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This post was edited by bill_kapaun on Tue, Sep 3, 13 at 16:26

Thanks for the info. You are correct that the Hydro is K46BT. My owners manual says the following about it:

The transaxle was sealed at the factory and fluid maintenance is not required for the life of the transaxle. Should the transaxle ever leak or require servicing, contact your nearest authorized service centre/department.

Thoughts?

You should do a search of this forum using such key words as "hydrostat oil change" or "hydrostatic transmission oil change".
You are just one more person in a very long list that has come to this forum with the problem you describe.
Changing the oil often requires removing the transmission from the tractor so it can be placed "upside down" over a suitable catch pan.
Whether you are capable of, or even want to do it............changing the oil has saved many a hydrostat from being tossed into the scrap heap.
To use the forum search feature, scroll all the way to the bottom of the opening page and you will see the search facility.

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This post was edited by bill_kapaun on Tue, Sep 3, 13 at 16:27

Mark,
You've provided some great information, but could you please clarify a couple things?

You said, "Recently it has started to bog down when going up hills."

By "bog down", do you mean that the engine appears to bog down (as in the RPM's change significantly, or it coughs/sputters), or do you mean that the transmission appears to slip (no change in RPM, but the tractor slows significantly)?

And the hills of which you speak, are these long gradual inclines (50-feet plus horizontal but only 10-feet vertical), or are they small berms (10-feel horizontal, 5-feet vertical), or are they large hills (25-feet or more vertical)? On a long/steep slope, there could be a fuel starvation issue.

@ mownie, thank you
@ gewf631
the engine maintains it's rpm's, no coughing or sputtering whatsoever, the tractor slows considerably and stops. If I release the pedal and slowly apply it again, then the tractor will continue slowly

The hills I speak of are long continuous hills. I don't believe there is a fuel starvation issue simply because the rpm's of the engine do not change.

I am thinking of changing the belt to the transaxle as my next step.

bill suggested adding fluid, however given that my manual says it is sealed at the factory I think the logical next step is the belt, unless there is something else I could do that I presently don't know about.

Thank you

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This post was edited by bill_kapaun on Tue, Sep 3, 13 at 16:28

@bill
I'm sorry if I misinterpreted your initial post. When I found this site it looked like a good place to seek information on how to troubleshoot or fix a problem with a tractor. You posted a link to the manual that "tells how to add or change fluid".

If you had posted a link that told me how to add air to a tire, then I would assume you didn't understand my issue.
When you posted the noted link, I mistakenly assumed that you were providing me with information that would assist me with my problem. Apparently this wasn't the case.

Sorry for taking your information as a suggestion on how to fix my issue.

I will save the link for the future in the event I ever need to add or change the fluid in my Hydro.

For your info, I am seeking advice on how to solve my issue with the slowing down while going up hills. It seems I am getting some good advice from others on this forum.

I won't be disappointed should you decide not to offer me any further advice.

Cheers, Mark

@Mark,

Based on my experience and the multitudes of posts regarding K46 failures all over the net your description sounds like classic "tired K46 syndrome". A result of long continuous hills over a long period of time and most likely using the wrong lawn tractor for the job and terrain..

It's not that you NEED more oil it's that the oil in the K46 is tired and probably burned. There's a good chance that changing the oil as Bill's link instructs and using synthetic will buy you more life for a time.

If your drive belt were slipping you'd smell it and if the splines on the fan/drive pulley were worn or stripped you wouldn't go anywhere.

All one needs to do anything are the knowledge and the tools... lacking either success is rarely achieved. As a newbie who just joined the forum and apparently cause you need some knowledge you lacked you are kinda ungrateful. You come here asking for help from those more knowledgeable than you and don't like the answers you get.

If you're ignorant regarding technical aspects of your LT you came to the right place for knowledge and experience and Bill has been helping people here for a long time... you owe him an apology.

Now you can tell me that you won't be disappointed should I decide not to offer you any further advice, but that won't change the diagnosis. Hopefully it might change your attitude.

Ignorance can be cured but stupidity is a lifelong affliction.

@justalurker
I appreciate your candid comments. My response to bill was simply due to his sarcastic comments in response to my posts, which he has now deleted. They are as follows:

1.I posted a link to the manual-
What's there to think about?

2.Where did 'bill' suggest adding fluid?
I posted a link to the manual that tells you how to add or change the fluid.
It's up to you to determine if either is needed.

I truly came here looking for advice. I have the tools and the ability to do the repairs to the tractor. You correctly stated that I do not have the knowledge. I do have the manual for my tractor and already had the picture in bill's link. I was not offered any credible advice from bill.

Others however, including yourself have given me points to consider in doing my repairs. I offer my thanks to those who have assisted. I do not however offer an apology to someone with a holier than thou attitude who speaks in a condescending manner.

We are all presumably adults and should treat each other as such.

Cheers

nevermind...

This post was edited by justalurker on Tue, Sep 3, 13 at 18:20

lawson - methinks I do smell something burning - your bridge to any help from this forum. sheesh....

If you want to keep insisting that this is a sealed and non-serviceable transaxle unit.............then you have swallowed the bait, hook, line and sinker of the corporate hype about such drive units. They simply call them by such wishful names because it sounds so good in a sales pitch or glossy advertisement.
Realistically speaking, the oil in the hydrostatic transmission wears out, loses its anti-foaming additives, becomes burnt (due to the extreme heat and pressures), and gets degraded by water vapor drawn into the case each time the trans breathes in during cool down...........................and all that action conspires to render the oil completely unable to conduct basic hydraulic functions....which is the entire workings of a hydrostatic drive transmission.
Or, in other words......the oil is everything.

"If you want to keep insisting that this is a sealed and non-serviceable transaxle unit..."

But the Sears manual tells me so. I read the word and the word is good.

Blasphemer!

In attempting to avoid sarcasm and/or childishness, here is what I THINK will fix your problem:

Change the oil in the K46 and properly purge it. DESPITE what The Book says, it CAN be done, and the "how-to-do-it" is posted in the archives of this forum.

And BTW, the Orygunian gives good advice - you can take it to the bank.