Cub cadet ultima ztx4 60" with kohler 24hp - couple questions

[msjs91011]

Ever since I got this mower brand new, it doesnt matter if the engine is hot or cold, I have to shove the throttle adjuster into the choke position to get the engine to start. Is there anything I can do to stop needing to do this? I recently got rid of a 26hp kohler that would start even if the gas was fully water and none of my other small engines exhibit this behavior unless they need carb cleans or replacements... with a new engine this shouldn't be necessary already.

Additionally when I go to start the engine, the starter will engage and nothing will happen for a second or two before it finally starts cranking, like its a weak battery but its not. What would be causing this?

Finally, I had a coil go bad tbe first summer I had this mower. I replaced the coil, and after that the hour meter just flashes all 8s when I have the blades running. How can I fix that?

My mower has a height adjust knob like most others... but... when I set it to 3.0 my blade tips are only 2 inches from the ground! Wanted to ensure my deck was level because my stripes suck! So I pulled the blades, pressure washed all the green off of them, sharpened and balanced them, and proceeded to check deck height and found out the knob was fully 1 inch higher than the actual cut.

So, I raised the deck the entire inch, so the knob matched the blade distance from tip to cement, and now I cannot use the other knob that locks the deck in a fully raised position! Anyone else encounter this and have a fix or do I have to do some silly math in my head to make sense of what cub cadet did??? Thanks

 

[Auto Doc's]

Hello M.,

Was this mower a big box store retail purchase or from a CC dealer?

Sounds like this multiple problem adventure needs to go to a qualified CC dealer.

Is this actually carbureted, or a fuel injection model? Some carburetor engine models always need the choke when starting, even when hot because the carburetor main jets have been reduced for a leaner fuel mixture. (EPA and CARB regulations)

Are the blades original or have they been changed with aftermarket ones? Not all blades have the same drop-down height, and they are often made to fit multiple makes of mowers

Seriously though:

When you make a help request, you need to include the product label information off of the chassis and the ID label information that is on the engine.

There are several option levels for most mowers today and it is difficult to begin guessing at what you actually have.

 

[Tiger Small Engine]

Ever since I got this mower brand new, it doesnt matter if the engine is hot or cold, I have to shove the throttle adjuster into the choke position to get the engine to start. Is there anything I can do to stop needing to do this? I recently got rid of a 26hp kohler that would start even if the gas was fully water and none of my other small engines exhibit this behavior unless they need carb cleans or replacements... with a new engine this shouldn't be necessary already.

Additionally when I go to start the engine, the starter will engage and nothing will happen for a second or two before it finally starts cranking, like its a weak battery but its not. What would be causing this?

Finally, I had a coil go bad tbe first summer I had this mower. I replaced the coil, and after that the hour meter just flashes all 8s when I have the blades running. How can I fix that?

My mower has a height adjust knob like most others... but... when I set it to 3.0 my blade tips are only 2 inches from the ground! Wanted to ensure my deck was level because my stripes suck! So I pulled the blades, pressure washed all the green off of them, sharpened and balanced them, and proceeded to check deck height and found out the knob was fully 1 inch higher than the actual cut.

So, I raised the deck the entire inch, so the knob matched the blade distance from tip to cement, and now I cannot use the other knob that locks the deck in a fully raised position! Anyone else encounter this and have a fix or do I have to do some silly math in my head to make sense of what cub cadet did??? Thanks

All small engines start differently regarding choke or not.

Even a minuscule amount of water will mess up most small engines.

Don’t know why your hour meter is flashing 8s.

Sounds like you need to take the time, and correctly level the deck.

 

[ILENGINE]

And just because your deck height says 3 doesn't mean 3 inches. That is just a reference point and has no relation to actual cut height.

 

[msjs91011]

Hello M.,

Was this mower a big box store retail purchase or from a CC dealer?

Sounds like this multiple problem adventure needs to go to a qualified CC dealer.

Is this actually carbureted, or a fuel injection model? Some carburetor engine models always need the choke when starting, even when hot because the carburetor main jets have been reduced for a leaner fuel mixture. (EPA and CARB regulations)

Are the blades original or have they been changed with aftermarket ones? Not all blades have the same drop-down height, and they are often made to fit multiple makes of mowers

Seriously though:

When you make a help request, you need to include the product label information off of the chassis and the ID label information that is on the engine.

There are several option levels for most mowers today and it is difficult to begin guessing at what you actually have.

The blades are indeed original. Mower was bought from TSC. I leveled the deck. So I am down to the hour meter problem, and the starting behavior issues. I included photos because im not sure how much more descriptive I could've been. I settled on knowing the deck doesnt match the knob numbers and just ensured the deck was level and the rake was appropriate, so im good there.

 

[Auto Doc's]

Ha! This site is slowly getting better. It only took 5 communications to get the needed machine and engine label information.

The choke may or may not have a minor adjustment on this model, but the need to use the choke each time you start it is just the nature of some engines these days.

Manufacturers have leaned out the engine carburetor main jetting so much for EPA standards that the engines now need to be choked more at start up. Older engines did not have this issue because the jets were a little "fatter"

I would not venture to far with this minor issue because you can spend a lot of wasted time and money chasing a built-in design issue.