LT1050 stops driving. Recovers after cooling down.
 

Hello. I have an LT1050 (model no. 187347/13AQ11CP712, serial no. 1E195H20502) with Kohler Command engine (CV26). I don't remember what year it was, but I bought it new. I used it for a couple years and it's been broken for a couple years. I got it out last weekend and was able to mow half the yard before recreating the problem I experienced a couple years ago. It's time to figure this out so I can use it again. Here's what happened last weekend.

I was able to mow for 45 minutes to an hour before the tractor stopped dead in its tracks in a (small) cloud of rubbery smelling blue smoke. I had no forward or reverse but the engine was still running. (I actually shut it off right away because it stumbled a bit when the tractor stopped moving, but I suspect that was because the engine was suddenly unloaded.) After about 15 minutes of letting it cool down, I was able to drive it back to the shed without any problem. When it stopped a couple years ago, it did so in similar fashion, but I don't remember the rubbery blue smoke. Each time it happened, it would resume normal function after cooling down. It was cool here last weekend and I think that may have been why I was able to mow longer than expected before it quit. Any suggestions would be GREATLY appreciated. After two or three years of not having my lawn tractor, I'm finally getting tired of push mowing. Thanks for reading this. I'm looking forward to your feedback and suggestions.

-Shaun

Ok, well lets start with the simple stuff first. Did you check anything out at all? Is the belt that drives the hydrostat intact? Do all the idler pulleys spin freely? You mentioned "Rubbery blue smoke". This puts me in mind that the hydrostat belt was slipping on the motors pulley.

Begin by:
1.) Checking the hydro belt. You will probably have to remove the deck to do this.
2.) Go ahead and take the belt off the tensioner pulleys. You don't have to remove it completely, just get it loose so you can check to see if all the idler pulley bearings are good.
3.) The parts book shows an expansion reservoir. I don't know without pulling the service manual is it has a fill level or not, but one way or another you need to see if the hydrostat oil is at the correct level. Even if you already found it has a belt issue, check the fluid level if you can. It may not be servicable.
4.) Blow all the accumulated grass off the hydrostat and clean it. Even if you find that it is a belt problem, CLEAN IT OFF.

If you don't find the problem with this advice, come back and report and we can give you the next steps. From you description, I would say that you have a belt/pulley issue. Let us know!

Thanks, Jonathan. I've got Series 1000 operator's, parts, and service manuals that I downloaded a while ago. Are those sufficient or are there better manuals available? I haven't taken the deck off before but it sounds like a piece of cake.

Did you download them here? .... Are they the cub cadet manuals? If they came from here, or are the CCC manuals then yes, those are sufficient. If not OEM, then I'm not sure.... :bigthink:

I believe I downloaded them from CC a while ago. They are OEM manuals. I'm still finding my way around this site but I'll check to see if there's anything more specific to my model available here.

I want to expand upon #3. My 1610 had a similar problem where it soul lose power after the hydro got warm. I already checked the rest and there was already a good level of fluid. I took the hydro apart this winter and everything looked good inside still. Cleaned it up and put everything back together. When I agent to fail it up with new fluid I was able to pour maybe a cup into the rest and nothing more! The mesh screen at the bottom of the res wasn't allowing air out and so it was air locked. In my case the power loss was caused by not having a full hydro and the fluid becomes foamed up when hot. After cooling and settling everything ran good until next time. I ended up cutting the mesh out to fill it and I haven't had trouble since.

^^That's great advice!! The parts book showed a piece of foam in the tank? I think???..... But I didn't see the screen. This makes sense! :beerchug:

Did you get this fixed? I have the identical issue on my LT1050. Just joined because of this, I have no idea how to go about repairing this issue.

I haven't yet. Too many projects; too little time. I'm planning to start working on it soon, now that a couple higher priorities are out of the way. I'll let you know what I find out.

I took a short video which I will upload later, still processing on youtube.

I pulled off the deck and took a look as much as I could.

My Hydro belt is getting worn out, I can see a lot of cracks in it. I also noticed that it wasn't on one of the tensioning wheels, I took a picture of that also, I'll try to post it later. It was one of the silver wheels under the deck.

When I stopped mowing the back yard yesterday after 30 minutes I didn't have the issue, but I could hear a lot of noise which is in the video I will post in a bit. sounds almost like the fluid was boiling inside the transmission.