What's wrong w/my JD w/Kohler 17.5 engine?

Status
Not open for further replies.
Joined
Apr 7, 2017
Messages
553
Location
Mississippi
Gas tank and carb cleaned last week and ran pretty good.

Tried to cut again, cranked fine and ran well for about a minute. At first turn began missing, sputtering and nearly going dead. Fresh gas (100% gas) no water in lines.

Recranked after cooled. Exact same thing happened. It never completely dies but comes real close, esp when engaging blade.

Ideas, this will be the 3rd time in shop this cutting season
 
I would suspect float level is off. Or there is something still in one of the jets of the carb. Check your fuel line. I once had a intek engine that kept plugging carbs and the fuel line was disintegrating internally, putting black material in the jets.
 
Last edited:
Spark plug and wire, coil and wire, fuel pump, burnt valve....pretty much in that order. IMHO ( Assuming the carb rebuild and float is ok. ) Sometimes its as simple as a spark plug not tight.
 
Last edited:
Check to make sure the little hole in the top of the gas cap is clear so that it is getting air. I had something similar to you happen to me once and that's all that it was.
 
Simple enough test to see if your short on fuel is to give a shot of ether and if it perks up momentarily you have a fuel issue. You have a gas line filter right before the carb? spasm is on the right track IMO
 
Last edited:
This is a common problem on these engines. I'm guessing the tank is even, or lower, than the carb? And not above the carb (to gravity feed)?

If your unit uses a Kohler fuel filter, they recommend using the 75 micron unit (Kohler 2505021) on these, and not the 50 micron unit (Kohler 2505022)

If you recently changed your fuel filter, perhaps you used the wrong one. If you haven't changed it in a while, well now is the time. If the fuel line is old, I'd replace it now as well.

Also, try running it with the gas cap mostly unscrewed to see if the vent in the gas cap is blocked.

Also check, the vacuum lines on your fuel pump for leaks/deterioration. The fuel pump will be bolted to the engine and look like this below:
24-393-16-s.jpg


If the fuel filter is the correct part, and recently changed, and the vent line is not blocked in the fuel cap, then it might need a fuel pump. Good news is, they are easy to change and less than $20.
 
^ Yep, I've seen this happen when certain other than OEM fuel filters were used on Kohler engines, when equipped with the pulse/vac fuel pump. The filter may look like it's passing fuel, but it's not enough to keep the carb bowl full for all conditions.
 
May be the ignition coil. I had to replace the coil my grandmothers STX38 with a Kohler engine, same symptoms, would start up and run fine cold, but after the engine fan for 10 minutes and got warm the coil would drop spark.
 
Not sure what fuel filter the OP used before the problems arose....but I've seen many times the membrane style filters have problems right away on gravity feed systems, I would recommend only the pleated filters....good to hear it's running again.
 
John Deere sold me a rock catcher fuel filter. It's different what the Kohler fuel filter is. It's just a little thing. It was cheap. As soon as a switch to it all my issues went away. It's been working great since. It's a gravity feed system with no fuel pump. The filter can't be too restrictive.
 
I'm sure the restriction level of a new, clean fuel filter can be a problem for gravity feed systems as well, but as said, the only time I've experienced the 'sensitive to filter type' problem was with pulse/vac fuel pump equipped Kohlers. These typically have the fuel tank mounted lower than the engine/carb.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top