Tell me all about my KOHLER command 18hp...please

[wsar10]

We just bought another house and with it came a Poulan PRO 50th ann. 46" cut lawn tractor I'm pretty sure this is just a cheap wall-mart tractor and nothing special, now for the important part: it has a KHOLER COMMAND 18h, OHV V-twin with hydrolic lifters (read off of motor)

It is what it is and I only need to mow about 1/2 an acre with it but I'd like to know all about the motor, and the proper oil to use in it (will 10-30 T5 work?)

Like is this a good motor?
What other motor is it the same as?
comon issues to look out for?
any specific maint. required?
how much oil does it hold?

you guys get the idea, so school me on it

and thanks in advance

 

[Slick17601]

Are you sure it's a Command? I'd be surprised if Poulan sprung for a Command in one of their tractors. Most likely it's a Courage.

 

[wsar10]

positive,
maybe thats what makes it the PRO ??
or maybe becuase it's the anniversery edition ??

 

[hounddog]

Its used in zillons of mowers. Nothing special in this day and age. 10w30 will work fine. It might hold 2 qts. Put 1.5 in it and check it.

 

[doitmyself]

The Command series is Kohler's "better" engine used in commercial grade mowers. For years Kohler recommended only 10W30, citing the hydraulic lifters required that. In the past year or two, they released a bulletin stating straight 30 wt. was also acceptable above 50f (I think).

Over at lawnsite.com the pros argue back and forth about lifter noise, the need/no need for 10W30 etc.,and they admit to using various grades.

I'm in the camp that thinks HDEO is better for air cooled engines and in my opinion the Rotella T5 should be excellent for your climate. Some guys here love the Amsoil ACD oil. And, to cover all the bases, a few will chime in and say any automotive oil will work!

 

[JTK]

Yep, if it's a Kohler with hydraulic lifters, it's a Command series. Like said, they're rated as commercial grade engines and routinely last over 2000hrs with a reasonable degree of maintenance.

I've never torn into one, but I've been told the lifters themselves are interchangeable with Chevy small-block lifters.

I've run everything from cheap 10w30 to 15w40 in mine and I run Motorcraft FL400 sized filters.

Joel

 

[wsar10]

thanks so far guys this all seems to be good news,
I'm glad to here that i can use T5 cuz i'm switching one of my jeeps over to that in about 1000mi,s.
If AMSOIL was a decent price and shelf stocked locally id grab some but I'm not one to wait for the mailman for my oil and the closest local dealer is roughly 20min away.

so my tractor has an oil filter ??
and how many fuel filters does this thing have ??
any good resource for an owner manual online ??

We also have a "chonda" mini-bike (baja) for the kids (Honda GX160 clone) and a cheap 4hp "white" push mower do you guys think T5 will be ideal for all of the above or straight 30wt, guys say I should run non-detergant 30wt oil in the baja becuase oil with detergant will foam up up due to it being "splash injected".....is this correct???

 

[tomcat27]

run the T5 in all. non-detergent causes foaming???!!!??? uh... no. the only reason to run non-detergent would be in a car so old that it never had detergent oil in it and might be all gunked up inside.

 

[RS700L]

The push mower is probably splash lubricated too. I don't think the detergent is a problem. It's not like there's bubble bath in it...I've run engines that use splash lube with regular oil and dumped it out immediately after use - no foam there.

For the push mower and the minibike, straight grade oil is probably what you want. Some folks like to use heavy duty formulations in air cooled motors.

For your Command, you should use multi-viscosity - the hydraulic lifters will like it.

If you get its model number, you can look it up and get an owner's manual here:

http://www.kohlerengines.com/manuals/landing.htm

 

[wsar10]

Originally Posted By: tomcat27
run the T5 in all. non-detergent causes foaming???!!!??? uh... no. the only reason to run non-detergent would be in a car so old that it never had detergent oil in it and might be all gunked up inside.


No they are telling me oil WITH detergants will foam up during splash.
you got it backwards

 

[wsar10]

and what about gear oil in this thing ?

 

[SilverC6]

Got the same engine on my EXMark zero turn.

I've used 10W-30 from new. 2 quarts to change (with filter).

Started with PP but YBP has been my choice lately.

May use some QS 10W-30 on the upcoming change.

I've been pleased with the torque from the 18 hp twin.

It's a good motor.

 

[Hokiefyd]

Originally Posted By: wsar10
No they are telling me oil WITH detergants will foam up during splash.


They won't, and they don't. Unless Kohler specifically recommends a non-detergent oil (I don't think they do), the T5 will work just fine. I happen to use M1 HM 10W-30 in my 4-cycle OPE just because of the SL rating on it.

 

[deeter16317]

I've got the 25HP variant...I'm running 5w40 Schaeffer in mine, and it seems to be just fine. Compared to the junk that I drained out, the 5w40 seems thin.

 

[deeter16317]

Originally Posted By: wsar10


so my tractor has an oil filter ??
and how many fuel filters does this thing have ??
any good resource for an owner manual online ??





If its a Command, it should have a filter...standard Kohler filter which can be cross referenced in this forum.

It probably has one primary fuel filter (in line, plastic or metal), and possibly a screen in the tank pickup.

www.kohlerengines.com will provide your manuals.

 

[btanchors]

I have a Kohler command series in one of my commercial mowers, except it's only 15hp.

I actually did a couple of UOAs - one with Mobil 1 EP 10W-30, and one with Amsoil MCT 10W-30. MCT is their Motorcycle oil.

Both UOAs were on intervals of about 100 hours.

The Mobil 1 showed signs of minor shearing. The Amsoil faired better in this regard. The Amsoil also had a lower level of wear metals.

Overall, I have become a fan of using Motorcycle oils in small air-cooled engines, over PCMO or HDMOs, for the following reasons:

1) The type of engine (small, high-revving, air-cooled) is closer to the operating environment of a motorcycle than a Passenger car or even a diesel engine - therefore motorcycle oils (in theory) should be well-suited to this type of use.
2) Motorcycle oils contain significantly elevated levels of anti-wear additives, well-above PCMOs, and most HDMOs.
3) Motorcycle oils contain additional anti-corrosion additives to reduce corrosion during times of non-use. This is also a good fit for most small engines.

One thing I noticed in both UOAs I did on the Kohler is that TBN held up very well - for both the Mobil 1 and Amsoil, TBNs were over 9 even after 100 hours of use. My guess is oil always gets up to operating temperature quickly and stays there, until the next use. HDMOs typically are constructed to combat the acids that arise in a diesel engine, to maintain a higher TBN. Based on what I have seen, you don't need this in a small engine. I don't know if the additives needed to maintain TBN sacrifice performance in other areas, but you don't need ultra-high TBNs in small engines.

Just for grins, I have toyed with the idea of trying racing oil in some of my commercial small engines just to try it, and perhaps run a UOA or two. The only thing about racing oil is it would not contain the additional corrosion inhibitors that motorcycle oil does.

 

[Hokiefyd]

Originally Posted By: btanchors
Overall, I have become a fan of using Motorcycle oils in small air-cooled engines, over PCMO or HDMOs, for the following reasons:

1) The type of engine (small, high-revving, air-cooled) is closer to the operating environment of a motorcycle than a Passenger car or even a diesel engine - therefore motorcycle oils (in theory) should be well-suited to this type of use.
2) Motorcycle oils contain significantly elevated levels of anti-wear additives, well-above PCMOs, and most HDMOs.
3) Motorcycle oils contain additional anti-corrosion additives to reduce corrosion during times of non-use. This is also a good fit for most small engines.


I like your thought process there. Good points.

 

[wsar10]

^^this makes sense to me aswell, but i'm trying to keep my different types of oil to a min across the board,

My tractor will probably see around 50hrs a year.

 

[ddrumman2004]

What Honda design engine is on this atv? If it's an overhead cam design it's going to have an oil pump.

As for the 4 hp engine, a detergent oil won't hurt it. I have a 15 year old Murray push mower with a B&S 3.75 hp flat head engine that has always had a high detergent oil in the crankcase.

 

[wsar10]

Originally Posted By: ddrumman2004
What Honda design engine is on this atv? If it's an overhead cam design it's going to have an oil pump.

As for the 4 hp engine, a detergent oil won't hurt it. I have a 15 year old Murray push mower with a B&S 3.75 hp flat head engine that has always had a high detergent oil in the crankcase.


A GX160 clone, i'm certain its not OHC