ELECTRICAL OR POSSIBLE COMPUTER PROBLEM

[EastTxZ]

I have an XR4145 that's had an intermittent electrical issue for months now. Sometimes when I turn the key the only thing I get on the panel is the red battery symbol and it won't start. When I wiggle a wire bundle under the dash it will usually restore power and work. Sometimes the opposite happens when shutting down and the motor won't die when turning the ignition off. Yesterday, the tractor quit suddenly and wouldn't start but was showing the same signs as usual. I traced the problem to two wires on a grounding bolt just forward of the firewall on the right side of the tractor. See pics for reference. I discovered that when I remove the wire on the right but ground the wire on the left, I get power back to the panel but the panel just shows a lot of gibberish, no recognizable numbers or codes and it will not start. The moment I ground the second wire (on the right), the panel goes dead again except for the red battery symbol. Because it died suddenly and hasn't done that in the past (in fact sometimes it won't shut down, as stated above) I'm thinking it may be the computer? I guess it could just be a broken wire inside the insulation. Has anyone experienced this and if so what was the fix?

 

[RSR]

When I was into my tractor wiring this past week, all black wires were consistently ground. I'm sure both of those wires should be grounded, and a nut just backed off the bolt. However, as to what is causing the problems when they are both grounded? I have no idea.

 

[ovrszd]

Modern computers are very sensitive to ground.

Maybe clean up the ground wires/terminal and put them back on tight. Unhook the battery. Touch the positive battery cable to the negative battery cable and hold them together for 15 seconds or more. This will reset the computer. Hook everything back up and see what you got.

Suspicion being a pulsing ground may have confused the computer.

 

[EastTxZ]

When I was into my tractor wiring this past week, all black wires were consistently ground. I'm sure both of those wires should be grounded, and a nut just backed off the bolt. However, as to what is causing the problems when they are both grounded? I have no idea.

Yes, the nut was a little loose when I found it, which may have caused the problem due to pulsing as suggested by ovrszd below.

 

[EastTxZ]

Modern computers are very sensitive to ground.

Maybe clean up the ground wires/terminal and put them back on tight. Unhook the battery. Touch the positive battery cable to the negative battery cable and hold them together for 15 seconds or more. This will reset the computer. Hook everything back up and see what you got.

Suspicion being a pulsing ground may have confused the computer.

Thanks ovrszd. I will give that a try.

 

[ovrszd]

Hope it works for ya. Trick my Son's taught me in regards to resetting computer.

 

[EastTxZ]

Well, no dice on that fix. Thanks for trying. I find it odd that I get power to the panel with one of those wires connected but the moment I ground the second wire everything dies butt he battery symbol.

 

[BertZegers]

Well, no dice on that fix. Thanks for trying. I find it odd that I get power to the panel with one of those wires connected but the moment I ground the second wire everything dies butt he battery symbol.

If you ground the second wire, a second circuit might draw current causing the battery light to come on ?? Could be all kinds of things.

Connect everything as it was supposed to. Than wiggle the wire till something happens (hopefully). Than start checking connections where the wiggling made a difference. Use a good flashlight and look for a discoloring of the wires at the connection points, discoloring is caused by heat=resistance. Is there a "fuse" wire? Is the battery charged? Safeties?
Do things work that are not computer related? Don't suspect the computer till you ruled out everything else.

 

[ovrszd]

If you ground the second wire, a second circuit might draw current causing the battery light to come on ?? Could be all kinds of things.

Connect everything as it was supposed to. Than wiggle the wire till something happens (hopefully). Than start checking connections where the wiggling made a difference. Use a good flashlight and look for a discoloring of the wires at the connection points, discoloring is caused by heat=resistance. Is there a "fuse" wire? Is the battery charged? Safeties?
Do things work that are not computer related? Don't suspect the computer till you ruled out everything else.

Good stuff right there.

Apply the K.I.S.S. principle. Your solution will be something simple.

 

[Walter L]

East it sounds like the problem is in your wire bundle under the dash , bad wire. I would take the cover off of the Wire bundle separate the wires and see if i could find the wire causing the problem and replace it.