1811 tractor
 

A friend ask if I'd be interested in rebuilding the M18 engine for his 1811, although I've done many of the kohler single cyl engines ( successfully so far ), I have no experience with the twin cyl. engines and know nothing about them ! I guess my first question would be are they a good engine and worth rebuilding (depending on damage ) ? They told me this tractor caught fire a couple years ago, they felt the fire started due to overheating of the engine ? Parts were replaced from the fire damage and the tractor was continued to be used. I believe the story goes the following spring they started it up and it filled the garage with smoke ( saw the video-lots of smoke ) also was indicated after the fire damage repair it seemed to use oil and may have been run with a low oil level. So with all that said I realize what kind of damage I may find should I decide to take on this task but I need some input as to whether this engine ( M18) is a good rebuild candidate in general and is there any special pitfalls I should be aware of with the twin cyl kohlers ? thanks in advance for any input ! :beerchug:

They are a good engine, expensive to rebuild properly. A Kohler Magnum Twin Engine book is a must! It will explain everything including where to place silicone on the two crank case half during assembly.

The service manual is available to down load here on OCC.
Check that the crankcase did not overfill fill with gas from a leaky needle valve in the Carb, and that is the smoke.
It could be that simple, check the easy things first.
I feel they are worth rebuilding.
A badly worn engine will blow lots of oil in the air cleaner
( or if it has a bad crankcase vent)
A good working engine with some hours on it, will have a drop or so of oil in aircleaner, but not sopping wet.
let us know what you find.:beerchug:

Good info ! I'll do a little more research into the engine before I decide if I want to tackle it, I just want to make a good call for the guy and not have him spend a pile of money on something that is not worth it, looks like just the parts kit is in the 300 dollar range without taking any other damage into consideration . I think this could easily get into the 5-600 dollar range barring any major damage to the crank or bores ! I'll look into the overfilled oil possibility and hope it's that simple ! thanks