John Deere question

[The patriot]

My brother has a John Deere lt 160.
It stops running after about 40 minutes. He can see there's no fuel in the filter.
Once the filter refills it runs fine once again.
The filter is new. The lift pump is new, and the pickup line is new. Still does this. There's NO filter in the tank.
I was thinking a suction line leak, so he kept it full and it did the same thing.
Ideas/suggestions?
TIA

 

[mwilson]

Lot of hours on it??? I just did a quick surf regarding LT160 JD's and noticed that it has a Kohler engine. One famous habit of the Cub Cadet's with that same engine was quitting after a half hour or so of work. I believe the fix is a valve job if I recall correctly. The Cub Cadet I own went through the same thing years ago....

 

[TFucili]

How old is it? Back when I was a dealer the 160 had a Kawi engine. Verify that it has spark when it quits. Assuming it has an impulse pump, it is not unusual for the filter to look somewhat empty, so unless you prove it's a fuel issue, keep an open mind. If it is a fueling issue, check for proper venting, whether it is a vented cap, or a separate vent port. We used to replace a lot of vented caps for that reason. If it is a Kawi, they had a small(maybe 3/4 x 3/4)igniter module on the side of the engine that used to be a common issue. IIRC it will have one lead going to it. I remember Deere had a service campaign on them to improve ducting of cooling air to the engine, and relocation of the igniter to a cooler mounting point.

 

[mwilson]

Is the filter completely empty??? They don't run full as I recall...

I suspect that rather than the filter filling back up the engine is cooling down enough to start....

 

[The patriot]

It's a Kohler.\500-600 hrs.
He starts it and the filter slowly empties until the engine stops.

 

[mwilson]

What happens if he removes the fuel cap and then tries it???

 

[TFucili]

OK, so check venting. If that proves out, and it has an impulse pump, you could be losing "pulse signal" from the crankcase. Check the pulse line for cracks or perforation, or just replace it. Check the valve clearance, unless it has hydraulic lifters like the very early Kohler Command engines. Is the line routed near a heat source?

 

[The patriot]

Good points. (I should have thought of that)
Thanks guys.

 

[jhenderson]

X2 on the impulse line from the crankcase. My zero turn was giving me fits, surging and stalling. I finally spent the time to really look things over. The pulse line was stiff and brittle. I haven't had any more trouble sence replacing it. I used fuel injection hose rather than the cloth braid factory stuff.

 

[The patriot]

OK. Thanks.