to see if the linkage took a hit from the bigger stuff I ran over.

Dennis

 

[madmax12]

Murph: Will do.

madmax: After I got the tractor restarted, I did run it around a fair amount and went through several fwd/rev cycles without any change. I'll have to look, however, to see if the linkage took a hit from the bigger stuff I ran over.

Dennis

This post sounds like you did get it restarted. For me, the HST pedal position was the issue. Once I found that, I have not had the problem since. Hope your solution is as simple.

 

[LAWALLSTRACTOR]

Murph: Will do.

madmax: After I got the tractor restarted, I did run it around a fair amount and went through several fwd/rev cycles without any change. I'll have to look, however, to see if the linkage took a hit from the bigger stuff I ran over.

Dennis

When it refuses to start again, wiggle the HST pedal a little while you have the key in the start position. If it then starts, you will probably have to adjust the safety switch on the HST pedal.

 

[flusher]

I ran into a similar problem yesterday when I tried to start my 2008 Mahindra 5525. I had been sitting outside for several weeks in the sun and blowing dust. I put the dinky little key into the ignition. The instrument panel lit up but I couldn't get the key far enough in to get the starter going. WD-40 sprayed into the keyhole, work the key in and out several times and it started right up. Don't know what Mahindra was thinking when they decided to used that el cheapo type ignition keyswitch. Something a lot more robust should have been used for a vehicle that spends it's life in relatively harsh conditions.

 

[dadreier]

Guys,

Thanks for the help. Your suggestions pointed me in the right direction and I just came in from the barn to tell the rest of the story.

The first thing I looked at under the tractor was the hydro pedal linkage. I saw that while the neutral safety switch itself and the wiring was OK, the part of the linkage assembly which pushes on the switch was bent at about a 45 degree angle, making it impossible to contact the switch. Apparently a piece of debris I drove over came up and did the damage.

It required some disassembly of the linkage and a little persuasion in a vise to get things aligned, but it turned out to be a relatively simple fix.

Dennis

 

[madmax12]

Guys,

Thanks for the help. Your suggestions pointed me in the right direction and I just came in from the barn to tell the rest of the story.

The first thing I looked at under the tractor was the hydro pedal linkage. I saw that while the neutral safety switch itself and the wiring was OK, the part of the linkage assembly which pushes on the switch was bent at about a 45 degree angle, making it impossible to contact the switch. Apparently a piece of debris I drove over came up and did the damage.

It required some disassembly of the linkage and a little persuasion in a vise to get things aligned, but it turned out to be a relatively simple fix.

Dennis

Cool! Glad you got it fixed easily. Thanks for giving us the rest of the story. :thumbsup:

 

[dismith550]

I posted a similar story for a Mahindra 3016 and got several suggestions I have tried to follow with no success. I cannot find a wiring schematic to see where the safety switches are. There are no wires attached to any part of the seat. I find no switch in the clutch linkage unless it is hidden way up in there somewhere. There is a switch on the I/O PTO lever - left side and I assume there is one in the yellow PTO on/off knob one must push down and turn to activate the PTO. Battery is OK per Auto Zone I watched him do it, replaced negative batt cable, cleaned - and + terminals. Flasher/4-ways work - bright, headlights don't work - nothing works but flashers, glow plug light/batt light/ no dash lights come on - Does anyone know where I can find a map of safety interlocks?, any ideas? I worked fine when I plowed snow - not deep 3-4 in max. next day it wouldn't start, then apparently made a connection and did start and I used it again for snow - now nothing. Checked F/R lever, put everything out of gear - it is a gear, not HST. Frustrated - PS it was enlightening to find out how easy the battery came out once I figured it out - looking for a similar miracle - service is 80 mi. away.
Thanks,

 

[dadreier]

Smith,

In my situation described above (where the hydro pedal interlock was damaged), I first checked to make sure the starter itself had not failed. To do this I bypassed all switches/wiring on the tractor and sent power directly from the battery to the starter.

Actually, I did it twice. First time with the key off, just to see if the starter would spin the engine. It did, so then I turned on the key, applied power, and it fired right up.

I hesitate to describe exactly how I got power directly to the starter because although it is an extremely simple operation, there are serious safety considerations to be contemplated whenever the interlocks are taken out of the picture (think tractor starting and running over mechanic). If you are not already familiar with this procedure, maybe you have someone close by who is.

One other thought that comes to mind is that I once had intermittent electrical gremlins on a machine which was stored outside (not the 28). When I finally got to the bottom of this, it turned out to be that critters had chewed the wiring in various places.

 

[Redneck in training]

I posted a similar story for a Mahindra 3016 and got several suggestions I have tried to follow with no success. I cannot find a wiring schematic to see where the safety switches are. There are no wires attached to any part of the seat. I find no switch in the clutch linkage unless it is hidden way up in there somewhere. There is a switch on the I/O PTO lever - left side and I assume there is one in the yellow PTO on/off knob one must push down and turn to activate the PTO. Battery is OK per Auto Zone I watched him do it, replaced negative batt cable, cleaned - and + terminals. Flasher/4-ways work - bright, headlights don't work - nothing works but flashers, glow plug light/batt light/ no dash lights come on - Does anyone know where I can find a map of safety interlocks?, any ideas? I worked fine when I plowed snow - not deep 3-4 in max. next day it wouldn't start, then apparently made a connection and did start and I used it again for snow - now nothing. Checked F/R lever, put everything out of gear - it is a gear, not HST. Frustrated - PS it was enlightening to find out how easy the battery came out once I figured it out - looking for a similar miracle - service is 80 mi. away.
Thanks,

I have TYM 330. I think that is identical tractor like your Mahindra. My is HST though. There is black box under the dash that gets all the iterlocks and then enables the starter. I don't know it also operates the headlamps but it is conencted to the dash. It failed and I had to replace it. I paid about 120 USD for it. Attached are testing instructions.

 

[dismith550]

Smith,

In my situation described above (where the hydro pedal interlock was damaged), I first checked to make sure the starter itself had not failed. To do this I bypassed all switches/wiring on the tractor and sent power directly from the battery to the starter.

Actually, I did it twice. First time with the key off, just to see if the starter would spin the engine. It did, so then I turned on the key, applied power, and it fired right up.

I hesitate to describe exactly how I got power directly to the starter because although it is an extremely simple operation, there are serious safety considerations to be contemplated whenever the interlocks are taken out of the picture (think tractor starting and running over mechanic). If you are not already familiar with this procedure, maybe you have someone close by who is.

One other thought that comes to mind is that I once had intermittent electrical gremlins on a machine which was stored outside (not the 28). When I finally got to the bottom of this, it turned out to be that critters had chewed the wiring in various places.

I know how to jump to the battery but since the panel lights don't come on - I'm thinking along the lines of critters also. My fuel gauge quit working last spring, after the tractor sitting under a tarp with intermittent use during the winter. Can you refer me to a source for a service manual? My nearest trustworthy dealer is about 80 miles. I'm thinking something in the ignition assembly well hidden within a plastic cowl that mice could get to easily. As mentioned, I cannot find any safety interlocks except PTO i/o lever - plunger seems to work properly, and yellow PtO on/off button that engages PTO after lever is placed in "I" position. Thanks for your suggestions, I'm determined to work it out and I'll post solution as soon as I find and fix the problem. Thanks again, Go UK Wildcats!!

 

[dadreier]

Smith,

I agree that it is less likely that the starter itself is at fault, given the other symptoms indicated. I'd still try "jumping to the battery" as part of the early analysis. It would be good to know what, if anything, changes once the tractor is running. For example, will the dash lights still be out?

If nothing else, a running tractor would enable you to tackle any "must do" chores until you sort things out and get back to regular starting.

Regarding a service manual: I've so far not found any online source for anything other than a print version. I have also noted that online dealers have priced the printed service manual for the 28 at only a few dollars more than the rather thin owner's manual that comes with the tractor. That makes me question just how comprehensive are the Mahindra manuals for these Mitsu-built tractors. Maybe somebody else could comment on if the manuals are a good value.

 

[dismith550]

Thank you for taking the time to respond and to give me some additional clues to think about. Yesterday I ventured forth and took the cowls under the steering wheel off and eventually got the dash off - nothing like working on a Ford 640. When the cowl came loose, some hickory nuts fell out. Clustered around the hydraulics tubing cluster, was a pocket of perhaps 15 hickory nuts along with other stuff - no wires here except for switch. Once the dash came loose I found a mouse's nest the size of a softball all snugly encased by the dash hump - lots of wires here. In one harness leading from a plug/socket approx. 5/8 in. X 2", there were about 12-15 wires leading from various places to spots behind the dash face. Of the wires there, five (5), f-i-v-e! were gnawed through. I'm going to splice the cut wires with butt connectors and I believe I can find out if I am successful prior to actually putting the dash back together. It took a good hour of effort to get the dash apart and I'm guessing a couple more hours to splice the wires, test it, and reassemble it. I'm still looking for gnawed places - I had to quit due to darkness and to watch KY lose to Uconn . If my splices do not work, I found a place online in TX where I can buy wiring harness, however, I've never tried to attach wires to a dash face - I hate the thought of having to pay a dealer hundreds of dollars.
OEM Parts
They are outrageously high ($54.00 for a negative battery cable like I paid $8 to Auto Zone.) I'll repost my success when I get back from doing some fishing in Lake Cumberland.
Thanks again.

 

[dadreier]

Smith,

Congrats on your discovery. Nice to know that it wasn't because the tractor was poorly made or because you did something improperly.

On the other hand, I feel your pain on the repair situation. My voracious animals were so determined to remove as much wiring as possible that I had to indeed pay hundreds of dollars to a dealer to get everything functioning again.

I was able to "solve" my critter problem by selling the machine they found so tasty, but that was really because I no longer needed something of that size.

 

[jimpen]

You should be able to buy the flat or round connectors (not sure which it would be) and spools of wiring at any Auto Zone. The harness would probably be easier, but if you can install fog lights you can probably do the rewiring yourself.

I'd also probably throw a block of mice poison in the mouse hole.

 

[Gravlore]

I have a Mahindra 3016 that would start at what it seemed when it felt like it. I would stop it to hook up the PTO and then could not start it. This happened about 2 weeks ago and last night. I read the usual threads about fuses and PTO safety switches but I had no idea about the FWD/REVERSE safety. I looked underneath and shoved a door shim in there cause a lot of pressure against the switch and sure enough the POS started. I have bled about a pint of blood trying to fit my big hands under every nook of that tractor trying to find the problem but sure enough it was a safety switch. Thanks to those who posted this fix for those of us who have manuals that are more picture books than a source for a solution.