LIEBHERR Crawler Loader

[bigblueox]

Does anybody have any experience with these loaders. I'm looking at a 631 series loader. I'm not sure of the year or model. I've heard they have mercedes diesels in them and that they may have some torque converter issues. I'm not sure my source may be right or not. the machine looks like it's in good condition for its vintage ( i assume its in the early to mid eighties). Its a rear engine machine which appeals to me but i'm unsure on any mechanical issuses common to the brand or even parts avaliabiliyt. surely someone has exp. with these machines. I'll get pics tommorow along with some more info. thanks. ~zach~

 

[JimInOz]

631

HI Zach,
I operated a 631 & 741 in the early 90s,& a newer 732 Dozer in the late 90s.
They do have a Merc diesel (V8?) in them,& I found it to be a good machine...powerful in pushing trees over & the 4:1 was a crushing monster!
Liebherr are popular in Europe,& have been making Cranes,Dozers,Shovels for years.
I found a few things irritated me: some models had a stupid speed selector system,& a lot of the bolts are HEX HEAD type.Most of the machines I worked all had several minor oil leaks,but all were old & well worked.

Hope that helps.
Jim

 

[SunServicesLLC]

I have a 92 621 that i have had a for about a year. This is what i know about them... Stay away from the ones with mercedes diesels, find one another year or two newer with the liebherr diesel. It supposedly has all the improvements to it mercedes wouldn't do for liebherr. Also make sure clips and bearings in the final drives have been maintained properly. I want to say every 1000 hrs on that. The only other thing is i was told was to avoid the 631 all together and to find a 621. On that note, i had great luck with my machine, it gets used prob 20 hrs a week on average and has no real problems at all. Its got 13800 hrs with original motor(new turbo) and runs great. No blowby or oil consumption.
Hope this helps
Brian

 

[bigblueox]

thanks a bunch guys. i'm thinking this loader might be ok for farm use since it prolly will never see much more use than an hour or two a week. I'm still awiting for a call back and a chance to hear her run. any idea on parts availablity?

 

[stretch]

Well...I have no experience with their track loaders but when we had a Liebherr excavator break its tracks, there was no dealer here in New England so the parts had to come in from Germany and that took several days.

 

[JimInOz]

Liebherr

Try tracking down any of their mining shovels...if you find any 984 or similar in the mines,chances are there will be parts/field service.
Still a few working in Aussie mining projects.

Jim

 

[JimInOz]

6&7 Series Scans

Just a couple of minor leaflets on the Liebherr Dozer/Crawler Loader range.

 

[JimInOz]

631 Photos

631 working in 48 Degree heat in outback Australia...1995.

 

[WabcoMan]

bigblueox,
Try to avoid the earlier machines if you can (Mercedes powered examples) as parts are getting a bit thin on the ground for them.
The biggest operating expense for these machines is travel motors & pumps.
Hydraulics are made by Linde in the older machines and are EXPENSIVE.
The later models are powered by Liebherrs own engine and they tend to favor Rexroth hydraulics which are easier to repair & set up as well as being cheaper.
The Liebherr diesel motors are very well built - low internal stress - and pretty good on fuel consuption.
Later machines - 2000 and on - are particularly nice to operate

 

[dirt digger]

we have a 621 with 10,000 hours on her (the one in my avatar)...had a complete engine rebuild and new undercarriage 3 years ago...the machine has decent power but that is the least of your concerns. I don't like the controls, the two joystick controls are very unresponsive, we had troubles sometimes where the loader refuses to work. Sometimes this is due to a blown fuse, sometimes you have to let it run for 20 minutes before you can move the damn thing. Overall i am just not a fan of the older liehberrs, maybe the new ones are nicer...but ours sure sounds nice

 

[Big Jake]

From past expience with their excavators, there isn't a whole lot of dealers around the east coast, being a european machine and all. Besides that, i'd say,...RUN! RUN AS FAST AS YOU CAN!!!........Althoug, they were rather old, im talkin' like the sixties or seventies. Mabey the more recent machines aren't that bad. And who knows, they could make a mean track loader for all i know.

 

[WabcoMan]

Big Jake,

Liebherr excavators (4 series and higher) are pretty sound, reliable machines.
Very strong, over-engineered undercarriage and much stronger drive motors & finals than Komatsu/Daewoo/Hyundai/Kobelco.
The problem as you correctly state is ease of getting service & parts when you need them.
In Europe its no problem as they're quite popular (for the above reasons).
In Australia they're pretty popular in the mines so backup must be good there too.

 

[Deereman]

I don't know about other deere dealers but if you have to hit them up. Mine can atleast look them up on the computer and get you going in the right direction if they can't get the parts.

 

[treemuncher]

Check with your local John Deere dealer for Liebherr parts. Liebherr makes the new larger JD dozers. That is where I get my parts for my mid 80's PR751 dozer with a Cummins engine. Cat D-8 undercarraige components & blade bits makes life easy. I think the only items that I have really had to purchase from the dealer were some special hydraulic filters.

When I need hoses, I get them custom built. That is cheaper that going through the dealer although 6 wire hose is harder to find. Major parts like bushings are either in stock in Newport News, VA or else they come from Germany in a couple of days.

I like my machine but the 20 gal/hr fuel rate sucks at todays fuel prices. Efficiency is everything so this machine actually saves a lot of money when compared to most anything else.

 

[bigblueox]

well turns out i thought the machine had been sold. so i didn't get a chance to get any pics but then i'm talking to by boss this weekend and hes telling me how his wife is pissed when she finds a " damn bulldozer "hidden amongst a path of destruction. long story short. he bought the machine. o well any how seems like a good machine nice and tight. good tracks prolly 70% or better no major leaks runs good motor sounds good no blow by supposedly dosen't burn oil. 4 way bucket cab and heat. all in all it seems like a really nice machine. it's a 95 model with about 7k hours. best of all the company he bought it from had contacts with a dealer in manassas about 45 min away. anyway now for the good part the pics. and vid.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ApgN_ZqNt0o

 

[dirt digger]

looks just like ours...have you gotten a chance to run it yet?...How the response from the joysticks?

 

[bigblueox]

some more pics

 

[bigblueox]

i played around a little bit. the controls are odd! going forward they seem just like our tak 150 rtl but in reverse the are completley opposite. is your machine like that? the response is good. i like the dutch door design, i've never seen anything quite like it. dirt digger- have you had any problems with your machine? what year is it? what motor?

 

[dirt digger]

yea the controls are "reversed" or they are normal and our takeuchi is is reversed...we have a 130. makes it fun when both machines are on the same job, haha...We just had the U/C rebuilt 3 years ago for $22K. It has the Mercedes in it with 10,000 hours, and so far knock on wood...no real problems in the last 5 years i have been with the company. Like i said, my gripe with the machine is the controls...i hate them...the machine seems to be a dog, it is underpowered i think. I makes good for just moving dirt all day but personally i feel that any precision work is better handled by our 943 with twin stick bucket controls and foot steer. Along with the fact that the machines rattle like no other, you work a 10 hour day in it and you will feel it until the next morning.

edit:...now that i think about it, we blew the main hydraulic line this summer, the 2" one way deep in the belly of the machine. The cab is fairly simple to tilt up (assuming you have the jack option in yours and don't need a loader to do it...like the pictures in the manual show) but once you have the cab tilted its a maze of snakes in there and trying to get the hose off really was no fun

 

[bigblueox]

thanks for the 411. hopefully i'll get more seat time on it. i'm suprised you like the cat controls better. i was never fond of them. although the most comfortable loader i've been on is a 963c.