Fuel line shortage

Srb08 · May 30, 2013

Two weeks ago my dealer picked up my 4530 to replace a leaking fuel line and fix a number of other problems. The repairs were supposed to take a week at the outside.
It's been two weeks. The dealer is waiting on fuel lines from Mahindra, who doesn't have any.
I've never had any issues with parts in the past. Has anyone else had issues getting parts from Mahindra?
I would think that a fuel line would be a pretty common part.

3930dave · May 30, 2013

I know that in the light vehicle (on-road) market, many manufacturers have priced their steel lines out of the market, as in sky-high. Not sure if this is just greed, or a reflection of storage/handling costs (long ackward lines), or both.

Any competent/experienced mechanic should be able to hand form a fuel line for you from bulk line pretty quickly. If you are anxious to get back in the field, even something roughly scabbed in (safely) can get you back working while they get their act together on the OEM part.

Light vehicle manufacturers do a pretty good job of bankrupting their parts suppliers; I'm guessing that practice is not unknown in the tractor world.

Rgds, D.

Srb08 · May 30, 2013

The mechanic from the dealership said he could make one but the owner of the dealership wanted to use OEM parts. The tractor only has 29 hrs on it.

seaneastok · May 30, 2013

Let me guess it was the low pressure line from the injector pump back to the tank ? Mine failed and started leaking at about 50 hrs.My dealer said that they have had a bunch of them fail.The replacement line was a heavy wall steel braided line instead of the plastic one that came factory. Had it not been for the warranty I would have cut the steel part with the banjo bolt off and put in a good quality line on with a few hose clamps and been done with it..Just curious as to what the other problems are you are having ?
Regards
Sean

Srb08 · May 30, 2013

Engine oil leak, coolant leak, tractor will not shift into second gear and hydraulics are leaking down. The instrument cluster was replaced the first week I had it.

seaneastok · May 31, 2013

Wow...Sorry to hear that..The only problems I have had is the seat bolts came loose and I had to bolt it back down, used lock washers this time like they should have used from the factory. Sound's easy enough but it was actually more of a chore than I expected. And the leaking fuel line that was replaced under warranty. I have about 65 hrs on the clock and so far love the machine. Hopefully the dealer will get you fixed up ..

3930dave · May 31, 2013

Srb08 said:
The mechanic from the dealership said he could make one but the owner of the dealership wanted to use OEM parts. The tractor only has 29 hrs on it.

For commercial use I'd want either a temporary line installed until their parts logistics group gets it's act together, or a loaner tractor for the same time period. Many people can't afford the downtime.

Rgds, D.

Srb08 · May 31, 2013

3930dave said:
For commercial use I'd want either a temporary line installed until their parts logistics group gets it's act together, or a loaner tractor for the same time period. Many people can't afford the downtime.

Rgds, D.

I don't use the tractor every day. I live on 160 acres but don't farm other than food plots. The tractor is used for general maintenance around the property and processing firewood. I only put around 100hrs a year on a tractor.
If I used and needed it on a daily basis, I'd be making a bit more of a ruckus with the dealer. The dealer has been great, he has been very responsive to my problems. It's about a 1.5 hr drive, one way, from the dealer to me and the dealer has never balked at sending a tech out to work on the tractor or come pick it up.

3930dave · May 31, 2013

Srb08 said:
I don't use the tractor every day. I live on 160 acres but don't farm other than food plots. The tractor is used for general maintenance around the property and processing firewood. I only put around 100hrs a year on a tractor.
If I used and needed it on a daily basis, I'd be making a bit more of a ruckus with the dealer. The dealer has been great, he has been very responsive to my problems. It's about a 1.5 hr drive, one way, from the dealer to me and the dealer has never balked at sending a tech out to work on the tractor or come pick it up.

Sounds like a good dealer, and that he is doing the best he can to address your issues - can't really expect more than that. I don't know your model, but with any luck at all, once these teething issues settle down you should end up with a solid machine that you can use for many years.

True or not, this thread had me thinking about what Cat's service level commitment was reputed to be, back when the world in general moved at a slower pace than today. Pretty well anywhere on the planet, they'd deliver a part within 48 hours. That service level is not cheap, but if you are going for high up-times in a critical industrial application in an out of the way place, it is just another line item at the end of a quarter.

Here's hoping the fuel line elves are working overtime on the next production run ! :thumbsup:

Rgds, D.

Srb08 · Jun 12, 2013

I finally got the tractor back last Thursday, almost three weeks in the shop. The fuel line was replaced, hydraulic line O ring was replaced, shift linkage adjusted and coolant leak fixed. Fri morning I went to the shop and found a puddle of fuel on the floor. Started looking around and found that both Banjo bolts on the new fuel line were leaking.
The tech came out yesterday and replaced all of the copper washers on the fuel line.
So far, so good, as of this morning nothing leaking.
This weekend I'm planning on moving a bunch of rock and grading the road, so we'll see.
I sure hope things are finally sorted out, this has been very frustrating.