JD L100 and LA100 series trans oil change

15 years ago

I have a JD L118. It had a K46 trans that failed at 177 hrs. It was replaced under warranty with a T40 which is apparently the same as the K46 whith a couple of small changes. I don't know what those are though. Anyway, I now have 295 hrs on it and I decided at 175 hrs to change the trans oil. JD says that it is a sealed unit and can't be serviced. Tuff Torque says that periodic servicing would extend the life of the unit. The factory recommends 10W30 motor oil. I use mine 8 hrs at a time so it has plenty of opportunity to heat up. With this in mind I used Mobil 1 15W50 synthetic. I realize that this is not what is recommended, but I think it was a good choice for me. As you can see I have 20 hrs on it so far and have had nothing but good results. Here is a step by step of the precess.

1. Raise the rear of the mower.

2. Remove the rear wheels.

3. Disconnect the brake rod on the left side of the trans.

4. Set the parking brake. This takes tension off the belt.

5. Support the trans and remove the six bolts holding it to the frame.

6. As you lower the trans remove the belt from the pulley and unhook the reverse switch, the forward/reverse rod, and guide teh freewheel rod out of the hole in the frame.

7. Now that the trans is on the ground, clean in very well. You don't want any dirt to get in.

8. On the top of the trans, on the left side, is the Fill/vent cap. Pry this cap out with a screwdriver.

9. Turn the trans upside down to pour out the oil. You may have to tilt it back and forth to get it all. There sould be 2 quarts.

Now slowly pour the new oil in. If you pour too fast, an air bubble will form and push the oil back out. You will need to tilt the trans back and forth to get the air out as you fill it. you should be able to get nearly 2 quarts in.
Reinstall the trans, but leave the wheels jacked off the ground.
Pull out the freewheel rod. Start the engine and release the parking brake. At this point quickly make sure that the belt is tracking properly.
Push the forward/reverse pedal back and forth a few times slowly.
Push the freewheel rod back in. Push the forward/reverse pedal again and make sure the the rear wheels turn smoothly and the trans is not making any unusual noise.
Shut off the engine, lower the rear end, and test drive the tractor.

Some people have suggested adding a drain plug. I don't feel that this would be a goo idea in this application, as even if you could drain the oil, there is no access to refill it.

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Comments (6)

tomplum
15 years ago
Good write up. Well thought out. Had you had any issues before with this t/a or just thought the oil change was the right thing to do? Do you think there would be room to put in a drain and fill?
fix_it
Original Author
15 years ago
I'm sure you could probably drill and tap the case for a drain plug. I would want to take it apart first to make sure. I don't think you could easily fill the trans in this application because of the design of the tractor. If there was enough room to access the fill plug, maybe you could. All-in-all, I don't think it was that big of a deal. It took me 30 to 45 minutes to remove the trans. That also allowed me to clean all the fins and grease the axles while it was apart.

As far as symptoms, no I wasn't having any signs of trouble. The first one failed at 177 hrs, so I thought I would change the oil in this one at 100 hrs. I will tell you that the oil came out a dark color as if it were burned. There was also a swirly sheen in the oil, like wear particals. I could not feel any grit in the oil, but it had the swirls under a light if you know what I mean. I think it was a good thing to change the oil, and it certainly didn't hurt anything. It may be all in my head, but the trans seems quieter and possibly has more torque now.
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larrydolly
15 years ago
Would you happen to have an exploded view of the t40 tramsmission. I have tried for some time to obtain one from JD and I understand that this trans has no serviceable parts. Whatever check valve that has failed, we can machine any of the parts; I simply prefer to have a diagram before disassembly.
Many thanks,
Larry
gregd
15 years ago
Just did this with my LT155 with K51 tranny. My fill plug had a spring and a screen underneath...otherwise every thing else seemed about the same as the procedure above. I also used Mobil 1 15w-50 and things seem to be okay. It's only 45 degrees now, so I'm looking forward to things warming up to give it a good workout.
gregd
15 years ago
....as a PS, my tractor has 300 hours on it, and the transaxle oil was pretty dark. I'm glad I did this procedure, and wish I had heard about it sooner....fingers crossed....
trevhead62
9 years ago
Much time has passed since this thread started but I still found it very helpful with my JD L111 and D140 transmission oil change.

The L111 Tuff torq T40 had 350 hrs on it when she failed and I ended up buying a replacement tranny... the rest of the machine was in good nick so for me it was worth it. Now that it's done another 50 hours with the new tranny it was time to change the oil. I pretty much followed the procedure above to do the job.

When it came to removing the breather plug, I learned that you have to be careful not to damage it. Gently remove the "rubbery cap" from the breather valve itself and , Using a screwdriver and hammer, lightly tap upward against the hard edge of the plug. Once out, I just took an accurate measurement of the quantity that came out, (tilting and rolling it around to ensure it all drained out), and put the same qty of Mobil 1 5w50 Fully synthetic in. Precisely 1,970mls. I took it real slow pouring it in. 1 litre first, then the rest after turning the unit over and around a bit.

Reassembly was straight forward. Apply grease to the axels, never sieze to the bolts and make sure the belt and tensioner are as they should be before priming and purging air.

The D140 was more or less exactly the same. It had 50 hours on it so I went ahead and changed the tranny oil in it as well. It too took just under 2 Litres. I was glad I changed it because the oil that came out was already discoloured.

Both machines have benefited from this. They seem to be quieter and smoother in operation now.

In the future I'll be paying a bit more attention to the tranny when cleaning it. The fins on the casting are prone to clogging up with dirt and crap which causes the unit to run too hot. And heat is the killer.

Trev.