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I have an older John Deere Lt 155. I can't make out the numbers on the sticker due to them being scratched off but it ends in 062276. It has a 15hp Kohler on it. Model #:CV15S Spec #: 41562 Serial #: 2900714811.

A friend brought it over and asked me to try to fix it. I always try to help a neighbor out. The story I was told was it just stopped moving. Thats all that I know. It has the hydrostatic transmission and I think the part number is AM880203. The lawn mower starts and runs as it should. But when trying to move forward or backward, it will barely creep, if at all. It doesn't make a noise, it just doesn't move. I've looked underneath, and it looks like all the pulleys are all moving like they should. As well as the one on top of the transmission. This one is free of any debris.

I know this is an unservicable transmission. The local john deere guy said a new transmission would run over $900. Which is more than the tractor is worth. Is there anyway I can check to pin point for sure that it is the transmission is bad?? Thanks for any help ahead of time :smile:

Watch the pulleys as your friend try's to make it move. Make sure the one on the rear end does not stop or slow down. If you can see the shaft it sits on make sure it does not slow down or stop.
It could have broke the key.
Everything can be fixed

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well i layed underneath it tonight to watch the pulleys. the shaft comming out of the transmission with the pulley attached seemed to be spinning at a constant speed. I moved it from forward to reverse multiple times and I could not tell a differnce of it changing speed or slowing down.

Another thing I noticed is when I set the parking break, I can still roll it around with no resistance. Thanks for the reply!

Push the hydro release lever is all the way in. Has some one push the unit around and forgot to return the lever to the drive position.

that was my initial hope of an easy fix. that would be too easy. unfortunately thats not it. it is pushed all the way in.

Try their web site. they have a troubleshooting guide, maybe that will help you.

http://https://www.tufftorqservices.com/EnvEEdefault/FlatHTML/Troubleshooting/Diagnostic_Flowchart_EN_23DEC08.pdf

for some reason it would not let me open the web page.

If anyone has any suggestions I'd be more than happy to hear them. I'm willing to try anything. Thanks for all the feedback!!

I have found the LT155's to be reliable/rugged & with a little maintenance very long lasting.
My 2x LT155's were both purchased S/H now at 1100hrs+ & 920hrs without component change outs or failures - I change the engine oil & clean the air filter regularly, grease the spindles, rust proof/paint the decks biannually....... & well before the transmission starts to exhibit any "slowing" tendencies change the fluid (time consuming, though not too difficult).every100hrs And this might be worth a try to try to make yours mobile again ??

For hydro fluid in the Tuff Torq's replace the oil with premium synthetic product, I use Mobil 1 5w50 Engine oil.

Whilst lots of hydro tranny's are supposedly "sealed for life", it's usually quite easy (just a little time consuming to change the oil (by removing the transmission & emptying/refilling via the filler neck/cap where the factory originally put the oil in - it's critical to use the correct oil & volume..

A simple oil change can revitalise a so called "worn" tranny if is not too late & extend its life if done as regular maintenance?it worked restoring full transmission speed on 1 of the s/h units I purchased in the knowedge with a supposedly Dealer diagnosed "collapsed transmission requiring replacement?.

When changing Hydro oil:-
- clean the unit thoroughly with compressed air or wash in water/dry prior to removing any filler plugs/caps, with hydro's any dirt/water ingress can quickly kill the unit
- the oil level is critical, so measure/mark & replace exactly how much you remove (there may be a fill level marked just inside the filler housing but it's not always there)
- there may be a small filter mesh screen & possibly a small spring just inside the filler housing which can be cleaned too is it drop out.
- take time to let the oil drain slowly to empty as much as possible
- also take time to fill with oil to allow the oil to distribute evenly in transmission & fill slowly to minimise any air bubbles/air locks forming in the oil, & also occasionally whilst filling rotate the axles slowly by hand to distribute the oil evenly in the hydro unit
- depending on the filler plug/cap fitment, once you replace firmly it may be prudent to use a small bead of silicon externally around plug/cap to exclude all possibility of dust ingress.

Apart from chainging the hydro oil, the other key to achieving long transmission life on the LT155's is to keep the tranny cool (the fan is marginal in hot weather) so keep the tranny fan clean & free of all debris...& replace if it's missing or has damaged blades

Any questions just ask.
Good luck & let us know how you get on

hey thanks so much. lots of great information. i will try to remove the rear end this weekend to see what i find. i will report back with my findings or any questions i may have. thanks again!

well i got the transmission pulled off last night. before i took it off i lifted the rear end up in the air with a jack. it took a bit of turning, but the right tire would spin up to speed but the left would barely spin. after i pulled the transmissioni got to looking, and i noticed the left wheel had no key. and i checked the axle and you could tell it has been missing for quite sometime. i cleaned the spring and small, round, flat filter as well. so im not for sure exactly what to look for, but i guess i will just drain the oil and replace with what is suggested above. make a new key and put it all back together and pray it will work. thanks for all the help!!!

mowerguy said:

well i got the transmission pulled off last night. before i took it off i lifted the rear end up in the air with a jack. it took a bit of turning, but the right tire would spin up to speed but the left would barely spin. after i pulled the transmissioni got to looking, and i noticed the left wheel had no key. and i checked the axle and you could tell it has been missing for quite sometime. i cleaned the spring and small, round, flat filter as well. so im not for sure exactly what to look for, but i guess i will just drain the oil and replace with what is suggested above. make a new key and put it all back together and pray it will work. thanks for all the help!!!

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I hope it helps! Good luck! :smile:

I hope that I am not to late and you started to tear into your transmission. Your problem could be just that missing key. What will happen is that the axle will turn on that wheel but no go, because the tranny differential will spin but not send power to the other wheel. Put in a new key and spin one wheel. The other wheel should spin in the opposite direction. It's worth a try and could save you a lot of $$$$ and frustration.

The missing key is most likely the immediate cause for loosing drive, but changing the tranny oil sure won't hurt & preserve the tranny's life - if the oil you drop from the tranny is dirty brown or black with a slightly burnt small it's a sign the oil is well passed is used by & will impact the tranny durability & drive characteristics.

i have not torn into the tranny yet thankfully. both wheels are off and spinning the pulley on top makes one axle spin one direction and the opposite axle in the other. limited slip correct? so tomorrow at work i will make a key and monday i'll pick up some oil. any idea what the capacity is on that transmission? so far the only thing i've found online about it is "service not recommended". with it not being mine, i dont have a manual for it. and advice is greatly appreciated.

mowerguy said:

i have not torn into the tranny yet thankfully. both wheels are off and spinning the pulley on top makes one axle spin one direction and the opposite axle in the other. limited slip correct? so tomorrow at work i will make a key and monday i'll pick up some oil. any idea what the capacity is on that transmission? so far the only thing i've found online about it is "service not recommended". with it not being mine, i dont have a manual for it. and advice is greatly appreciated.

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Good question, as I buy all the oil for the farm in bulk drums I've never actually measured it, I just dump it every 100hrs & refill - at a guess I'd guarantee it's capacity is no more than 2.7litres/0.71 gallons.......

MBTRAC quick question. checked with thelocal auto dealers and no one has 5w-50 in stock. i picked up some 20w-50. will this work or should i just order some 5w-50 and wait for it to come in?? thanks

mowerguy said:

MBTRAC quick question. checked with thelocal auto dealers and no one has 5w-50 in stock. i picked up some 20w-50. will this work or should i just order some 5w-50 and wait for it to come in?? thanks

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I only ever used Mobil 1 5w50 Synthetic Engine oil, our summer ambient is well over c.100F+ & winter down to c.36F

Here's a link I found to Tuff Torq's recommendations - the LT155 has a K51B tranny (apparently oringinally filled with 10w30 API Class Motor Oil ? - sounds like a ocst cutting measure spec'd by JD originally to me....), according to the link the K51's oil capacity is only 2.25litres but that seems too low in my experience .....
https://www.tufftorqservices.com/En...echInfo/ttcoil/pdfs/Fluids and Lubricants.pdf

I'm in the middle of our wheat harvest, so it will probably take a day or two for me to respond to questions.

I actually found that link after I posted my last comment. and decided i better go get the 5w-50. I drained the oil to the best of my abilities and then readded oil. i reinstalled the transmission. with everything put back together, the axles will spin while it was still on the jack without the wheels and tires on. but the looked to be going awfully slow. if you grab one of the axles it will just stop spinning and there is no force to make it want to continue to spin. this is not what i wanted to see. any ideas on what could have went wrong???

mowerguy said:

I actually found that link after I posted my last comment. and decided i better go get the 5w-50. I drained the oil to the best of my abilities and then readded oil. i reinstalled the transmission. with everything put back together, the axles will spin while it was still on the jack without the wheels and tires on. but the looked to be going awfully slow. if you grab one of the axles it will just stop spinning and there is no force to make it want to continue to spin. this is not what i wanted to see. any ideas on what could have went wrong???

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Hmm, that doesn't sound good - put the tyres back on & try it on the ground ...........if it's the same best case it maybe the belt tension/pedal adjustment..... or worst case the old oil had totally degraded the transmission has overheated & cooked itself beyond repair....

When changing the hydro oil on some of these machines, you must purge the air out of the system. This is usually done by raising the drive wheels off the ground, put it in drive, and just let the wheels rotate for a while. On some of the Toro/Exmark machines, I have let it run more than ten minutes for "both" wheel motors to have full/equal pressure.

I don't think you have any problem. Turning the pulley by hand does make the axles seem very slow. Also, if you hold one axle it will stop turn, just like you experienced with the key missing. Try holding both axles, one with a vice grip and one by hand. I'll bet you will feel a lot of resistance in the one your holding by hand.

Finally got back to working on the Deere tonight. After draining the old oil, adding new and reinstalling the tranny. I still couldn't get it to move. I jacked the rear end of the mower up and pumped the mower forward and reverse many times to prime the new oil. Finally the wheels started to spin. I let it back down on the ground and the mower propelled itself forward and reverse. Thanks for all the help. What could have been an expensive repair job was done for less than 30 bucks.

mowerguy said:

Finally got back to working on the Deere tonight. After draining the old oil, adding new and reinstalling the tranny. I still couldn't get it to move. I jacked the rear end of the mower up and pumped the mower forward and reverse many times to prime the new oil. Finally the wheels started to spin. I let it back down on the ground and the mower propelled itself forward and reverse. Thanks for all the help. What could have been an expensive repair job was done for less than 30 bucks.

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I'm glad you fixed it! :thumbsup:

mowerguy said:

Finally got back to working on the Deere tonight. After draining the old oil, adding new and reinstalling the tranny. I still couldn't get it to move. I jacked the rear end of the mower up and pumped the mower forward and reverse many times to prime the new oil. Finally the wheels started to spin. I let it back down on the ground and the mower propelled itself forward and reverse. Thanks for all the help. What could have been an expensive repair job was done for less than 30 bucks.

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:thumbsup: Great result - nothing like that feeling of being able to fix something that's broke........

Yes it was a very satisfying feeling. Also a great learning experience?

Good story.Way to stick with it. The results paid off...