[Kurts Roberts Auziņš]

Had a little excitement the other night while mowing with my relatively new to me LX188 liquid-cooled Kawasaki V-twin. I purchased it knowing it had a fuel leaking from the fuel pump. Post-purchase, I replaced both the fuel pump and carburetor along with fuel line and filter. It's been running fine for a few months now and I've been pleased with it's performance. Except for the flimsy plastic hood that I broke trying to more too close to my boat (that is a whole other project in the works).

Anyhow, it was kind of fortunate I was mowing without the hood because when I jumped off to move some furniture I could see gas was pouring all over the muffler. I left it at idle and drove 15 feet to get closer to my shop and shut her down. Then there was slight pop (probably backfired) then a whoosh... 3 to 4 foot flames starting to engulf the engine. Luckily, I had a fire extinguisher nearby and probably had the fire out within 10 or 15 seconds.... which seemed like an eternity at the time.

Here are the post-fire photos :tango_face_surprise

 

[Andrew2]

Fuel leaks will KILL! Glad to hear you made it out fine, but the flame could have traveled to the tank. That would have been a different story...that's why i carry a fire extinguisher on ALL equipment.

Moral of the story: fix fuel leaks right away. Especially if you're driving an airplane! ?LOL

 

[Kurts Roberts Auziņš]

After everything cooled off, I tried replicating the problem. It took a while to reoccur, but I found the source. Now I need to figure out why.

I don't even know what this line is for, but I presume it has something with the carburetor getting/giving to much fuel. It runs fine, not like it's overly rich or anything. Please look at these videos and let me know what you think?


https://photos.app.goo.gl/DETBZnjHUwe9is3w6
https://photos.app.goo.gl/uTWFaP7krfGfzBKRA


https://photos.app.goo.gl/x8LU5QFzGS5ndqRDA
https://photos.app.goo.gl/x8LU5QFzGS5ndqRDA



What would cause fuel to spit out here?
How does the fuel pressure get regulated?
I'm amazed at how much fuel continues to flow out even after shutting down the engine. Makes me think there is a fuel pressure build-up or something along those lines.

I plan to look into this tomorrow so any tips or advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
Kurt

 

[dhjunk6]

Mental note: buy fire extinguisher for garage.

Sent from my Pixel 2 using Tapatalk

 

[steddy]

Who do so many deeres catch fire?

 

[Alien5044]

My Craftsman used to get clippings and leaves into the muffler box. Flames often started but without gas, were limited in size and soon died out. I can see if gas were leaking, it would have been a disaster. Thanks for sharing this experience.

 

[Alien5044]

Addendum:
Dry materials can find their way to hot spots in the engine and smolder un noticed. Best not to run your tractor into the shed and lock it up. Leave it out for 15 minutes to cool, and be sure nothing is smoldering.

 

[denverguy]

Who do so many deeres catch fire?

This is the main reason however it's not the OP's issue:

https://www.mytractorforum.com/12-j...ump-fires-kawasaki-liquid-cooled-engines.html

 

[GrampsTed]

I've been aiming to check the temperature on my grandson's LX188 muffler, and have yet to remember to do it after it's mowed for a considerable time. It doesn't seem to get really hot, but I'd still like to know. I'm not sure what it should run, but I have heard stories about them getting cherry red.

I feel they could have done a better job shielding the gas from ever reaching the muffler.

 

[Andrew2]

Thanks for sharing Kurt how and why this happened. A good reminder for all of us!

As for the leak, my device couldn't open the videos so someone else will have to help you with that. Hope you get it fixed.

Stay safe!

 

[slongholio]

This is the main reason however it's not the OP's issue:

https://www.mytractorforum.com/12-j...ump-fires-kawasaki-liquid-cooled-engines.html

+1 to that. Had same on 345 (a $5,800-6,200 purchase at the time). Replaced pump, and ran tube so it drops any gas below the muffler heat shield, instead of onto it. I guess the lawsuits were easier to pay off than issue a recall. I only found out because I was having other fuel issues, and just stumbled across it on this board by sheer lucky chance. This could burn someone, possibly to death, while trying to put it out, or burn down their garage and/or attached house. Epic fail for no recall on this one.

If my garage had burnt down because of this, and probably many did, I bet JD got off the hook free and clear. It should not be on the consumer to discover the issue by accident, take the initiative to remedy it, and at their own expense. (I park it out under the lean-to now - even though I've remediated it).