187D 4wd not working

[Diesel-ME]

A friend of mine has a 187D FWD. His front wheels will not engage now. The 4WD lever turns the rod that goes into the transmission, but when you shift in to 4WD the front drive shaft does not turn. So, presumably, the problem is in the transmission area.

He's worried about the possibility of a rather large repair bill if he takes it to the dealer that has serviced this machine over the years. So I thought I'd cast out a few questions here to see if anyone here has dealt with similar issues on this machine. I was even thinking about helping him with this repair but I don't want to dedicate lots of time to this if it is going to invlove a massive tear down.

Any thoughts? Am I stating the problem well enough?

Thanks, paul

 

[normde2001]

If the drive shaft does not turn when the tractor moves, something is broken in the front differential. It works just like a rear differential.

 

[oldhippy]

You have to remove the cover on my front drive shaft to tell if it is turning or not. I would pull the center drain plug, if it has one and look to see what falls out. As Norm says if the shaft is not turning with tractor rolling then its broke. big dan

 

[Gjamtrac]

Usually when the YM187D loses the front wheel drive it is only because the rollpins in the driveshaft going from the transmission to the front axle have sheared off. You can easily replace the rollpins.
But I have seen a few times where the shift block on the end of the shift handle wears out and needs to be replaced, this involves splitting the tractor. While it is possible that the problem is inside the tranny, that would be quite rare. Start with the easiest first.
If you need a Parts Manual or a Service Manual, I can send them to you as well as any parts you may need.

 

[Diesel-ME]

Excellent advice - thanks guys!

If I get a chance to look at it this weeekend, I'll let you know what I find. I know one thing for sure, he's not gettng my help is this puppy needs to be split!

~paul