Backhoe Any L45 TLB owners out there with head gasket problems?

[m5040]

Over the weekend I went to see a Kubota L45 TLB for sale for a cheap price. On the pre run check, I found the radiator below the tubes, owner said no problem it has enough, he just had a new radiator put in. Test operated the machine, temp gauge came up so figured it was at least up to the sending unit. After I shut it off and opened the radiator cap, it was like letting air out of a tire, then some blackish fluid. After refilling the radiator to top and running the engine, the bubbles wouldn't stop. So it is at best a head gasket or cracked casting.
A friend of mine had the exact same problem on a John Deere 110 and after a head gasket and cyl head, he had to put in a short block, so even know it is a different brand engine, I wonder if the loader backhoe operation tends to over stress the engines on these small backhoes? It was supposedly used by a tree company, so I am sure it was worked to death even know it only had 2700 hours.
Any thoughts?

 

[sandyc]

Run don’t walk away unless it is a gift.

 

[Peter 315]

I'm guessing that the old radiator had a hole in it and the tractor overheated and blew the head gasket or cracked the head.....:2cents:

 

[m5040]

I'm guessing that the old radiator had a hole in it and the tractor overheated and blew the head gasket or cracked the head.....:2cents:

Thats the old question, what came first the chicken or the egg? Your theory sounds very plausible. But I was wondering if they couldn't stop it from overheating due to air pockets forming in the cooling system and threw in a radiator out of shear confusion, then when it didn't help, up went the for sale sign.

Thanks for your thought, you are probably correct.

 

[rScotty]

Thats the old question, what came first the chicken or the egg? Your theory sounds very plausible. But I was wondering if they couldn't stop it from overheating due to air pockets forming in the cooling system and threw in a radiator out of shear confusion, then when it didn't help, up went the for sale sign.

Thanks for your thought, you are probably correct.

Earlier you wrote, "I wonder if the loader backhoe operation tends to over stress the engines on these small backhoes?
Any thoughts?"

There's been a lot posted about the Kubota TLBs since they first came out over 15 years ago. I've followed them closely and don't remember any particular weaknesses. No, that's not quite true.... in the smallest sizes we had a few people post who had ground clearance problems with hoses. And in the larger sizes there is a on again/off again problem in a few machines where the backhoe swing didn't follow the lever properly. In fact our M59 did that about 8 years ago one afternoon. It would only swing one way for an hour ... but not before or since.

But that's about it. I'm not even sure how an engine could be overstressed with a loader & hoe. Those features are hydraulically driven, so working them as hard as you wish shouldn't affect the engine. All the Kubota TLBs use proven engines with plenty of cooling for the engine and a separate system for cooling the hydraulics. I don't like to run mine wide open because it makes it too jerky, but a lot of folks do prefer to run theirs wide open continuously - especially the guys who make a living with them. If there is a problem with continuous wide open operation it hasn't been mentioned by anyone I can recall.

We also haven't seen drivetrain or hydraulic or electric problems mentioned. Nor any clue as to engine life - or for that matter the life of any of the systems. But need to keep in mind that the oldest are only 15 or so years old. Something has got to wear eventually.

It's well known that the JD110 did have some design problems show up when it was used hard. People do tend to beat up their TLBs. We all know about those 110 faults by now. Still, the JD110 is just fine as long as the owner realizes they have some weaknesses to avoid - or at least don't force them into a situation and then beat on them. Maybe Kubota learned from that. Frankly I hoped that JD would refine their 110 instead of stopping production. Nifty tractors.

 

[m5040]

Ways you could stress the engine out are running at too low of an RPM and working the hydraulics hard. The diesel will try to do its best to make the torque and that may be occurring below its design envelope. Like lugging a truck down to near idle speed because you don't want to downshift. That is a lot of stress.
If you look in my area, there is another Kubota TLB with a blown head gasket for sale. Just FYI, that is 2 in two weeks that I have been shopping.

 

[Peter 315]

Where you looking on CL?......

 

[m5040]

Bookface, I took a quick look now and couldn't find it. It was the 20 series with a hardnose. If I come across it again, I will post it.

 

[rScotty]

Ways you could stress the engine out are running at too low of an RPM and working the hydraulics hard. The diesel will try to do its best to make the torque and that may be occurring below its design envelope. Like lugging a truck down to near idle speed because you don't want to downshift. That is a lot of stress.
If you look in my area, there is another Kubota TLB with a blown head gasket for sale. Just FYI, that is 2 in two weeks that I have been shopping.

Sure, it's possible to abuse any engine. But you'd have to have a diesel from back in the days before common injector rail design took over ... and and lug it down to close to stall speed to get any significant heat or stress. By then, those old separate injector diesels are rolling black smoke. So....yes you could. But I figured the original poster is talking about being somewhere near to normal usage. Most people won't work a diesel down close to stall speed; it gets noisy and stinky. Simply running somewhat below the torque curve will just give a little less hydraulic pressure, a lot less flow, and a slight increase in heating. IF the cooling has reserve capacity.

The OP wondered if the Kubota TLBs were designed with enough reserve cooling capacity or if these engines tended to overheat. From all the posts on TBN I'm saying there seems to be enough reserve cooling and they don't typically overheat. For your local 20 series TLB with a "blown head gasket" I'd say, "How do you know that?"

Do the Kubotas have the reserve cooling of our big commercial JD310 TLBs? No way... 310s have HUGE radiators.
Too bad the JD110 wasn't built to their own commercial standard.
rScotty

 

[m5040]

You ask how I know the 20 TLB had a blown headgasket, because the seller put it in his ad. The L45 was originally owned by a tree company, so untrained operators are possible. One thing I didn't mention on the L45 was what sounded like a leaking muffler, a somewhat raspy sound, not holding true for a 2012 design. Was the L45 equipped with a muffler/cat converter combo?

 

[m5040]

Since it sounded like the L45 had some kind of exhaust leak, I was thinking it might of had a catalytic convertor that got plugged up and caused the headgasket to leak.