John Deere 990 problem

[cz452guy]

My dad bought a brand new JD 990 a few years back. Has anyone else heard of a problem with this tractor due to the design of the fuel tank?

Last year I was mowing some brush on the side of a hill side, involving a lot of forward and backing up sideways on the hill. The hill wasn't all that steep, but after a short while the tractor died. We couldn't figure what was going on. It seemed to be getting no fuel, but the tank showed almost half full still.

Evidently it wasn't full enough. We topped it off and it started. My dad has said this has happened to him a couple times since then.

This is idiotic to have a tractor that loses fuel flow on a hill when it still has almost half a tank. I wonder if John Deere ever does recalls or fixes on this sort of thing?

My dad did complain early on about the placement of the exhaust. It was down low and up front. When you'd mow high fields, the exhaust would just about asphyxiate you. The dealer said they couldn't do anything, he called JD management, and eventually someone called the dealer and told them they would engineer a fix.

The exhaust from this tractor is really bad anyway. It's very strange. We burn the same diesel in several other machines, but this one produces really harsh exhaust. It'll make your eyes water.

 

[zzvyb6]

My guess would be that there is something else in the tank that's slowly creeping into the motor. Waxy buildup, motor oil, leaves, sugar, who knows. It blocks the sender at 1/2 full, but there's no fuel flowing. Why not try to drain it completely dry, drain it all the way up to the engine. Change the filters and start over. If the tank won't feed by gravity, its plugged with something. That something burns with a harsh smell, too.

 

[cz452guy]

I don't think it's that. I think it's just because the feed from the tank is on the right side, so when the left side of the tractor is tilted downward, it gets to a point where the fuel doesn't reach the feed. Just seems like a poor design.

Also, the exhaust doesn't exactly smell bad, it's just really harsh. If I'm standing behind the tractor while it's running or when anywhere near it while it's running inside a garage, it will bring tears to your eyes.

 

[sal64]

My dad bought a brand new JD 990 a few years back. Has anyone else heard of a problem with this tractor due to the design of the fuel tank?

Last year I was mowing some brush on the side of a hill side, involving a lot of forward and backing up sideways on the hill. The hill wasn't all that steep, but after a short while the tractor died. We couldn't figure what was going on. It seemed to be getting no fuel, but the tank showed almost half full still.

Evidently it wasn't full enough. We topped it off and it started. My dad has said this has happened to him a couple times since then.

This is idiotic to have a tractor that loses fuel flow on a hill when it still has almost half a tank. I wonder if John Deere ever does recalls or fixes on this sort of thing?

My dad did complain early on about the placement of the exhaust. It was down low and up front. When you'd mow high fields, the exhaust would just about asphyxiate you. The dealer said they couldn't do anything, he called JD management, and eventually someone called the dealer and told them they would engineer a fix.

The exhaust from this tractor is really bad anyway. It's very strange. We burn the same diesel in several other machines, but this one produces really harsh exhaust. It'll make your eyes water.

i have same prob with my 990 i keep the tank full when it gets down to 3/4 i fill it there is no loovers in tank so fuel goes to one side and it dies no fuel.

 

[kjung17]

Those little tractors are great machines, but they were built as " no frills" units. They just didn't give a thought to side hill applications.

 

[Meteor]

We bought a John Deere 990 in 2006. It was second hand, but it was well cared for with low hours. It looked like a new tractor. The first owner had changed the exhaust pipe to point upwards because he found that the exhaust pointing down in front tended to blow up and irritate him. I found that the exhaust pointing upward tended to get hit and bent and eventually broke when in working in areas where there is brush to mow, so I bought an original pipe that points down. That works better for me.

I have found that. on occasion, the fuel gauge does not work, but tends to fix itself! Recently.when it happened, I measured the fuel in the tank by inserting a small straight dry weed into the tank which told me it was about half full. I moved it around a bit in the tank to see if maybe the float was stuck, but I noticed that there is a baffle in the tank so I gave that up. On waking during the night I went out and tried the ignition again, didn't try to start the tractor, but just turn it on and the gauge worked perfectly and instantly. So, I don't have a problem, but I do have a mystery!