New comer here, having the same issue with my mower so I was googling the issue and found this thread. Was wishing someone had a solution to it because it seems to be the exact same problem I have. Thinking the original poster here may have abandon the thread so I guess I'll hijack it. Here's what I posted on another forum:
I have a grasshopper mower with 19hp diesel Kubota motor on it
Looks similar to this:
About a week ago it was "coughing" while I tried to start it and when I toyed with the throttle, it started but with the throttle wide open, it was barely running....then it slowly started revving up before it was under full power again.
I took out the air filter and gave it a massive cleaning. Made sure the vent plate over the radiator wasn't clogged...
Once I did that, it started up normally and responds fine to throttle when I'm sitting idle......but after about 30-60 seconds of riding, the mower bogs down when I push the hydrostatic controls to "full speed" and especially if I have the blades going.
The engine slows down and the speed decreases dramatically.....but if I let off of the hydro-static controls and return them to the neutral position, the engine revs back up to normal RPM levels.
With the clean air filter, I feel like it's getting air....maybe a fuel pump issue? Anyone had anything like this before?