5234d and 5254

[B964]

Anyone out there have a 5234d or the 5254? Thinking about going with one or the other with a 60 MMM. I am not a diesel person and am a litte worried about long term durabilty and repair costs.

 

[Tom_H]

Ed...When I was younger, I had some really bad experiences with diesel engines in cars. Later I found out that virtually all those engines were gasoline engines modified to act like diesel engines. Such things simply don't work well. Gasoline engines have a shorter piston stroke and burn more volatile fuel. This works well for sudden acceleration and high speed. Gasoline engines work wonders in dragsters and WWII P51 Mustang fighters (the Rolls Merlin version). Diesel engines have longer piston stroke and use a fuel oil which is not volatile, yields more therms of energy per unit of mass, and ignites under high pressure. A diesel engine is not designed for high acceleration. It is designed to deliver brute force at a constant rate. The earliest Caterpillar earth movers used gasoline engines. They really had a difficult time. When diesels came along, they got the real power they needed. This is why you find diesels in semi's, tractors, locomotives, & ships. When the army decided it wanted the M1 tank to be high mass and accelerate like a dragster, it turned to a turbine engine which gets 1 mi. per 2 gal. Diesels which are originally designed to work as diesels work WELL. They are LOWER maintenance than gasoline engines. Granted, they have higher tolerances on head gaskets/bolts & such, & require a mechanic who knows what he's doing, but a true diesel inside a machine that's designed for constant power instead of acceleration just beats a gasoline engine any day in its power, performance, maintenance, and especially endurance. Don't base your opinion of diesels on any previous car experience. Ask any trucker or farmer around. Check to see who makes the engine in the tractor you want & be sure it's a company that makes just diesels-TRUE diesels. Diesel engines are not best suited for cars, but in the same manner, gasoline engines are not best suited for tractors.

 

[JimR]

A diesel will outlast a gas motor any day of the week in any type of vehicle. It will use less fuel and delivery more power.

 

[B964]

Tom,
Thanks for the reply. I am not worried about diesel engine durablity in general, but the Brigs Vanguard in the Cub. I assume the diesel car engine you talking about is the mid 80's GM Oldsmobile v8, a gas 350ci converted to diesel(junk). I wonder if if this Brigs is a cob job engine or was designed to be a good engine. Did Brigs just throw together a diesel so they could offer one it the line up (like what GM did) or does it have a solid design background? You hit the nail on the head about having a knowegable person working on it, it makes all the difference no matter if its a engine or a dish washer!

 

[Tom_H]

Well Ed, my dad had one of the GM's. I was dumb enough to buy a Volkswagon diesel. That's 2 mistakes at once. Jim.. here's where I have to differ with you about "any vehicle". I babied this thing yet it still blew 3 head gaskets & cracked 2 blocks within 112k mi. I used a block heater in winter & always let the thing warm up 15 min. before driving. The stress of acceleration on auto diesels wears them; Using the engine & tranny to hold back the inertia of descending mountains is hard on that long bore & stroke (at least on this Volksy-I just couldn't keep the thing from winding the RPM's too high without riding the brake too). As auto drivers, most people are in too much of a hurry to wait for it to warm up. A diesel doesn't have the pickup for those zero to sixty bursts needed to enter the freeway without getting creamed. If diesels were best for cars, most cars would have them; same thing for airplanes. This is the same reason you don't see "real" tractors with gasoline engines. You need the right engine for the right machine.

Ed.. I'm sorry I don't know too much about the (Is it Brigs or Briggs as in Briggs & Stratton?) engine in the Cadet. I do know I don't think much of the Cub Cadet's cousins (MTD, etc.) & if it were me, I'd be lookin' for a horse, er sorry, make that a TRACTOR of a different color.

 

[sterlingtrucks]

If you can afford it get a diesel. The cub brand tractors are as good as any other color. For a fact if you do your homework the cub is a heavier tractor than the orange ones, when you compare alike tractors. If you buy a Cub you won't be disappointed. The diesel motor will last a very long time before any repairs will have to be done. Good luck on your tractor purchase.

 

[TBrown]

Ed, the diesel engine available in the Cub model you're referring to is not really made by Briggs, its "badge engineered". The manufacturer of that engine is Diahatsu, and its built in Korea, and sold under the Briggs name. Its a true diesel, not a modified gas motor. Simplicity is doing the same thing with their Legacy XL model, offering a Briggs diesel, but its the same situation.. the engine is actually a Diahatsu. I wouldn't be at all concerned with long term reliability.

 

[Ledgemere Farm]

I have had my Cub for 6 years. Knock on wood, it still runs just as nice today as it did the day the dealer dropped it off. If you want "e-this" and "e-that", spend a few extra g's on green or orange. If you want a tough, long lasting basic tractor, buy a CC.

 

[Tom_H]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I have had my Cub for 6 years. Knock on wood, it still runs just as nice today as it did the day the dealer dropped it off. ... If you want a tough, long lasting basic tractor, buy a CC. )</font>

That's good to hear. Sounds like CC may be better quality than some of the affiliated companies. My MTD garden tractor came from a competely different universe than my Kubota BX.