i have a l 553 new holland. while in use it suddenly stopped, no forward, no reverse, engine ran and made a loud screeching noise. was told drive shaft and flex plate probably went out. does that sound right? and if so, what's involved in replacing and where is a good place to get the parts?
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irvi00
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- May 30, 2010
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If your 553 is coupled like my 555, then there is no "drive shaft". Its a direct coupling from the flex plate to the hyraulic pumps with a splined shaft. If you have lost all movement and hydraulic function this will be the first place to look. Question is, which is easier to remove? The pumps or engine? I have not yet had to go into my machine this deep, but my guess would be pulling the engine would be easier. Hope this helps, and please update us with your progress!
I'm waiting for a parts, and shop manual to see if I should tackle this in my shop or let the dealer do the whole job. They gave me an estimate of ten hours for their experienced mechanic, so I think it would take us much longer. So far we've done all the maintainance on this machine, new drive chains, new pump, new control valve, new lift lock solinoid, new radiator, etc. This though seems to be a much bigger job. Have any of you installed the flex plate, spined shaft and seals? If so how did it go?
Earthwerks Unlimited
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If it were me, I'd take the pumps out since the screaching you're hearing is likely the splined coupler spinning on the splined pump shaft. Therefore, the pump shaft is likely worn---if it is worn and you only replace the coupler in the flywheel you'll end up with rapid wear and failure of the new coupler. I had this system on a small backhoe--replaced the pump and the coupler at the same time. 10 years ago the dealer sold parts for thses machines, but if you can't get one try BJ Hydraulics in SW Michigan. They made me a new coupler and reused the flexplate for $125.
My experience is that it is much easier to pull the engine to replace the flex plate on the flywheel. From there it is also easy to pull the rear pump to replace the shaft and seal. Usually if the flex plate fails, the pump shaft fails with it.
The flex plate, shaft and seal with tax were $630.00 from the dealer which was the only place I was able to locate parts. Their estimate for the whoe job was $1500.00 and they usually estimate on the low side so I decided to tackle the job in our shop. "I restore old cars as a hobby." We removed the pumps from the top, the pumps came out fairly easily, but to remove the two lower bell housing cover bolts we had to pry the fuel tank down to get at them. Installing the shaft flex plate and seal was easy but reconnecting all those stiff hoses was very time consuming, and frustrating in order to prevent cross threading. All that's left now is the front gear pump, and that only has two bolts and two hoses. All in all it turned out to be an easier job than I expected. The control valve with it's 6 hoses and cramped space was extremely difficult so I thought this would be worse. However this was less frustrating. I appreciate all your helpful advice. Before beginning removal I purchased a shop manual and also a parts book. The shop manual was very helpful and would recommend it for any do it yourselfer. Don
Good to hear you are having a go at it yourself. Most things seem harder than they really are. You will have a better understanding of how it all works now.
irvi00
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- May 30, 2010
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With the exception of internal engine and internal pump, you have went to the darkest depths of your machine. There shouldn't be much you can't tackle on your own from here on out! Tough, yes, complicated, no. They are simple machines once you get to know them. Congrats on the DIY fix, feels good to fix your own machine sometimes.
