2014 Turf Tiger will not crank; Kohler

[Simplefarmer]

Good battery voltage
Seat, left and right throttle, brake, and PTO/blade switches seem to check OK
Short solenoid to starter and the starter will engage
Cleaned battery terminals

I have seen where there have been posts saying they were checking for voltage drop in the wiring. It seems I may need to do this but I'm not familiar with how to do it. Can someone give me some details about how to check for this?

Are there any computer modules in the wiring that can cause this problem?

I plan to hook a direct ground from the batter to the engine just in case this is a grounding problem. But since the starter fired off immediately with the solenoid short, I don't think this is a problem.

This is really my first problem in 10-11 years with the machine. I guess it was bound to happen. Thanks for any help you can give me.

 

[bertsmobile1]

If you bridge the two posts on the top of the solenoid & the engine cranks that shows the battery , battery ground & starter is OK
If you have only 1 wire at the bottom of the solenoid , check that wire for battery voltage when you turn the key to Start
If yes then loosen the bolt holding the solenoid to the mower and clean around it.
That bolts provides the ground contact to trigger the solenoid .
Over time corrosion gets in and defeats the ground.
If it has 2 small wires at the base then one must be ground and the other must be battery voltage when the mower is in the start condition & key is turned to start .
Ground happens when the brake is on and lap bars out
Power happens when you turn the key

A good solenoid will switch hard enough to jump out of your hand when it activates
To test the single terminal sit the metal base on the battery - then jump from battery + to the trigger wire
Same thing for a 2 wire one only you need 2 wires & 4 hands , the small terminals are not polarity sensitive so either way will work.
Solenoids spark when they switch and over time that spark burns the contact faces .

 

[StarTech]

Bert you are assuming a remote solenoid. I only have a couple Turf Tigers under my wing but both have Kawasaki engines with solenoid shift starters. Now these do use a relay in the starters circuit. The Scag in question here may have a different setup.

As usual on this site the OP did not give us all the equipment. Here we only got the OEM and the series. With Scag and other we need complete model and serial of the unit and the engine make, model, and spec number at a minimum. I can't even look up the correct owners with some this info.

 

[Simplefarmer]

I'm sorry. Here is the model and serial number. The motor is a Kohler with the solenoid on the starter.


Turf Tiger body
Model: STT61V-26CH-EFI
Serial #: K1900995

Kohler Engine. 26.5 EFI
Model: ECH749 - 3043
Serial #: 4408804871
Build Date: 3/27/2014 N11238

 

[bertsmobile1]

Guilty as charged sir

 

[Simplefarmer]

Does this mean that there is a relay in the starter circuit that may have failed? Would this be found in the control panel box that contains the PTO switch, the key switch, and the throttle?

 

[Simplefarmer]

It looks like the bolts that hold the solenoid to the starter have a special "star" head. Is this what needs to be cleaned if the ground for the start is failing?

 

[StarTech]

Those screws require an external Torx socket. Don't know E size off the top of my head as yet to come across them here on a starter.

But to figure what size you need find a matching Torx bit then divide it size by 5 and that will give you the E socket size.

Update: I actually had a Kohler to come with these screws. They are E5 External Torx screws.

https://www.harborfreight.com/14-in...&adsetid=114845773417&product=68017&store=495

 

[slomo]

It looks like the bolts that hold the solenoid to the starter have a special "star" head. Is this what needs to be cleaned if the ground for the start is failing?View attachment 64650

Oh my. Leave those alone.

It's either a mounting bolt or two that mounts the starter to the block or a copper conductor cable going to the frame or even better the - battery post.

Best ground on any vehicle is the - battery post.

 

[Simplefarmer]

I finally have a had a chance to check for voltage on the small ignition wire going to the solenoid. I'm not getting any voltage when the key is turned to start.

Since there is no voltage, do I need to check a relay that was mentioned as possibility in a previous post. I suppose I need to check my starter switch for voltage on the line to the solenoid. I will do that next as I wait for a reply on the possible relay problem. If someone knows where I will find the relay please let me know. Thanks for all the help from everyone.