Takeuchi 153FR randomly stalls

[MPR]

Heymccall, thanks again for all your help, here's a recap of what I found:

I pulled the controller as mentioned above and bench wired power and ground (several required) and hooked up a light bulb to some of the gauge light outputs. During this test, I thought I was missing something because I couldn't get anything to happen. That was until I dropped a screw driver on the controller and then it started working momentarily. I thought I may have had a loose wire so I checked everything over but couldn't find an issue so I tapped the controller again and again it started working.

I took the controller back to the machine and installed it. It wasn't working so I gave it a tap and the dash lights would come on. The more I tapped, the more different combinations of lights would come on/ flash/ buzzer sound etc. At one point it wouldn't STOP working so I decided to use the machine for the rest of the day without issue. The next next day however, I had to again hit the controller quite a few times to get the dash lights to come on. So in the end this made me feel confident the controller was at fault and not a harness issue.

Luckily my parts dealer only charged $925 for the controller which I felt better about because I went in thinking it was $1700 (mine was a different part number than you mentioned above).

So anyone experiencing this issue or if your stuck somewhere, try to give a good whack under the seat behind your left leg if you sitting there and maybe you can get the controller to come back to life for a little while. Also you could remove the stop solenoid and make a little cover for it (or else it will leak a little oil). You will just need to stick something in there like a nail to shut off the machine. It will run fine, however rabbit and decel likely won't work.

And lastly, I decided to rubber mount the new controller. I drilled the mounting holes out just shy of 1/2", installed rubber grommets and made copper sleeves to go inside so the bolts could still be tightened down. I figure the vibration/jarring around in the machine might be causing this issue in the controllers because mine does not have any visibly burnt components. Also the controller is fed multiple ground wires and is not grounded thru the mounting bolts in case anyone was thinking that.

Hope this all helps someone else out there.

 

[mxridernrth]

My old 153 suffered from similar issues. I sold that and got a newer machine with low hours. Now wouldn't you know I'm suffering the similar, but slightly different, issues. The dealer now wants $3000 CAD!!

 

[mxridernrth]

Heymccall, thanks again for all your help, here's a recap of what I found:

I pulled the controller as mentioned above and bench wired power and ground (several required) and hooked up a light bulb to some of the gauge light outputs. During this test, I thought I was missing something because I couldn't get anything to happen. That was until I dropped a screw driver on the controller and then it started working momentarily. I thought I may have had a loose wire so I checked everything over but couldn't find an issue so I tapped the controller again and again it started working.
View attachment 219932
I took the controller back to the machine and installed it. It wasn't working so I gave it a tap and the dash lights would come on. The more I tapped, the more different combinations of lights would come on/ flash/ buzzer sound etc. At one point it wouldn't STOP working so I decided to use the machine for the rest of the day without issue. The next next day however, I had to again hit the controller quite a few times to get the dash lights to come on. So in the end this made me feel confident the controller was at fault and not a harness issue.

Luckily my parts dealer only charged $925 for the controller which I felt better about because I went in thinking it was $1700 (mine was a different part number than you mentioned above).

So anyone experiencing this issue or if your stuck somewhere, try to give a good whack under the seat behind your left leg if you sitting there and maybe you can get the controller to come back to life for a little while. Also you could remove the stop solenoid and make a little cover for it (or else it will leak a little oil). You will just need to stick something in there like a nail to shut off the machine. It will run fine, however rabbit and decel likely won't work.

And lastly, I decided to rubber mount the new controller. I drilled the mounting holes out just shy of 1/2", installed rubber grommets and made copper sleeves to go inside so the bolts could still be tightened down. I figure the vibration/jarring around in the machine might be causing this issue in the controllers because mine does not have any visibly burnt components. Also the controller is fed multiple ground wires and is not grounded thru the mounting bolts in case anyone was thinking that.
View attachment 219933
Hope this all helps someone else out there.

So, since I had the computer hanging there while I was testing voltages and grounds, I went and did as you suggested and tapped on the case of the controller. Wouldn't you know it but it came to life!!
I had just ordered another controller too. I'm looking forward to seeing whether I can find the source of the issue once the I've got the old one out and on the bench.

 

[windsorunderground]

I'm suffering from the same issue, unfortunately I've thrown 3 techs at it since we have 23 machines and I have to keep the business moving... But after throwing $7k in labor and parts at it plus another $4k in machine rentals, here I am. I'll try swapping controllers, Thank you. Once this machine is running I'm selling all the Takeuchi's in my fleet. Cat would have had me in a loaner at day 3.

 

[mxridernrth]

I'm suffering from the same issue, unfortunately I've thrown 3 techs at it since we have 23 machines and I have to keep the business moving... But after throwing $7k in labor and parts at it plus another $4k in machine rentals, here I am. I'll try swapping controllers, Thank you. Once this machine is running I'm selling all the Takeuchi's in my fleet. Cat would have had me in a loaner at day 3.

Totally understandable. I've found Takeuchi's support in the controller issue non existent.
When I bought my previous machine, which was a used machine from United Rentals, it too had the controller issue that crept up, but also another major defect.
I had the machine delivered and put it to work removing blackberries in rocky soil. At first I thought I was hitting rocks when grading but then soon realized that the stick movement would instead of gaining speed normally as you pull the lever back, would instantly jump to max speed at one position and beyond. I contacted United about it and the area manager was great. He personally contacted Takeuchi but they claimed not to know about the issue or what could be causing it.
After having a mechanic come have a go at it and declare that it needed to go into their shop for diagnostics, all I could see is dollar signs in front of me. I decided to have a go at the problem myself. I checked pilot pressures and sure enough at the one position the pilot pressure shot up. It did this on both sides btw if I used the pattern changer. So then I disassembled the joystick to see if there was anything I could see (like blockage or foreign material). I didn't notice anything but I did notice that there were different springs for forward back and left/right. On a hunch I swapped one from the left/right to the back and wouldn't you know, it worked perfectly.
I mentioned what I'd found to the United manager, who then again contacted Takeuchi. He never got very far with them however he did talk to one warranty guy who said that one customer had already spent close to $30k on the same issue.
United stepped up and bought me a whole new pilot assembly but the issue persisted with the new one. So I just took one of the heavier springs from the old and swapped it into the new one and called it a day. It worked great ever since. Takeuchi was radio silence after I let them know what I'd found. It really pissed me off.
If the 153 wasn't such a unique machine I would switch to Cat as well.

 

[mxridernrth]

I'm suffering from the same issue, unfortunately I've thrown 3 techs at it since we have 23 machines and I have to keep the business moving... But after throwing $7k in labor and parts at it plus another $4k in machine rentals, here I am. I'll try swapping controllers, Thank you. Once this machine is running I'm selling all the Takeuchi's in my fleet. Cat would have had me in a loaner at day 3.

Also, to update on the weird beeping and other issues, the new controller did the trick. The build date on the original was something like 2008 or 9 whereas thew one is 2018 iirc. I'm hoping they did some revisions to the design

 

[windsorunderground]

Thanks guys, Yes mine alarms all day that the DPF needs a regen. We had it cooked out, replaced the EGR Valve and all the sensors plus had Takeuchi come out, plug in and reset the parameters and it still just alarms... Then when you go to run the machine... You can run 1 hydraulic function at a time or it'll die, If you try and track it'll die. Meanwhile the alarms are a blaring and Takeuchi threw their hands up and left. Now I'm trying to get the machine back operational just to sell it. It's got 1700 hours on it. I can't run my company with a brand that has zero support and quits when it requires an in depth diagnosis.... I'll let you know what happens after we swap controllers out.

I can't believe that Takeuchi doesn't have data on this if the 3 of us had the same issue.

 

[mxridernrth]

Sadly, I've heard stories about other manufacturers as well. I think many companies are hurting for qualified people.

 

[windsorunderground]

Yes, We are too. We have enough work in the pipeline to field 2 more crews but there's a shortage of qualified people and I can only train so many at a time.... I think the deficits in our industry are only going to get worse.

 

[153fr dan]

Stalling Issues
Hello I’ve got a TB153fr that will stall. It’s developed some what of a pattern. After an initial warm up from a cold start it will run good up intell 25-30 minutes of operation where at that point it will stall about once a minute. To restart, turn the key to off and then restart. At times, upon restart, the machine will not restart for up to 30 seconds. When turned to crank it will just click, so I’d let it sit in run and try again and again intell it cranks. It does also crank for awhile intell it starts. Sometimes after restart it will run for 5 seconds and die and you are forced to repeat the restart process. During the first 25-30 minutes of operation it will also die. Just less. Maybe three times. Sometimes before it dies, it may sputter a bit or act as if the fuel is cutoff. No lights are on the dash when the machine stalls. I’ve grounded the coolant sensor on the top hose and that will throw the code where the coolant and oil lights flash and it shuts off. When plugging the wires back together it instantly fires back up and hardly even cranks.

Maybe a fuel issue?
Wiring issue?
Any help would be appreciated!

 

[mxridernrth]

Sounds like a fuel issue to me. Drain water, new filter, check lift pump,...?

 

[heymccall]

Plugged (partially) inlet elbow at the water separator. Take unit off and apart, and clean the restriction from the inlet passage.
Tons of threads on that very affliction, that I've contributed to. Search "3972" on here.

 

[153fr dan]

heymccall huge thanks. As advertised the fuel water separator inlet elbow was basically fully clogged. After a thorough cleaning the machine runs awesome.

 

[153fr dan]

Hey guys. 153fr
Same excavator that had the fuel water separator plugged up. Ran awesome for about 30 hours since I’ve cleaned out the separator. Current issue is it’s now stalling again. Sputters and bogs before it dies. Will not start right away after it dies. On high rpm and when operating hydraulics will run maybe for a minute. Will run like a top for 20 seconds and then I can hear it starting to starve for fuel. When in idle it can run for a long time. When in high rpm and suddenly taken down to low rpm, it will die. If I shut it down when running good in high idle and restart, kicks over instantly. Or from high idle to low idle when running good, no issues. Definitely a fuel issue.

Where do I start?
Suggestions?

 

[heymccall]

Clean the elbow out again, and add a 3972 inline strainer between the tank and the elbow.

 

[Hwg]

changed out the relays, and thought that was it. started running fine but shortly began doing the same thing again . Dash wont light up, engine will turn over but it wont start. Something is shutting the engine off. Does anyone know how many sensors this machine has? I think it might be one of the sensors. I take the injection pump solenoid off and will start and run fine with this off. So therefore its not fuel, starter....Sometimes it can sit for 10 min, sometimes an hour then the dash will light back up and then it starts but will be running it for a time and will just shut off again.

Ours was a grounding issue by the master switch.