[inspectorudy]

I bought an X540 this morning and the engine runs great but when the PTO is engaged, it stalls out unless a little choke is added for an instant. I have had similar problems like this before but before I get into the difficult areas I wanted to check with the team here to see if any of you have had this issue and what you did to solve it. The battery seems to be high on the list and it is an old battery so I will check that. Obviously, if it isn't the battery then it is a fuel issue since the choke will stop the problem. Kawa made getting to the fuel mixture screw very difficult and then put a plastic cap on it to boot!

 

[Bill Kapaun]

Let it warm up another 30-60 seconds and see what happens.

 

[papashelby]

The 2010 X540 I picked up for my SNL last fall does the same thing with 660 hours on the clock. From what I've read, that is pretty much standard procedure. It would be great if someone with knowledge and a fix would chime in. I was told it has something to do with the carb settings in relation to emissions. Not exactly the same engine (similar though), but my 1996 345 doesn't miss a beat when engaging the PTO, even at idle.

 

[KATT]

Sorry Rudy, but my "14 " X540 engaged my #44 blower @ 1/2 today but my "06" X520 ( same engine) needs almost full throttle to engage the 54 mower deck. ( actually all of my X540's do.
Now if a coil is dead, ( or plug) 1 cyl sometimes can't start a 54 in deck. I find it hard on the LQ Kawa's to notice 1 cyl, down :tango_face_wink:

LX188 do the same too !!

 

[inspectorudy]

The owner bought it from a JD dealer and it gave him some problems with running after about twenty minutes. The dealer replaced both coils and then when that didn't fix it they replaced the ECM. That fixed it. Then the owner complained about the PTO stalling and the dealer told him basically that it was fine and that all this model had some issues with PTO engagement. I suspect that it is a little lean and when the surge needed to keep the engine running hits, there is not enough fuel to keep it running. It will restart instantly but do the same thing if the chole is not pushed up to about halfway. My other issue with this tractor is the fuel gauge not working. The needle will come out of zero and move to about 3/4 full but according to the owner is not working. I'm not sure if it is the sender or the gauge. Anyone with experience with this model gauge?

 

[BillBoost37]

2010 X540 with just 120 hours the other day.

Have to choke every start, doesn't matter if it's been running 2 hours on a hot summer day. It needs choke. With the 54" mower deck I need to choke if I am sitting still. If I am moving and the mower is warmed up then the governor is already on the job and typically it won't stall. If you want to guarantee it won't stall you use a little choke when you engage the deck. Now the 44" blower... never needs any choke to engage, even on a cold engine in the winter.

I was concerned and read up on this as I considered it an issue. Most of the folks here with X540 LC engines say the same. Even tested the coils by unplugging each cylinder ... these babies run so smooth you'd have a tough time noticing that you were down a cylinder.

I'm the first guy to fix something if it's broken..and I haven't found anything to fix on this situation.

 

[bmurph44]

I bought an X540 this morning and the engine runs great but when the PTO is engaged, it stalls out unless a little choke is added for an instant. I have had similar problems like this before but before I get into the difficult areas I wanted to check with the team here to see if any of you have had this issue and what you did to solve it. The battery seems to be high on the list and it is an old battery so I will check that. Obviously, if it isn't the battery then it is a fuel issue since the choke will stop the problem. Kawa made getting to the fuel mixture screw very difficult and then put a plastic cap on it to boot!

How many hours, do you think the valves may need adjusting?

 

[inspectorudy]

It has 480 hours on it.

 

[donmac]

my x540 and the neighbours both have this quirk and they both blow more black smoke on start up than my x500 which will start the 54"deck or blower at idle without a hiccup. I think the other parasitic losses like turning the extra aux. hyd. pump and water pump in the x540 require a lot of throttle and/or choke applied to start the pto! It may be jetted slightly different because of the stabilized operating temp. I wouldn't go looking for a solution it might cause other drivabilty/fouling issues.
I think the valves get lashed every 200hrs after the initial 100hr. I've done this numerous times without any change to the engine characteristics!

 

[MAtractor]

The x540 needs throttle up to 60,70% before engaging PTO. That’s normal as far as I know. Limitations of the electronic clutch. That’s what the dealer told me.

Doesn’t seem like a problem to me.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[inspectorudy]

It's a problem. I was at 100% power and it would stall over and over again. Without the choke being used, it would stall every time. I can live with it but do not think all is well. I took my wife to my workshop to show her my new toy and the beautiful 420 with the 44 loader on it was right next to the new X540. They were both very shiny and looked new. But I told her that the 420 took two months of hard work to look like that and the X540 took three hours. I think my days of older JD's may be over for real this time!

 

[donmac]

I'm pretty sure it has to do with the throttle blade position and the governor! the blade doesn't need to be open much to keep the engine wot with no load so it's not really receiving much fuel because of the lean fuel design of the fuel system. all of a sudden your asking for high torque delivery and there's not enough fuel to deliver that!adding choke immediately increases fuel delivery. I wonder if the flywheel mass is higher on the aircooled and it's able to maintain rpm better through inertia! the only other explanation I can think of is the wiring of the ignition and charge system works different for the Air/water cooled engines and the pto engagement is robbing ignition power[but why would choke help}so I discounted that theory!
this has always baffled me why one will start a 54" deck at idle and the other needs wot/choke,but after seeing many machines operate like this I really believe it's normal for the model!

 

[MAtractor]

It's a problem. I was at 100% power and it would stall over and over again. Without the choke being used, it would stall every time. I can live with it but do not think all is well. I took my wife to my workshop to show her my new toy and the beautiful 420 with the 44 loader on it was right next to the new X540. They were both very shiny and looked new. But I told her that the 420 took two months of hard work to look like that and the X540 took three hours. I think my days of older JD's may be over for real this time!

Oh, then it is a problem then. Mine does not stall if you give the engine a minute to warmup, and then set throttle to 60% power.

Have you changed the fuel filter, put in fresh gas? Maybe a slight fuel line blockage throwing the governor off? On mine, if the fuel is a few month old, i had to put in some dry gas to help it. It run nice and smooth after that.

 

[BillBoost37]

Oh, then it is a problem then. Mine does not stall if you give the engine a minute to warmup, and then set throttle to 60% power.

When you engage PTO are you moving or sitting still? I'm currently at a JD dealership and the techs told me that needing choke for warm start ups and engaging PTO is normal on the LQ. I'd be interested to find out what is different on yours that allows it to "act like a normal engine" in my eyes. I was fairly sure something was wrong with mine when I noticed this behavior.

 

[Steve Urquell]

I found a thread on here where this started happening on a tractor that wasn't doing it. Owner cleaned the carb and it stopped dying in his case.

 

[jrkleins]

I found a thread on here where this started happening on a tractor that wasn't doing it. Owner cleaned the carb and it stopped dying in his case.

My x540 with over 500 hours was the same way. Started dying when I went to engage the 54" deck last summer. Checked spark on cylinders, replaced the ECM, etc. Still the same. Pulled the carb, cleaned it out real well (even thought it looked clean), and problem went away. Might have been a minuscule particle in there causing problems. I always run Seafoam thru the machine about every other tank of fuel. I did notice that the machine started a little easier after replacing the ECM.

 

[inspectorudy]

I'll give that a try jrkleins, thanks. I know the Mikuni Carbs do not tolerate any debris at all before they change personalities. To me, it seems fuel related because the choke helps out. I have read that a weak battery will cause the engine to die when the PTO is turned on but why would a chole help that situation? Since everything else is normal, I am just going to leave it alone. Heck, I need a little choking once in a while too!

 

[BillBoost37]

Oh man.. now I'm going to have to consider clean the carb. Geeez!

 

[donmac]

me too! who'd a thought there all delivered from the dealer with dirt in the carb!every one I've driven brand new did this!

 

[inspectorudy]

I've owned 5, X540's and this is the only one to do it. I had 345's do it as well as GX345's. I never had a 318 or any of the older ones do it. I have been successful cleaning one of the Mikuni carbs only one time. All the other times I just bought new carbs.