New member with a Kolher courage 18 with a cracked block. Looking for advice on a new motor to fit a snapper 350z. I bought the mower new 12 yrs ago and it’s worked pretty good. Has 450 hrs on it and while hour ga is flashing, it also reads lube? Do these have an oil pump perhaps?
Check out this thread http://www.lawnmowerforum.com/showthread.php/47737-cracked-block.
You can do a workable repair if it is the crack on the exhaust side of the cases near the barrel.
Almost any engine with the same crank diameter and length will go in the hole & run the mower.
Small Engine Warehouse
Small Engine Supplies
Repower
Surplus Center
All good sites for heavily discounted mower engines.
If you search "kohler crack" on this site you will find a lot of good info.
Do you have the original sales receipt for your unit. If you do, your dealer should be able to get you a short block for free from Kohler, if he knows how to do it. No receipt, forget about it due to its age. Your local dealer should be able to cross reference different engines which can be bolted in, if you supply him with the model and serial numbers for your engine. Without those numbers no one here or any dealer will be able to help you. Warning, replacing engines can get very expensive.
I might be able to find the receipt, that’s cool they stand behind there product. Thanks for the tip. My local dealer where I bought it has went belly up though, would that make a difference?
Any authorized Kohler dealer can make a warranty claim for you, but it is not a automatic adjustment. They must see the unit, verify that the block cracked due to loose bolts, fill out the paper work, and hope that they have a good reputation with their Kohler Distributor. If it is approved you would get a short block, but they would have to change over the engine and install at your cost. I have heard that some dealers don’t want to go through the hassle, some have poor reps with distributors, due to questionable claims, some over charge for the changeover and put the job on the back burner. Because the warranty has been going on for so long, Kohler has really tightened up on its claim adjustment, too many claims due too age of the unit and ????? claims, which at this time is understandable. Good luck in your decision.
#6
Catherine
:welcome:
I'm going to move this thread over to our Snapper section.
I repaired the crack on the exhaust side of the motor toward top using jb weld, it worked pretty good until oil started leaking out the bottom. I thought it was the seal, took motor off and found a large crack on bottom. Jb weld didn’t hold this one. I can’t find a receipt to try and get another block, I just bought a Briggs for 540.00 delivered. I really wanted to ask here first if it’s the right/decent engine before purchasing but was in a hurry.
I wouldn’t pay a shop around here to swap a block if that’s the only way it could be done using a free kohler block, I bet it would cost me what I paid for a new motor? Also I see no point using a courage block again after the problems they’ve had, is it a new stronger casting there manufacturing now?
Down here Kohler is run by a franchiser so getting anything done under warranty after the mandatory Aust 12 month period is nigh on impossible.
Tried JB Weld which works sort of if the tip is drilled to prevent the crack getting bigger and the top plate is in good condition.
Did one where the bolts had backed out that far for that long the flywheel had ground the heads off.
That one got pinned after the top plate was bolted down & it is still running although it weeps a bit so the JB has not made the bond it needed to.
Next one got done with POR 15 epoxy and that one worked about the same as the JB Weld, held up perfectly for the first year then started to weep.
No 3 was back to the JB Weld and some Scotch keys through the crack, results were about the same.
No 4 was Lumiweld ( it is an aluminium solder sold under a dozen similar names ) this was oil tight but required removing the engine and doing a full strip
No5 was Lumiweld again, but dowled the 2 bolts either side of the crack, this was good a year latter but the owner sold it so I don't know how it is doing now.
By this time I decided to try a full oxy weld using a DHC 2000 and after blowing a lot of holes in a practice case got it down pat.
It is just about impossible to do a good electric weld as there is always debris ( oil or washing media ) in the crack but the softer DHC process can cope with this.
Have not quite got to the stage where I can weld them in situ but can weld them without a complete dissmanteling.
The oldest welded cases is only a year old so no idea about the durability of it but it should be a permanent fix for $ 400.
Down here a short block is over $ 1000 so not a viable solution.
The cause of the problem was not a casing flaw, but crankcase bolts which would not seal tight and would loosen up. Most of the ones which I did were between $150 & $250, depending on what type of equipment I had to remove the engine from. No one ever gave me a had time about the cost, but to each his own. Just thought my past experience might help you, but I guess I just have someone who doesn’t know what service people can do, besides overcharge customers and back bad manufacturers. Sorry for wasting your time. Good Luck.
You didn’t waste my time and I didn’t mean to come off like that. Your time is well worth the 200 bucks for the job. I’ve gotten 11 yrs of service out of this motor which is good for me. Here is what happened to mine. I had a leak on top of motor, took cover off and found those bolts loose, backed out a 1/2”, I tightened them, really to much torque, drove over to my water hose and let the engine cool for an hour. Sprayed a degreaser and let soak 20 min. When I came back to it I hit it with a water hose I literally seen the crack develop, it could’ve cracked when I over tightened the bolts but didn’t see it then. I Used jb weld many layers over a four day period, stopped the leak only to then find the bottom was also cracked. I try to post photos but says my posts are too short. Thanks for the help
Looks good... as an aside, Rivets your price of $150 - $250 sounds cheap, I have done 3 repowers, the last 2 were simple due to the electrical being plug in and go... the 1st was a pain since the I spent so much time getting the electrical working... Your probably much more efficient with your time vs someone like me who does not do this for a living. Were you to have a shop near me, I would not blink twice at letting you do it.
again after the problems they’ve had, is it a new stronger casting there manufacturing now?