John Deere ZTRak 375 Battery Charging issues

[bertsmobile1]

You can not test a regulator / rectifier fully sitting on the work shop bench without expensive test gear as you would find in an electrical workshop that fixes TV's
You can check to see if it is working properly mounted on the engine
As Star said, it is a works so leave it alone or does no work so replace it situation they are not repairable .
In a mower workshop the usual method is to swap it with a known good one as that takes about 90 seconds to do .
What I am trying to get you to do is test to see if it is working so you know if the unit is faulty or the wires taking the power back to the battery are faulty.
On single wire rectifiers there was a ground strap that went from the right rear cowl mounting bolt to the single mounting bolt for the rectifier
It should go under the plastic blower housing directly against the metal crankcase then loop down& go under the regulator.
This wire shakes around a lot in use and is prone to breaking where the terminal is crimped onto the wire so you get a random make & break situation.
When I replace them I use double heat shrink over the terminal to support the wire .

 

[StarTech]

Side question here since you said ran it 1.5 hrs. If you were using the electric PTO during this time, have you test it for under 7 amps current draw or that it resistance measures 1.7 ohms or higher? These PTO electric clutches can partially short and still operate. I had one here that was pulling over 18 amps last year/. One pulling 9 amps or more will over tax a 9 amp system and drain the battery as the fuel solenoid needs to be powered during the same time.

 

[Doug from Ohio]

Side question here since you said ran it 1.5 hrs. If you were using the electric PTO during this time, have you test it for under 7 amps current draw or that it resistance measures 1.7 ohms or higher? These PTO electric clutches can partially short and still operate. I had one here that was pulling over 18 amps last year/. One pulling 9 amps or more will over tax a 9 amp system and drain the battery as the fuel solenoid needs to be powered during the same time.

Yes I was using the PTO since those 1.5 hrs were spent cutting the lawn. I’d be willing to test continuity but really need to see a how-to instructional video. I’m a noob with the multimeter and accessing these things isn’t easy for me to just dive in. The problem is there are very few instructional videos on YouTube for the new John Deere zero turns. I am still under warranty for this mower until March 2022 unless this is an easy diagnostic procedure I may elect to have it serviced and let the dealer figure it out. I really do appreciate this forum however because this thing will be out of warranty and JD wants an arm and a leg to extend the warranty…it’s approx $300 a year And $500 for 3 years Coverage.

 

[Doug from Ohio]

You can not test a regulator / rectifier fully sitting on the work shop bench without expensive test gear as you would find in an electrical workshop that fixes TV's
You can check to see if it is working properly mounted on the engine
As Star said, it is a works so leave it alone or does no work so replace it situation they are not repairable .
In a mower workshop the usual method is to swap it with a known good one as that takes about 90 seconds to do .
What I am trying to get you to do is test to see if it is working so you know if the unit is faulty or the wires taking the power back to the battery are faulty.
On single wire rectifiers there was a ground strap that went from the right rear cowl mounting bolt to the single mounting bolt for the rectifier
It should go under the plastic blower housing directly against the metal crankcase then loop down& go under the regulator.
This wire shakes around a lot in use and is prone to breaking where the terminal is crimped onto the wire so you get a random make & break situation.
When I replace them I use double heat shrink over the terminal to support the wire .

Thank you! I will definitely replace the VR…I’m hoping it’s under covered under warranty by JD since the mower is only 1.5 yrs old and I have a 2 yr warranty. I will try and get the exploded view of the charging system and see if I can locate the ground wire. If you happen to have a link please share. Thanks again for help!

 

[bertsmobile1]

You won't get warranty unless you take it to a dealer
Then you play warranty roulette because if it is determined not to be a warranty item then you get stuck with a service fee.
If the wire has failed then it will be warranty
Not sure how you would stand with a failed regulator, the USA boys will know better than I
Down here the answer is NO
for electrical items because they can not rule out abuse like running with a flat battery or out of adjustment clutch unless the mower has a service history from a technician who is recognised by JD as being a qualified person.

 

[Doug from Ohio]

Side question here since you said ran it 1.5 hrs. If you were using the electric PTO during this time, have you test it for under 7 amps current draw or that it resistance measures 1.7 ohms or higher? These PTO electric clutches can partially short and still operate. I had one here that was pulling over 18 amps last year/. One pulling 9 amps or more will over tax a 9 amp system and drain the battery as the fuel solenoid needs to be powered during the same time.

Ok so today I got back to testing the DCV coming out of the voltage regulator red wire that charges the battery… it was all over the place. I couldn’t get a constant reading. What does that mean?

 

[hlw49]

Kohler makes a tester for their regulators and it will test the Kawasaki and Generac as well. Might test the Briggs as well but I usually just test the Briggs like Bert said. Or actually that is the way Briggs says to check them.

 

[shurguywutt]

Ok so today I got back to testing the DCV coming out of the voltage regulator red wire that charges the battery… it was all over the place. I couldn’t get a constant reading. What does that mean?

Sounds like a bad regulator, I would call the dealer and let them mess with it. Especially if it is still under warranty. Check if there is a service charge and how much it is and what is or is not covered. You may be able to find a nomenclature on the VR and just buy one off the internet and install it yourself if warranty doesn't cover it and the service charge is more expensive than the part. Just double check the wiring/grounds first for good measure, it never hurts.

 

[bertsmobile1]

Ok so today I got back to testing the DCV coming out of the voltage regulator red wire that charges the battery… it was all over the place. I couldn’t get a constant reading. What does that mean?

This is what you see if the ground strap is bad so it randomly makes and breaks contact.
They break off at the crimp.
Fabricate another one and run it from an engine bolt to the regulator mounting bolt
Make sure the contact places aere clean & tight then test the red wire again.

 

[Doug from Ohio]

This is what you see if the ground strap is bad so it randomly makes and breaks contact.
They break off at the crimp.
Fabricate another one and run it from an engine bolt to the regulator mounting bolt
Make sure the contact places aere clean & tight then test the red wire again.

Thanks Bert. I will look for the grounding strap on Saturday when I get back to the mower. Any diagram of where that ground strap is specifically located would be an immense help to me. I could not find it on any of the Briggs exploded views or the John Deere site. Anybody know where the grounding strap is for a 2020 JD ZTrak 375R? It’s engine #44S9770045G1