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Hi All,
I purchased my mower used back in September. Everything seemed fine and mowed grass a few times and used it foe snow blowing as well. Over the winter it felt like the left wheel was slipping while snow blowing but when I added more forward to the levers it eventually went. I just went to put it on a trailer and the left wheel does not have any power will not even go up the trailer ramp. The right wheel has tons of power. Did I blow a drive wheel motor? It only has 567 hours on the machine. The price for a wheel drive ain’t cheap by any means $900. Can I replace this myself if this is what’s wrong ? Would love some help and advice !
Thanks,
Dean

Seems like it went from good to bad too quick to be a motor problem. Have you checked that the linkage from the steering arms has not come loose where it slowly over a number of uses got to the point it isn't working at all? I would imagine you could also have a o-ring or valve seat go bad causing oil bypassing or even debris in an oil valve. Last thought should maybe be the first to check, it should have a dump valve on the pump to allow the mower to free wheel, could have you moved this lever and the pump is partially bypassing?

Yeah, now that I think about it, it has slowly gotten worse over time. I checked the 2 hex heads you turn to release the drive to move the mower by pushing and they are both in the proper position. Both arms are tight, connected and work the same, I have not found any leaks anywhere BUT your comments got me thinking. I checked the reservoir (which I should have done FIRST...duh) and it is very low...well below the cold level mark but not empty...will buy some fluid tomorrow and top off and see if that’s it. That does bring up a question as to where is the fluid going though?
Thanks for the thoughts, am SO new to this Zero turn stuff.
Dean

BWH said:

Seems like it went from good to bad too quick to be a motor problem. Have you checked that the linkage from the steering arms has not come loose where it slowly over a number of uses got to the point it isn't working at all? I would imagine you could also have a o-ring or valve seat go bad causing oil bypassing or even debris in an oil valve. Last thought should maybe be the first to check, it should have a dump valve on the pump to allow the mower to free wheel, could have you moved this lever and the pump is partially bypassing?

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Let me know if the fluid helps, odd that the other side is still working properly considering they share the oil reservoir.

If that doesn't improve things I was thinking you could reverse the hydraulic hoses from the pump to the wheel motors, if the left wheel still has no power you could conclude the motor is bad if the right wheel looses power it would indicate the valve control has a problem.

Watch the backward controls during your test.

Picked up the fluid and filled to cold level (6 oz low ) and ran the machine around the driveway, turning circles full lever etc for 5 min....seemed to be fine but always was on flat ground so will check the fluid after it cools and see where the level is. We are supposed to get 10-12 inches of snow tonight so will see how it does in the AM pushing the snowblower.

Reverse the hoses as in same wheel just reverse in and out or swap wheel hoses from left to right keeping same in and out? I think you are telling me to swap wheels as if the problem goes from left to right the wheel motor is good?

Please explain watching the backward controls during the test.

Thanks so much for all the help !
Dean

BWH said:

Let me know if the fluid helps, odd that the other side is still working properly considering they share the oil reservoir.

If that doesn't improve things I was thinking you could reverse the hydraulic hoses from the pump to the wheel motors, if the left wheel still has no power you could conclude the motor is bad if the right wheel looses power it would indicate the valve control has a problem.

Watch the backward controls during your test.

Click to expand...

If you swap the hoses forward will be backward and vice versa or the right handle will control left wheel instead of the right wheel is prob what he was talking about if you swap from right to the left and so on.

Got it...that makes sense now...thx !
Dean

Luffydog said:

If you swap the hoses forward will be backward and vice versa or the right handle will control left wheel instead of the right wheel is prob what he was talking about if you swap from right to the left and so on.

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If you go disconnecting things, be ULTRA careful not to get any dust/dirt/grime in the lines & fittings. Hoses may not reach. Usually not much slack.

Also beware of metal shavings that might be in the pump or hoses.

If you have a bad wheel motor do not switch the hoses to the other pump to test it. If the motor is bad there is a good chance that the bad motor has taken out the pump on that side, and if you attempt to use the right pump to test it that same debris will now damage the other pump. If the motor is bad the whole system will have to disassembled and flushed off all metal shavings, oil tank will need to be drained and rinsed out, all the lines will have to be removed and cleaned,

Re: 2010 729BT6 left drive wheel power los

So we got 10+ inches of snow as expected. Filling the reservoir helped but it’s still felt like the left wheel was slipping occasionally when snow built up in front of the snowblower and there was increased resistance while moving forward. Opening the cab door and looking down visually the wheel was not slipping.
So if there is a chance of destroying the other side with metal shavings how do I troubleshoot if it’s the wheel motor and or wheel motor and pump that is actually bad ?
Dean

Sorry I can't help you but do know if you call Grasshopper they are willing and able to answer any questions. Phone # is 316 354 8621. Good Luck ,,,russ

Re: 2010 729BT6 left drive wheel power los

I agree it might be best to talk to Grasshopper maybe they can give you a test procedure to identify the problem. I do believe that the filter system on the Grasshopper pump filters the oil from the drive motors before it enters the pump trapping the metal filings in the filter. I'm definitely interested in what information you get from Grasshopper, keep us in the loop.

There is hydro test you can do to check the psi under so many rpms and they shouldn't drop under so many psi between neutral and full forward. I bet they tell u to take it to the neasrest shop. But yes keep us posted

This might sound a little silly and basic, but did you check to make sure the key didn't shear on the axle? When it slips, is the axle going, but not the tire? Sometimes it's the little things that get us.

Thanks for the help guys,
I called Grasshopper and I have a few things to check. First was the dump valves which were both tightened and were not the problem, second was the control arm linkages, evidently the shaft coming out of the pump holds the linkage to the control arms comes loose and allows the linkage to slip on the shaft. I tightened that up and will see how it performs when I can hook up my trailer later this week. Other questions he asked were does it slip worse after it warms up and does it slip equally as bad in reverse? It does not slip more when warm or as far as I can tell in reverse.
I will have to pay more attention when I put it on the trailer. I will let you guys know when I find out more info. Thanks again for all the help.
Dean