Export thread

I was going to do hydro oil change on my Toro Timecutter Myride 60 inch mower to find a nasty surprise.
There is filler plug on top of transmission, one per each side. I am blessed, I knew well enough to ALWAYS open filler plug before draining any oil.
I found that filler plug is covered by frame flare right dead smack in the middle. Sure, there is service opening in the frame to place socket onto the plug but it's off by at least and inch and plug is UNACCESSIBLE. As in - there's only about 3/4 gap between frame flare and plug, so not socket is possible to slide on, least to say - socket and wrench.
To make things better, plug location is covered by the frame on the side and by some other components towards the middle of the mower. It also had transmission bolt bump right next to it, not allowing any straight tool to be somehow wiggled onto the plug. There is only about several inches gap I can stick my hand in and maybe, maybe some sort of a wrench, shown in picture attached. I could not even place a caliper onto the plug, it's so tight, to measure its size. I managed to wiggle crescent wrench on, at the angle, and it's around 22 or 24 mm head.
Also, there is breather plug next to it, but that I can remove with swivel socket and 3 extensions, yes. I actually tried to pour oil in through that plug hole - no mas. Won't let oil IN.
Any ideas how to get to the plug without dropping transmission, as that's what it starts looking like. I mean, I have been working on cars since 1990, I have good hands and am creative - there is NO access to the plug because of the factory f-up. Pic #3 shows about how much room I have to move a wrench, even if I can get it on somehow.

Hello ukrkoz,

Bad news for the owners of these residential machines is that the oil servicing for the hydrostatic transmissions is considered "lifetime". Most units are built to last 500 (part time) seasonal operational hours or less.

Only (some) expensive commercial units come with an actual spin on oil filter and service capability built in.

Well, bad news is, it does have 2 spin on filters and is supposed to be serviced at 50 hrs, per manual. I'm already at 72. First oil change. Thereafter, it's 300 hrs.

Buy the service/ repair manual. I would speculate there is some special instructions and likely a special tool for this process.

I have manual. It simply says remove plg, remove breather plug, refill to drip. Do air bleeding procedure. I'm pretty sure and it's quite obvious, that service window in the frame is simply off vs plug location. Basically, frame is for a different transmission or transmission is for a different frame.

Does the center of the plug just pop out? The fill is in the top left of the first picture from what I can tell. It has the grooved cut in it for gripping apparently.

Auto Doc's said:

Does the center of the plug just pop out? The fill is in the top left of the first picture from what I can tell. It has the grooved cut in it for gripping apparently.

Click to expand...

That's breather tube, not fill plug. Has spring loaded valve inside. Hole for it will NOT allow oil IN, I tried.
Fill plug, as usual, is a large hex head plug hidden by the frame flare.
Folks, service hole for that plug is in the wrong place. It is ALMOST where it should be, clearly, except that it is not. It's off. And that off is killing everything.
I sent request to Toro, don't expect much though. I'd really hate to have to drop transmission for such piddly job. But it's $7K mower, don't want to iff transmission either.
Red arrow in pic below points at the plug. Cute huh? God damn half inch difference, and I could have done it. With swivel head, most likely, but could access from the top. NOPE. And not even that - I'm reasonable guy, I could slide some box wrench from the side or something. Except that it's all covered by frame or engine from any angle from the side.

Another engineering marvel....

No, simply sloppy Qc at the factory and don't care those who put it together. It's good mower. Stuff happens.

I got it. Well, I just opened one side, the opposite side should not be a problem, it has better access. Wasn't even that hard with the right tool.

ukrkoz said:

I got it. Well, I just opened one side, the opposite side should not be a problem, it has better access. Wasn't even that hard with the right tool.

Click to expand...

Fill plug is often on the inside near very top on many serviceable transaxles, not on the top.

If you say so. It's on the top in this particular case. Literally, looks like some sort of prototype, as not much matches Toro manual for the model and year.

My HG 2800s have side & top access points..

OK, another update.
To avoid any "hard to tell from pictures" here's video of what it looks like:
Maybe this will help to understand the predicament.
I did oil change today.
No, there is no SIDE access fill plug. Only regular transmission case bolts.
Plug at the top indeed is fill plug.
No surprises to remove filters, only odd head 2 bolts per plastic cover - 3/8, while the rest of mower is metric. Whatever.
Surprise was how little oil drained out and how little oil went in. Manual says "
Fill approximately 2 quarts of Toro HYPR-OIL® or 20W-50 engine oil to the
level of the top port plug hole.". It took in maybe 1.5 qrt with new filter. And, I did purge procedure, opened plugs again, and added a bit more oil, as it dropped down after purge, and purged again.
Right transmission had quite a bit of metallic milkshake in it. Donno, maybe because of my property layout, I take more right hand turns, than left hand. Donno. But glad I did change.
I used Toro HYPR 500 oil said to be good for 500 hrs from today on.
Total time took about 2 hrs actually. Oil drains rather slowly. Also, had to use narrow funnel to get inside the fill hole at the angle and had to literally trickle oil in.
Then, purge procedure, open plugs again, add oil, purge again.
For purge procedure, manual says to jump seat sensor but my mower was on 4 stands, so I simply set in the seat. and purged it.

Item #1 in this picture is the service plug



using the pump and fitting in this kit to refill the units

ILENGINE said:

Item #1 in this picture is the service plug

View attachment 71260

using the pump and fitting in this kit to refill the units

View attachment 71259

Click to expand...

For those, who have or will have same mower I do:
Toro Timecutter with Myride, 60 0nch deck, Model # 75313, THERE IS NO SIDE PLUG ON TRANSMISSION.
Please, READ my previous post, watch the video, to see, where the plug is. Toro manual schematics are not applicable.
Also, oil, posted in the quoted response, is not 500 hr rated oil. Only Toro HYPROIL-500 is.

ukrkoz said:

For those, who have or will have same mower I do:
Toro Timecutter with Myride, 60 0nch deck, Model # 75313, THERE IS NO SIDE PLUG ON TRANSMISSION.
Please, READ my previous post, watch the video, to see, where the plug is. Toro manual schematics are not applicable.
Also, oil, posted in the quoted response, is not 500 hr rated oil. Only Toro HYPROIL-500 is.

Click to expand...

The video shows the top of the tranny through the frame. I want to see the area on the side of the transmission from under the mower. The parts diagram for the timecutter 60 on the Toro website even shows the fill plug on the side of the Hydro-gear transmission. It is item 11 on the parts diagram.

Pretty simple....cut out the back of the frame hole.

Maybe a crows foot wrench with an extension might work???

Increase the size of the hole. Then watch for cracking. Looking at this, I don't see the stress for cracking. A hole saw might work!