The Maintenance Guy
Member
- Joined
- Jun 6, 2020
- Threads
- 1
- Messages
- 15
Just thought I’d share this for anyone out there who may be experiencing trouble with lawn equipment, particularly a lawn tractor having starting problems. After a long tussle with the machine, a 20 year old MTD 13 HP, I believe I’ve solved all the issues with it not turning over.
I tried new batteries, to only limited success. The starter motor was definitely bad. It took me a while to realize this though. The deterioration in performance is slow and it did not dawn on me until it still would not turn over, even with a new battery. A replacement was easy and cost about $40. One or more of the safety switches may have been faulty. I replaced both of them.
I also replaced the ignition switch and starter solenoid, neither of which were faulty, looking back now, but it eliminated them as a possible issue.
The real bugaboo in the whole system, difficult to figure out, was the fuse holder in the circuit to the starter solenoid. It had corroded over time, and the fuse made poor, intermittent contact. It either worked great, or not at all. Replacing the fuse holder along with a 20 amp fuse, a new battery, new starter motor, all new safety switches and a battery cable, must have taken care of the problems, there’s nothing more to replace.
Dealing with multiple issues is always a challenge, as quite often you don't even know that is the case. You fix one issue, as I did with the safety switch, it works better for a short time, then you go back to a problem. It gets frustrating, and I think this is where a lot of good equipment gets abandoned for a new unit. Be patient, and go through each item carefully. Once it's been replaced, consider that as a non-issue. The good thing about a lawn tractor, at least this type, is that there is a limited number of items which can go wrong. The fuse holder issue was the hardest to figure out. I had suspicions before, but it took me a while before I actually changed it.
The last thing, I believe, a person should suspect is a faulty wiring harness. It's still the original on my unit now, and it seems to function OK. I'd say that absent any obvious physical damage to the wires, I'd leave that to the very last, and even then, just look again for obvious damage and replace the faulty wire.
The only other possibility is evil spirits, which I’m not qualified to deal with ??. All you mechanically inclined types have a good day, and a good laugh.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?...Qno_JCGPRzR_yAv2JXJI00b_EWJk1rrkoM4vK4vyL8638
I tried new batteries, to only limited success. The starter motor was definitely bad. It took me a while to realize this though. The deterioration in performance is slow and it did not dawn on me until it still would not turn over, even with a new battery. A replacement was easy and cost about $40. One or more of the safety switches may have been faulty. I replaced both of them.
I also replaced the ignition switch and starter solenoid, neither of which were faulty, looking back now, but it eliminated them as a possible issue.
The real bugaboo in the whole system, difficult to figure out, was the fuse holder in the circuit to the starter solenoid. It had corroded over time, and the fuse made poor, intermittent contact. It either worked great, or not at all. Replacing the fuse holder along with a 20 amp fuse, a new battery, new starter motor, all new safety switches and a battery cable, must have taken care of the problems, there’s nothing more to replace.
Dealing with multiple issues is always a challenge, as quite often you don't even know that is the case. You fix one issue, as I did with the safety switch, it works better for a short time, then you go back to a problem. It gets frustrating, and I think this is where a lot of good equipment gets abandoned for a new unit. Be patient, and go through each item carefully. Once it's been replaced, consider that as a non-issue. The good thing about a lawn tractor, at least this type, is that there is a limited number of items which can go wrong. The fuse holder issue was the hardest to figure out. I had suspicions before, but it took me a while before I actually changed it.
The last thing, I believe, a person should suspect is a faulty wiring harness. It's still the original on my unit now, and it seems to function OK. I'd say that absent any obvious physical damage to the wires, I'd leave that to the very last, and even then, just look again for obvious damage and replace the faulty wire.
The only other possibility is evil spirits, which I’m not qualified to deal with ??. All you mechanically inclined types have a good day, and a good laugh.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?...Qno_JCGPRzR_yAv2JXJI00b_EWJk1rrkoM4vK4vyL8638
