Go Bottom Go Bottom

JD 950 Temp Light

View my Photos
Todd Wilson
Join Date:
Posts: 1
TractorPoint Premium Member -- 5 Tractors = Very Frequent Poster

2001-04-23          27121

I'm new to tractors but not new to engines and so forth. My tractor is a 2wd 950 diesel. It has a rebuilt engine with about 23 hours on it now. I am doing some bush hog work with it. Its warming up now here in kansas and I have been mowing. Its been up in the 70's and starting to get warm.Question.......What temperature does the TEMP light come on at? Is this a dangerous temperature when this light comes on or is it a warning to do something different before its dangerous? I have had the temp light come on a few times and stop and clear the front screen from the radiator. I stop every once in a while to clean the screen but sometimes the temp light comes on and then I stop. At an idle I clean the screen and within 30 seconds the light goes out and away I go. Is this the normal thing or is the temp light coming on when the diesel is at a dangerous temp level? If this is a dangerous level how can I correct this so it doesnt happen every 30 minutes of mowing. There are times I get into some brush that has a lot of small particles flying about and the screen plugs pretty fast. I just dont want to damage this diesel engine from heat and especially being rebuilt. So far its running like a top. Good power and everything. It doesnt seem to skip a beat when the temp light comes on. I constantly watch the lights as I mow so I dont run it for an extended time with the temp light on.Thanks!Todd

Reply to | Quote Post Reply to PostQuote Reply | Add PhotoAdd Photo



JD 950 Temp Light

View my Photos
Mark E. Lamprey
Join Date:
Posts: 1
TractorPoint Premium Member -- 5 Tractors = Very Frequent Poster

2001-04-23          27123

Todd, I am looking at the manual for my 950, on page 7 under Engine Break-in, for the first 100 hours, it says, 1) Avoid unncessary engine idling. If tractor will be idle for more than five minutes, stop the engine.
2) Watch coolant temperature indicator closely. If lamp glows, shift to a lower gear or reduce load. Unless temperature quickly drops, stop the engine and determine the cause.
I would have to believe that item #2 would be a good policy throughout the life of the tractor and not just the first 100 hours. Hope this helps. Mark ....

Reply to | Quote Post Reply to PostQuote Reply | Add PhotoAdd Photo



JD 950 Temp Light

View my Photos
Mark E. Lamprey
Join Date:
Posts: 1
TractorPoint Premium Member -- 5 Tractors = Very Frequent Poster

2001-04-23          27124

Todd, I forgot to finish the last post before I sent it. What little knowledge I have of diesel engines, I understand that they do run and like to be hot. Just how hot, I do not know. I don't see in my manual anywhere where it says at what temperature the 950's temp light will come on. Under the Trouble Shooting section under "Engine Overheats" it does list some causes and remedy's. If you think you would like that list, let me know and I will email it to you. Mark ....

Reply to | Quote Post Reply to PostQuote Reply | Add PhotoAdd Photo



JD 950 Temp Light

View my Photos
Todd Wilson
Join Date:
Posts: 1
TractorPoint Premium Member -- 5 Tractors = Very Frequent Poster

2001-04-23          27130

I read the same thing in my book. I was just curious as to what temp it does come on. I think the screen being clogged up is what is causing the light to come on. I stop and idle and clean screen and it goes off in 30 seconds or less and then I can continue on with my mowing. I am just concerned that theres damage to be had when the light comes on and was curious as to what the temp is. I mowed for about 5 hours today and cleaned the screen 4 times and the 4th time the light came on. Weather was 70 today. Things did warm up but not like it will be in July when its 100 outside. I am hoping I bought the right tractor for the job. In July 100 heat I would hate to mow and stop every 5-10 minutes because of the temp light. Is there any tricks out there to help prevent the screen from clogging? Am I just experiencing a fresh engine being tight and running a little on the warm side until broke in? Or is all this just normal and me cleaning the screen and idle til light goes off and continue on the normal and right thing to do?!?!


Todd

....

Reply to | Quote Post Reply to PostQuote Reply | Add PhotoAdd Photo



JD 950 Temp Light

View my Photos
Kenny
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 46 sale creek
TractorPoint Premium Member -- 5 Tractors = Very Frequent Poster

2001-04-23          27132

Todd, The light should be coming on at approximately 230 degrees. I assume that you are not seeing any boil over out the radiator cap since you don't mention it. although it is normal to need to clean the screen occasionaly, it sounds like yours is a little extreme. Are you sure that the radiator fins themselves are clean? Looks can be deceiving. When the throttle is wide open, you should be able to hold your hand in front of the radiator and feel a large volume of air being drawn through the radiator. Just be careful that you don't get anywhere near the fan! Also , is thye fan belt tight? Is the fan blade and shroud installed properly and undamaged? The radiator may be internally clogged, keeping antifreeze from flowing properly. I think you must have some cooling system problem, because this engine should not be overheating in 70 degree weather. Another thought, the temperature sensor could be bad, or the timing could be out of spec on the engine. I hope that some of this helps. Kenny ....

Reply to | Quote Post Reply to PostQuote Reply | Add PhotoAdd Photo



JD 950 Temp Light

View my Photos
Roger L.
Join Date: Jun 1999
Posts: 0
TractorPoint Premium Member -- 5 Tractors = Very Frequent Poster

2001-04-23          27145

I don't think you have hurt it, and new ones do run hotter. On my 336D (has the same engine) I took a garden hose, ivory soap, and a very soft brush and squirted through the radiator fins from the engine side. Washed all kinds of crud out of there. Then it got a cooling system flush with liquid Prestone radiator flush in the bottle (not the heavy duty powder). I know that stuff is caustic and didn't want to hurt the radiator, so I only used it at half the recommended strength and just left it in for long enough to run the tractor and get it warm - about 10 minutes - instead of for a long time like it said on the Prestone container. Then stuck the garden hose in the radiator filler neck and flushed all that stuff out. Next came antifreeze and water. I knew not to use more than 50% antifreeze, as that will protect the system and antifreeze is not nearly so good at transfering heat as water. Finally for peace of mind I took out the temperature light sender and screwed in a "T" connector into the block. The temperature light sender went into one side of the T and regular temperature
gauge sender was installed in the other side of the T. The gauge itself is wired down by the shift lever where I can see it. Haven't had a problem since. ....

Reply to | Quote Post Reply to PostQuote Reply | Add PhotoAdd Photo



JD 950 Temp Light

View my Photos
Mark E. Lamprey
Join Date:
Posts: 1
TractorPoint Premium Member -- 5 Tractors = Very Frequent Poster

2001-04-24          27149

Roger, I like your idea of the T and a seperate line for a real temperature guage. I never did really trust a light. I will have to see about installing the same on my 950. Thanks for the idea. Mark ....

Reply to | Quote Post Reply to PostQuote Reply | Add PhotoAdd Photo



JD 950 Temp Light

View my Photos
Todd Wilson
Join Date:
Posts: 1
TractorPoint Premium Member -- 5 Tractors = Very Frequent Poster

2001-04-24          27165

There is no boil over at all. I did blow some air thru the radiator the other day as I inspected things and did the regular servicing. The fan,belt and shroud all seem to be fine. It is pulling a lot of air thru the radiator. I will stop the tractor and go to idle and open hood and clean off the screen up front. I am getting 3-4 good fist fulls of grass and stuff off it. I can feel it pull the air thru real good. I did this 3 times yesterday and then was mowing along later and the light came on so I stopped and cleaned the screen and the light went off. The light only came on 1 time yesterday and I put 5 hours on the meter running the brush hog. I was just concerned about the temp it does reach when the light does come on. I may look into rigging up another screen to help prevent clogging of the one that goes with the tractor.
I have ran this tractor doing other things and have only had the light come on 2 times and that was both when mowing and the screen was clogged up when it happened. I'll run some water thru the radiator before I run it again to make sure its cleaned out. I just dont want to hurt this rebuilt diesel while breaking it in. I have worked on cars in the past and know the first hours/miles of a new engine are critical as to how it will be the rest of its life. I hope this diesel will out last me!
Thanks for all the ideas and info!

Todd
....

Reply to | Quote Post Reply to PostQuote Reply | Add PhotoAdd Photo



JD 950 Temp Light

View my Photos
Murf
Join Date: Dec 1999
Posts: 7249 Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada
TractorPoint Premium Member -- 5 Tractors = Very Frequent Poster  View my Photos  Pics

2001-04-24          27168

In our line of work (golf course construction) keeping the rads clean & clear is a constant headache. The (relatively) simple solution we came up with was to place a light frame with a slot to accept a slide-in screen panel (window screen) about 3 inches in front of the rad. Being even this short distance back from, and slightly larger than the rad opening the vacuum on it is greatly reduced. Then the screen panel is merely slid out and shaken / brushed clean with the tractor at an idle, keeping hands well clear of the hot rad, and keeping the rad itself much cleaner. This screen seems to allow much better air flow when 'full' than the rad, probably because of the reduced suction being set back a little. Best of luck. ....

Reply to | Quote Post Reply to PostQuote Reply | Add PhotoAdd Photo



JD 950 Temp Light

View my Photos
Mark E. Lamprey
Join Date:
Posts: 1
TractorPoint Premium Member -- 5 Tractors = Very Frequent Poster

2001-04-24          27169

Murph, The JD 950 has an debris screen very much like you described built right into it although it sits close, right in front of the radiater (you may already know this). When I bought my tractor a couple of months ago I had to slide it out and clean it. It seems to do a nice job of collecting a lot of stuff that would wind up in the radiator fins otherwise. Mark ....

Reply to | Quote Post Reply to PostQuote Reply | Add PhotoAdd Photo



JD 950 Temp Light

View my Photos
mark
Join Date: Feb 2002
Posts: 188 Virginia
TractorPoint Premium Member -- 5 Tractors = Very Frequent Poster

2001-04-24          27174

Todd, I to have a 2wd JD-950 and have experienced the same problem as you have described. It only bothers when mowing for extended periods of time. I went through the tractor last summer flushing the radiator and changing the thermostat to no avail. As a suggestion to you, I have since reconstructed the foam seal around the hood/radiator and added nylon screen to the side "gills" on the hood. The thinking is, this should seal the "intake chamber" in front of the radiator and filter debris out before it reaches the main radiator screen. Am waiting for warmer weather here to test this latest experiment. Please keep the board posted as to your final resolution on this problem. Good Luck. Regards Mark. ....

Reply to | Quote Post Reply to PostQuote Reply | Add PhotoAdd Photo



JD 950 Temp Light

View my Photos
Todd Wilson
Join Date:
Posts: 1
TractorPoint Premium Member -- 5 Tractors = Very Frequent Poster

2001-04-25          27240

Thanks for all the info in the previous posts. I did some more checking and testing today and I think my problem is just the debris screen clogging up on the tractor as I mow. It was in the 80's today and I ran it for 3 hours non stop mowing. No temp light today. I checked the screen 2 times and cleaned it off both times but it was not bad. I then mowed a field that was green and did not have much flying particles. The screen was not plugged during this time of mowing. I have been knocking down 4-6 foot high dry stuff from last year and I think I just plain flat clogged the screen. Tractor was hot today and putting off the heat in the midday sun but never gave me a light so it performed rather well.

Someone had mentioned some weather stripping and I think if properly placed around the front under the hood theres a small space in front of the radiator I think could be somewhat sealed off so air only comes in thru the front of the tractor thru the black grill outside and then on thru via the screen into the radiator. Maybe this is how the 950's are supposed to be when new. Perhaps I am experiencing this not working right due to the age of the tractor.
I did run water thru the radiator fins before I went to work today and it appeared to be clean. This tractor was tore down for the engine rebuild and I think everything has been gone thru so I dont think I have a radiator or water pump problem. I will look into this sealed front again when I have time. Maybe someone who has purchased a 950 brand new can verify if things are supposed to be sealed up when the hood is down around the front end and radiator areas?!?!


Todd
....

Reply to | Quote Post Reply to PostQuote Reply | Add PhotoAdd Photo



JD 950 Temp Light

View my Photos
Roger L.
Join Date: Jun 1999
Posts: 0
TractorPoint Premium Member -- 5 Tractors = Very Frequent Poster

2001-04-25          27244

The seal is important enough that Yanmar used to send out a service bulletin requiring that this be checked during the warranty period. There was even a labor flatrate listed for renewing the gasketing. Commercial weatherstrip works just fine. I've had the best luck with the heavy duty closed cell type that I found at the RV store. I think the original use was to seal between the top of a pickup truck bed and a camper shell. ....

Reply to | Quote Post Reply to PostQuote Reply | Add PhotoAdd Photo



JD 950 Temp Light

View my Photos
Rick Cosman
Join Date:
Posts: 1
TractorPoint Premium Member -- 5 Tractors = Very Frequent Poster

2001-04-25          27245

I've always wondered why tractors don't use the method alot of other equipment does, ie: I have an old Lincoln 200 pipeliner welding machine. You've all seen them with the 4 cyl. flathead contenintal engines. They were designed so the air blows out the front instead of sucking in. I've never seen one clog up or overheat. It also aids in warmup. Rick C. ....

Reply to | Quote Post Reply to PostQuote Reply | Add PhotoAdd Photo



JD 950 Temp Light

View my Photos
Rick Cosman
Join Date:
Posts: 1
TractorPoint Premium Member -- 5 Tractors = Very Frequent Poster

2001-04-25          27246

Roger, I will be installing that tee ASAP. My light has come on a few times with no other symtems. I don't have any w/stripping left on my old 336 either. Personally I think Wally probably wired it backwards, but as usual you've got my attention. Rick C. ....

Reply to | Quote Post Reply to PostQuote Reply | Add PhotoAdd Photo



JD 950 Temp Light

View my Photos
Brian A
Join Date:
Posts: 1
TractorPoint Premium Member -- 5 Tractors = Very Frequent Poster

2001-09-08          31678

This may be a little late to help Todd, but may help others. I'm going through a 1982 950 I bought from a friend, doing p.m. stuff, belts, hoses, etc. The radiator looked great for a 20 year old radiator, but I pulled it anyway. My trusted local radiator refurb man pointed out significant internal problems. This could be the cause of the overheating problem. The refurb was $180, which is less than half the cost of a new one. Also, don't forget to check or replace the thermostat. If it sticks, it could cause an overheat condition. ....

Reply to | Quote Post Reply to PostQuote Reply | Add PhotoAdd Photo



JD 950 Temp Light

View my Photos
cwsull11
Join Date: Aug 2016
Posts: 4 Franklin, Tn
TractorPoint Premium Member -- 5 Tractors = Very Frequent Poster

2016-08-29          195708

Does anyone know the size of the threads of the temp sensor on the 950? Trying to convert to mechanical gauge but having issue finding correct adapter.
Appreciate any response to you 960 owners who have done this conversion.
Thanks Curtis ....

Reply to | Quote Post Reply to PostQuote Reply | Add PhotoAdd Photo



JD 950 Temp Light

View my Photos
cwsull11
Join Date: Aug 2016
Posts: 4 Franklin, Tn
TractorPoint Premium Member -- 5 Tractors = Very Frequent Poster

2016-08-29          195709

It's 950 JD ....

Reply to | Quote Post Reply to PostQuote Reply | Add PhotoAdd Photo


  Go Top Go Top

Share This
Share This







Member Login