L3301 HST Leak

[Topesrule]

Hi all, I guess i'm looking for any insights you may be able to provide.

I have a 2015 L3301 with 60 hours on it. It sits in a garage and is well taken care of and is used mostly for blowing snow. The other day i noticed a toonie sized spot on the floor under it. When i went under to check it out the seal between the mid transmission case and the rear transmission case, where the two cases of the transmission bolted together, was wet along the bottom. I took a rag and wiped the oil off and have used the tractor twice since then and the seal has stayed dry. The tractors very clean and i felt around to make sure it wasn't running down from somewhere else.

Anything besides not being sealed well that could cause this? I would think if that seal wasn't good from the factory it should leak all the time.

Some pics

 

[teg]

All I got is to suggest to post a few photos of the area... I've been amazed at what some TBN'ers can spot from photos.

 

[Fallon]

That the clutch housing or further back? I'm assuming further back... Any oil in the clutch housing would be very bad for the clutch & probably a leaking shaft seal. Would require splitting to fix. If that is further back I believe the HST & transmission are a common sump. So I'd assume it would be a bad seal or gasket between them. Would likely require a split to fix.

If it were me & under warranty the dealer would be fixing it. If it were out of warranty I'd just live with it unless or until it was pushing a cup a week or so.

 

[sandyc]

Could be hydro fluid from connecting fittings for blower or loader. Just a thought.

 

[s219]

What are we looking at in the third photo? Is that a crack or a scratch?

 

[ClaySlayer]

What are we looking at in the third photo? Is that a crack or a scratch?

I can't tell if it's a hair or bristle or something and if that's a shadow under the left side where it turns up vertical or what...

 

[desh]

Can't tell much from the pics...Clean it and continue to watch. If it's a leak, it will reappear and probably get worse over time.

 

[Topesrule]

What are we looking at in the third photo? Is that a crack or a scratch?

That's a dog hair. The photo's aren't much help, the HST fluid is clear so it can't really be seen. The seal was wet with it at the time though.

 

[teg]

Is it under warranty? I would talk to the dealer... That doesn't look like a factory seal!

When my dealer replaced my jerky 3ph valve, the gasket looks like what you have. I wonder if the tractor has been split before? I'm not near my tractor, can anyone else confirm they have the same "gasket" as we see in the photo?

 

[Topesrule]

I think it is from the factory, the sealant that's been pushed out between the two parts is painted grey along with everything else. if it had been split and resealed I would think it would not be the same color grey as the rest of the undercarriage?

 

[The Deerslayer]

I would get on the phone with your dealer if you bought it from him.

 

[Topesrule]

The tractor had to be split and the seal redone. There is a service bulletin for the L01's for the crank case vent. There was a service bulletin when i purchased the tractor about insulating it but i guess they were still having problems I was told. This is some type of heat trace they add for this one. They had to put a new wiring harness and a bigger alternator. Something guys in the colder area's might want to call about.

 

[Topesrule]

The leak has returned at the same spot as before. It makes me think that there's something besides a bad seal. They had to redo a couple of different seals on the tractor when they split it and the same one that they were concentrating on is leaking again in the same spot. the service manager said he spoke with a Kubota rep who said it could be a crack in the case and that they could heat it up with a torch to try and see it. I don't like the sounds of that.

The tractor has a bunch of issues since returning from the dealer. HST peddle isn't returning to neutral, almost ran into my garage door. Found a bolt in the driveway after the first snow storm I cleared that ended up being out of the DPF filter mounting bracket. They put the wrong bolt in a panel cover that was too long and was jammed into my four wheel drive lever that made it inoperable. Took me a bit to figure out why it wouldn't move. It's also making a bad sounding noise when I go into a snow bank and raise the loader at the same time. Sounds like a severe vibration or something in the hydraulics.

I'm pretty discouraged, thinking about trading for a Massy. I loved the tractor until I decided to get this tiny leak fixed. My warranty is up in a week. It's going back to the dealer on Monday.

 

[teg]

This sucks... document all the problems. Do you guys have Lemon Laws up there in New Brunswick?

 

[Topesrule]

it went back to the dealer, resealed the area that was leaking. Service manager told me the guy who took it apart got sick and he had to put another guy on it and that was why bolts were missing and falling out. I stopped in and talked to the mechanic who worked on it everyday it was in and he did a good job and seemed to care about doing it right. My peddle is still not returning to neutral like it used to. The service manager said it's because of the hydraulic fluid they put in it.

 

[Fallon]

I'd call BS on that. There are springs that should be centering the pedal. You need to lube the pedal linkages occasionally. If they put on something other than SUDT (warm non-freezing climates) or SUDT2 into a Kubota HST they cheaped out & put in the wrong fluid. I'd be pissed about that as anything but SUDT or 2 has a habit of making the HST noisy. Not to mention that fluid shouldn't affect the pedal. The only way I could figure it could is if it was WAY to thick & wouldn't let the HST operate properly.

Sounds like a bold faced lie from the service manager after yet another screw up on their end, or at least more massive incompetence.

 

[Topesrule]

I lubricated every moving part involved in the rocker pedal (there are a lot of moving parts involved) before i had taken it back to them to try and get it to perform as it had. The service guy told me they never did anything but unhook the linkage in order to split the tractor and there are no adjustments for the pedal. It doesn't seem like it could be anything other than the fluid, or something internal that I don't understand.

We had a discussion about hydraulic fluid and he told me what kubota puts in it from the factory and what they use at the shop but i can't remember exactly which UDT. I remember him saying premium UDT but I can't remember if that's what they use or if that's what kubota uses. I do remember he said that kubota doesn't recommend synthetic and he wasn't sure why but that he'd have no issues using it. I'll have to ask him what they put in it Monday. I'm pretty sure he said that what they put in from the factory is too thick in his opinion for our cold climate. It's -24 celsius with the windchill today.

 

[devildog1]

Topesrule, something is wrong with your tractor and your dealer, I have had 3 Kubota's a BX23TLB, a B3200TLB and my present one a Grand L3540 and I have not had any issues with any of them through out the different years I've owned them. Not sure what advice I can offer you other then what I would do, trade that tractor in and get another. Best of luck to you.
DevilDog

 

[Topesrule]

I've been discussing trades, they've got an awfully nice M7040su with M21 loader, but they're not even close on what they'd give me for mine. The salesman said if i have anymore trouble with mine he'll get kubota involved to help make a deal. i can't really complain about the dealer apart for the mess the mechanic made the first trip in. They've brought me right in and had it back to me in a couple days each time. I've also spent a lot of time in the shop grilling them and they've always taken lots of time to explain what they're doing and answer my questions.