Kubota L1500 will not start

[DmansPadge]

You need to first make sure that the spin on filter is full of clean diesel. Your "peeing in the wind" if it's not. Sometimes it is neccessary to follow a path up to the injectors to ensure you have all the air out of the system. Without looking at it.... it's hard to say. A lot of the times you can bleed the air by just cracking the supply line open at the injector. Keep the lines loose while cranking, set the throttle to wide open. You will see air bubbles coming from the loose connection at the injectors. If one line is dripping good fuel and no more air bubbles appear close that line and continue that method with the remaining ones. When the engine finally starts up it will start making a mess real fast with the open injector lines. Let it run and tighten them as quickly as possible.

Hope that helps some... if you can find a manual for the tractor... following the method for bleeding the fuel system will be your best bet. What I said above is just a general rule of thumb... it won't work on every engine.

 

[cp1969]

I am not familiar with that particular tractor so some of this may not apply.

I would purge the line from the filter to the injection pump first. Trace it from the filter to the pump, crack it loose and see if fuel come out. If not, LIGHTLY pressurize the fuel tank to force fuel to come to that point. (like cupping your hands over the inlet and blowing...no more pressure than that. You can use an air compressor, too, but don't get carried away. A couple psi is probably plenty.) If there isn't fuel at the injector pump, you can crack lines til the cows come home and not get it started.

Once fuel is there, then you can start cracking injector lines. But some Kubotas have a little valve on the injection pump you open to accomplish the same thing. Check your manual to see if yours has one.

Ether is a last ditch effort that may or may not work, but first you need to disconnect any kind of glow plugs that are in the intake tract. Then you have to use TINY, TINY, TINY amounts of ether. Using ether, you run the risk of doing heavy-duty damage to the engine. Way cheaper to call a diesel mechanic than risk doing that damage in my book, so use ether at your engine's peril.

 

[watgad]

Thanks for the input. I bled lines today as prescribed. Machine will not start. I removed the oil filler cap and turned engine over. I saw the valves going up and down. I am getting a lot of smoke coming out of the blow by pipe/tube, very little coming out of exhaust pipe. I am not proud of the fact that I have used ether, unfortunately, pretty good shots trying to start engine. The engine is turning over. If ether has caused internal damage, tell me the bad news. I am sitting down and have thrown the top to the bottle away COL (crying out loud).

Thnx

 

[Taiser]

Ether is not good but usually a couple of shots will not wreck your engine to the point where it will fail to start. It does cause premature wear on the pistons and rings and can cause detonation but if your engine is still turning normally it should be OK. I'm also guessing you got air in the system. Bleeding a diesel is a PITA. The Deere I was looking at had some kind of primer system that eliminated the need for bleeding, you would think Kubota would come up with something too.

Diesels take a lot of torque to get going, even though the engine is turning, it may not be going fast enough or long enough to fire up. Make sure you have a fully charged (and decent) battery. Get the manual (should be online) and follow the directions for bleeding. Make sure the fuel is clean and double check the fuel filter to make sure it's full of fuel.

 

[watgad]

I appreciate the words of encouragement. I was thinking after my post that I have sprayed diesel in intake, but engine has not started. I am going to load tractor on my trailer (this should be fun) and take to mechanic.

 

[DmansPadge]

Like Taiser said... if it's turning over ok... you probably didn't hurt anything. Using ether isn't the end of the world. You just have some air in the fuel system still. If you take it to somebody that has experience with doing it... you'll save yourself a lot of trouble... a good mechanic will have it running pretty quick. If you want to mess with it any more yourself... you're gonna have to find a manual and follow it's precedures.

 

[cp1969]

I don't think you've damaged your engine with ether...yet. If you had, the noise would have been unmistakeable. I just think you need to get fuel to the injection pump. Not having a full filter probably filled the lines going to the pump with air.

Take it easy on the starter. Easy to burn one up by cranking too long. If you have to, you can pull the tractor with a pickup or something to get it started.

Also, what is the air temp when you're doing this? If you're seeing white smoke coming out the exhaust, it's getting fuel...you need hotter air going in.

 

[RobJ]

I think the L1500 has a gravity feed fuel system?? I think it's the same as a L175 (I think I sent you the manual). Fill the fuel tank, open the fuel inlet at the fuel injection pump, and let gravity fill the filter and lines. There is a 10mm or 12mm bolt on the top of the spin on filter bracket to aid in removing the air. When it's good there loosen both of the injection lines at the injector on top of the head. spin the engine over until you see fuel coming out in small spurts. If you don't see any fuel then this is the problem. The L175 has a manual fuel cut off lever (to kill the engine), when you are cranking to get fuel from the injectors, put the throttle in the full or max position.

Ether can destroy an old worn out engine. Couple checks is to put you hand over the exhaust pipe while cranking, you should feel some pops of air. You can also put your hand over the intake manifold, you should feel some strong suction here.

Fuel check at the injectors is #1.

Good Luck,
Rob

 

[watgad]

I'm in the Memphis, TN area. Temp is around 60 degrees. Does anyone have a shop manual procedure page?

 

[watgad]

Hey Rob,

You did send me the parts manual, very nice of you. I did put my hand over the muffler. I felt pressure. I did put my hand over the intake, I felt suction. I called myself today loosening the injector lines at the top of head. I tightened back down, but engine would not start. I am going to methodically bleed the system. I need to purchase a decent battery charger to hook up while I'm trying to get engine to start.