Kubota B2910 W/NOT start

deminin · Sep 15, 2020

I have a B2910 that I bought in 2002, and it has about 850 hrs. on it. Today, I was moving some dirt for a couple of hours, and everything worked fine. When done I drove near the house to rinse the dirt out of the bucket and when I tried to start it after sitting for 5 minutes, Nothing Happened....no start, no "click", nothing.

After trying all the pedals, etc., I hooked up a meter to the Magnetic Switch(starter solenoid) and it shows 12.65 volts. When I move the key to "Start" the voltage drops to about 11.8 volts....indicating, to me, that the ignition switch is functioning, but I don't hear any "click" coming from the solenoid, or any noise indicating that the starter motor is trying to turn.

I suspect that the Magnetic Switch(solenoid) or Starter Motor has quit working, but that is just my best guess, at this point. This happened once, about 3 months ago, and after sitting for a couple of hours, it fired right up. I left it set this afternoon for about 5 hours, and just tried it again with no luck.

Does anyone have any ideas, or suggestions of how to trouble shoot this? I'm going out in the morning and start working on it seriously, so any tips or suggestions will be much appreciated.

Thx, in advance....Don

ToolDad · Sep 15, 2020

I have a current post going on a similar/same issue with my BX2200. As far as troubleshooting goes, I have many things I have done but still have the problem, so not sure what to offer. I would ask if a battery charger placed in start mode will make it start? This consistently works me, indicating that there is too much resistance in the line somewhere that necessitates more current as offered from the charger/starter.

https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/kubota-owning-operating/429776-electrical-starting-issue.html

nbryan · Sep 15, 2020

Find the solenoid wire that is normally 0V to ground, it will be a smaller wire and terminal not the fat power cables, and see if it receives 12V when the key goes to start position.
Another way I've tested solenoids when voltmeter not available is connect the battery+ terminal momentarily to the solenoid terminal with a wire, it should engage it, click, maybe even crank. If the hotwire trick works, the problem is between the ignition switch and solenoid - maybe a safety system open circuit?

Dave M7040 · Sep 15, 2020

deminin said:
I have a B2910 that I bought in 2002, and it has about 850 hrs. on it. Today, I was moving some dirt for a couple of hours, and everything worked fine. When done I drove near the house to rinse the dirt out of the bucket and when I tried to start it after sitting for 5 minutes, Nothing Happened....no start, no "click", nothing.

After trying all the pedals, etc., I hooked up a meter to the Magnetic Switch(starter solenoid) and it shows 12.65 volts. When I move the key to "Start" the voltage drops to about 11.8 volts....indicating, to me, that the ignition switch is functioning, but I don't hear any "click" coming from the solenoid, or any noise indicating that the starter motor is trying to turn.

I suspect that the Magnetic Switch(solenoid) or Starter Motor has quit working, but that is just my best guess, at this point. This happened once, about 3 months ago, and after sitting for a couple of hours, it fired right up. I left it set this afternoon for about 5 hours, and just tried it again with no luck.

Does anyone have any ideas, or suggestions of how to trouble shoot this? I'm going out in the morning and start working on it seriously, so any tips or suggestions will be much appreciated.

Thx, in advance....Don

You need to learn to jump the starter so you can rule it out in your search for the cause.

Jumping a starter is inherently dangerous as all safety features are bypasses and you can get run over or have run-a-way tractor.

I suggest having someone on the seat with the brakes applied.

The attached photo shows what terminals to jump. Remove the trigger wire from the solenoid before doing the jumping. A screw driver or short length of wire to bridge the two terminals shown in the photo.

The engine should crank immediately. There may be a small spark.

If the engine cranks then you know the problem lies in the circuit from the key switch to the solenoid which is where safety switches and Operator Presence Controllers are located.

Dave M7040

deminin · Sep 16, 2020

Fixed...I hope! I rigged up a solenoid jumper cable, per the above instructions, which allowed me to sit in the seat, and operate the ignition and brake, and this old rascal fired right up. I then began to look at safety switches, etc., and found that the Mid Mount PTO lever was stuck in the On positions. Crawling around underneath, I found a piece of tree branch that was blocking the lever, and wouldn't allow the lever to move to the off position....I was doing some brush hogging in the forest a couple of days ago, and probably kicked up the branch, then accidently hit the lever when I was doing some dirt work.

I checked some more of the safety switches, and fuses, etc., and all seems ok now. I may even open the dashboard in the next couple of days and check out all the connections in there. At a minimum, I put this "jumper" in the tractor toolbox, just in case, I have a repeat of this problem when in the forest, 1/4 mile from the house.

I was suspicious of the starter motor/solenoid, and called a couple of Kubota dealers....they wanted $600 and it would have to be ordered. I did a quick check on EBAY, and found several new ones for about $80....I may just get one of those since this tractor is getting pretty old...in case I damage the motor with my "jumper" in the future.

At any rate, all seems ok, and thx to the above posters for the clues......