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In the search of parts to restore my 2000 Volkswagen Golf mentioned in my other post, my youngest son who is a mechanic, came across an add on Facebook Market place of someone parting out a suitable donor car . It was a 2002 and stated that it had something like 600,000. Miles and it did not run. We were responsible for removing all the parts we needed. We made a list and called guy up. We agreed on about $700.00 for quite a bit of stuff. We go to the guys house one weekend ready to take things apart. We get there and car is all there but computer, dash, cluster are all removed. There are wires all over the place. Back seat is out to get access to fuel pump and wires there were obviously fooled with. In engine compartment wires were also disturbed all over the place . Aside from all of that car is actually impeccable for a 2002 model. We ask the guy what was the story with it. He said that all of a sudden car would start run for a few seconds and shutoff. He had it in several shops and no one could figure it out so he was tired of spending money with it. He had it towed back to the house and just wanted nothing else to do with it. Kid is now looking at me with a strange look . He asks him if he has the keys for it. Sure he says, and gets the key . Kid looks at me again. I am going like , whattt?. Asks the guy how much for the whole car. The guy looks up surprised thinks for a minute and goes,” I have 1200 dollars spent on trying to get this thing running, I just want that and see it gone “. We were already up to $700 and could use a few more things since that one was in such good shape so I thought why not. Kid pulls me aside and says we are going to put it back together. I look at him and ask him if he is nuts. No, he said, I know what is wrong with car. It’s the immobilizer. That is a new key and it’s not programable to that car. Car is not recognizing key that is why it starts and shuts down right away. I ask him how is it possible no one figured that out. He just shrugs his shoulders and tells me to trust him. Now I ask him if he can put that mess back together. Now he just smiles and tells me again to trust him. So we buy the car. Get it towed to the house. Next Saturday he puts the whole thing back together. Took like 10 hours it was a real mess of wires. It was already dark , he puts key in cranks it . It starts and shuts off like guy said. Kid gets out smiling says that’s it for today . Monday we order a key from the dealer . We get the key a couple days later he brings some lap top from work, plugs it in, 30 minutes later car is working. It’s been a daily driver since that day . Guy had also made a mistake on the mileage. It wasn’t 600,000 . It was 60,000! Worked out a few gremlins caused by all the fooling with the wiring and it’s a great reliable car. Did a search on the car’s history and I am the third owner, mileage is correct at 60,000, no accidents and to cap it off service records until about 7 months before we bought it. Not too shabby for a donor car.

That was a blast. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I gotta go out and get some cars now to race on the wife's coat rack

Those treadmills run up the electric bill but treadmill racing is a blast!

The kid was smart. I was worried and terrified. The hardest part of this whole adventure was keeping the little woman here calm. She was already not happy that I had a rusty car here. Now one shows up on top of a tow truck literally in pieces . We just about had to run for our lives. It was not easy "containing" her. That tow truck driver was really glad to get out of here. I was not really convinced that kid was going to get it back together much less having it come out of here in its own power that is how hopeless it looked. The whole week until the next Saturday I had the same question thrown at me at least ten times per day, " when is that thing leaving here?". That Saturday night when she saw it back together and heard it start, finally we got some peace here. Then incredibly once key was programed and car was running and cleaned ( it was total filth before from everyone taking it apart and throwing parts in it) to our surprise she goes," Oh, this one is automatic! I can drive this one.I just closed my eyes and whispered "thank you Lord".

They had made a real mess of the car. Kid just about fabricated a new engine harness for it. There were so many wires cut or stripped from trying to diagnose it that to me it looked hopeless. In the process of diagnosing it they also threw at it all kinds of parts like new crank sensor, fuel pump relay, ecu relay , comfort module, and many others. We now have spares for both cars since the replaced parts were all in the car and they are all good. Kid says that there are over $1000.00 in extra parts alone.

Update: I fixed the charging problem, couple loose connections and a bad ground. Also a battery that would no longer take a charge. Then did a complete service on it. The electric clutch had a bad bearing, thanks to @daveoman1966 for posting the proper way to remove the clutch. I used this method and it came right off! I was doing this for the owner of the tractor who I think is well into his eighties and the original owner of this machine. I mentioned earlier that I wasn’t charging him anything, I am just very happy to be able to help him. He really loves his Wheel Horse! Upon reading this post Blasterdad contacted me to say he had a clutch, he informed me that there would be no charge since I was just helping this gentleman. He sent me the clutch and even covered the shipping cost! So a BIG SHOUTOUT to @Blasterdad to say I genuinely would like to thank you for making both myself and my buddy Bill happy! Thank you to all that chimed in to help. @ebinmaine @Bill D @953 nut @pfrederi @peter lena @Handy DonHe’s back up and running now and drove it home yesterday. Amazing how much joy these tractors bring all of us! Here he is on his way home.

Had the 418-C out this afternoon to haul some firewood. Almost headed back to the house when I thought “Hey it’s side shot Sunday!”

She’s getting fluids changed .

I got my other tire mounted on Friday and went to put it back on but noticed a bad wheel bearing. I did a search and found the XiKe bearings that several use from Amazon and got a four pack on order. Yesterday when I checked the tracking they were due to arrive today on Sunday so I got prepared to remove and replace the seals to do a grease swap-out with Lucas Red that I had in a gun. (Saving the green for mower deck spindles and mule bearings.) This was my first time removing the seals and cleaning the cheap grease out. It wasn't difficult just time consuming; but should pay off in the long run. Everything was going well on schedule until I went to put the new bearings in. The outboard went in about half way with just a tap or two to have it set in the hub but the inboard was loose in the hub. I don't know if the original was large of if I didn't progress in small enough increments when I knocked it out. Regardless I needed to find a way to reduce the hub diameter so that the outer race would snug up and stop spinning freely. I could see the hub around the shoulder of the bearing on this side by a few thousandths. I measured and it was around 1.508" outer diameter. I needed a swaging tool that would squeeze it to something close to 1.500". Then I remembered that the main rear axle shaft roller bearing was about what I needed. I located my old bad bearing and found that one inside diameter was champhered at a 45 and the other was rounded nicely. But how would I maintain the axle bearing centered around the shoulder of the new bearing to swage the hub evenly and not make a mess of it. I cut up an aluminum soft drink can into a few 1/4" strips that fit nicely inside the axle bearing inside diameter and around the new wheel bearing shoulder. It took three layers to get rid of the slop and hold things in place. I rested the opposite bearing outer shoulder on my big aluminum cylinder (Resting on plywood on the basement floor not the can of grease.) so that the inner race wouldn't take any of the force to swage the hub. I laid a heavy plate of steel on the old axle bearing and smacked it sharply with a two pound hammer. When I lifted the plate to my delight the axle bearing was driven down onto the wheel hub. I got the axle bearing removed and the wheel bearing still had a little play in it so I repeated the process but now didn't need the shimming to keep the axle bearing centered. This time the wheel hub was swaged firmly around the wheel bearing. The old axle bearing will go into my growing collection of special improvised WH tools.

Just doing tractor stuff…earning her spot in the shed…

The engine has a low oil sensor that shuts it down. Take some rags, a funnel and a qt of oil, fill it up and it should start if it was the sensor that shut it down. Do Not spill oil all over that person's front yard !!!! Do NOT punish the friendly neighbor for their good deed by working on it too much in their front yard. If you have to, walk down there with a piece of rope and drag it home if that's what it takes. If you have a hand truck that would make it easier.

First thing you need to do is determine where the oil is coming from. Good wipe down with a rag and an inspection with a flashlight to start. If nothing is obvious then check levels, see if it starts and drive it home. But don’t beat on it to get it home since the issue hasn’t been discovered yet. Or, can you tow it home with your 520? Maybe with one of your buddies steering the cart?

@clueless Check out this thread . You will need to go down to the bottom of the first page and to the second page for the information.

@TJ SalyersI agree with getting it home, perhaps as @Sparky said towing with a friend and your 520. I’d then drain the oil, clean it up real good and put the proper amount of new oil in it. Also clean or put a new spark plug in as the one in it now is probably oil fouled. On a safety note one of those orange flags on a flexible white pole is a good idea. Being low in go-cart not everyone will see you. I’m speaking from experience, in the early eighties I put many miles on my go-cart. I had three or four friends that had them at the same time and we had a blast! I’m not sure if the neighbors liked it though! Fix it, go have fun and please be safe.

Well, she is back home looking her best in years. No more rusted out holes and bent panels. Only some minor final touches are needed such as replacing some indicator lights and gaskets, and getting wheels refurbished. She even got a new windshield since original one was totally “ sandblasted” from all the miles she has traveled. I have to admit it was a little emotional seeing it looking this good again. The first time it was parked on that spot it was 24 years ago. You will notice I also have a red one. That is another cool story how it came about.

Great find on that car. I found a 1960 MGA some time ago that had an Olds 215 swap in it. Add said it was a roller and in pieces. Since it was not too far away, I went to see it and bought it. A friend of mine went with me to pick it up. Flat towed it behind his truck, with the bed full of parts. My wife got home just as we had put the car in the garage, and emptied the parts out of the truck onto the lawn. My wife was looking concerned over the amount of parts in the lawn. About then, my friend looks at me and says "let's go back for the next load". We both about fell over laughing when my wife started spittering.

Had the same light on my 76. Common universal marker light. I replaced mine with LED

Great Cas! Bright boy. It's a common theme I ran into. No one wants to take the time to do a little research so they end up spending money or wasting time (or someone else's time and money) I don't know how many times I would get called on a job for something not working, Hit a button or plug something in and all is well. Everybody is in too much of a hurry to give up on something. Which is strange because the way folks have their heads buried into their phones, the answer is actually in the palm of their hands.

Uh Oh, You may have discovered the other low oil sensor that all gas powered engines come with. It stops the engine from running and sometimes it will even open a window in the block for easy inspection. There is no reset button for it. Just a guess from the vague description of the problem but maybe the case vent was blowing oil. I think those vents are vented into the air cleaner but IDK and anything could be changed with a modified engine. That could be why it's running rough and quit with oil all over the carb. Was it smoking out of the exhaust too?

Well I've never seen it quite this bad before! Kohler M18QS on '87 418-8. But the new stator looks sweet! Found a good used flywheel on eBay, but forgot to take a pic before installation. At least the electric lift works! IMG_2349.mp4

So I got these from a friend of mine. I was planning on giving them to my nephews 11th birthday in 2 weeks. Now I'm not sure. I kinda want to build them myself or ......... keep them as is in the box !! I think they are from 1970 ish. When I was younger I did many plastic model kits, balsa wood kits, and rocket kits but never a metal kit. Any of you boys have any knowledge of these ???

Trina took this lamp assembly off one of my 1974 C160-8 Tecumseh powered tractors. Is it an original?

Meant to start a resto-thread a little sooner, but here we are. I periodically peruse the classifieds looking for something both nearby and economically priced, in December I hit on a classified ad that peaked my interest. Only half an hour away and looked to be well maintained. The seller and I agreed on a price and we pushed it up on my trailer. His dad had bought it new in Ohio way back in 1972 and had put it to work on lawn and snow duty. The tractor was maintained in running shape but will receive a thorough reconditioning before being pressed back into service. One of the coolest bits that came with it was a bit of provenance, some type written correspondence from the late 1980's between the previous owner and Wheel Horse corporate inquiring about a failed ignition system. Additionally, the it came with a complete set of manuals and some really nice hand-drawn notes that outline belt placement and part numbers. I think the personal documentation is perhaps my favorite part of this find.

Well folks the table has its legs on and is usable! Trina's mulling over what/if to do for the leg color or coating.

Niiiiice "Pullstart-esque" pile there Don!!

Thanks to all for your help, I do get few jokes like 1/2 breed. Trans is tex racing out of a nascar. Clutch-less shifting only take off. I had mazda rx7 with mopar 372 motor 727 dana 60 rear sold it few years ago. re-moving the th350 trans I had in the truck. The arrow is my old drag race truck.

Only back roads.

Look into my 👀 buy more tractors….😂😂😂

That is beautiful. My wife loves it. We give it four thumbs up 👍

AUTOMATIC transmission is just like any lighter vehicle in that you can hold the service /floor brake pedal and just let up a little to allow the vehicle to move. Super easy other than learning to allow for extreme heavy weight. BUT... Getting one to move in very small increments is difficult. AUTOMATED MANUAL transmissions vary in design WIDELY. In OUR fleet: Automated manuals that WE have require the driver to raise the RPM a hair to notify the vehicle it needs to move. If you're in "D" position it's setting there idling with transmission in a gear, clutch is disengaged. (Like pedal on the floor). Touch the throttle and the clutch gets engaged in gear. It has to be a VERY small RPM movement with exactly the right amount of distance. So you know how a vehicle will jump if you have the RPM too high or the clutch jumps out unexpectedly? Controlling a computer driven drivetrain NOT to do that is very challenging. There is NO "ride the clutch" or friction point. The clutch is engaged relatively quickly for a start and too damn slow during shifting between gears. Most drivers I've been around don't even use the clutch for shifting. Our drivers that dock a box trailer daily have a well founded repugnance for the very reason you bring up. Touch the throttle. Move the truck. Fine. Easy. Get close to the dock... Every single driver I've ever met will slow to a near or complete stop as the dock approaches. Now you're back in Neutral. Again.... Touch the throttle. Move the truck. Fine. Easy...?? Oh no. Not so much. All 80,000 pounds of moving vehicle finds the dock. Hard. It's a terrible design for a daily dock parking vehicle. I used to think it was a serious lack of skill, training or both but after I "got to" drive one I learned different.

I have the same engine in my gokart and went I sometimes go up and down it does what you said so it might me a low oil shutdown.

Did you do that? They have to be adjusted to spec. Are the throttle linkages in the correct holes in the carb & governer arm? Is the governer adjusted correctly? Was the ACR installed correctly? Points gap correct? Carb adjusted / working correctly? Just a list of things to check....

be safe and bring it home in one piece.

Sounds like a winner !

Make me an offer I can't refuse... 1988 98,000mi

Why not take a few passes with a plow and run some 14-2 UF? Maybe you have obstacles, but $150 for 250' isn't bad if you consider the nuisance of maintaining solar equipment.

Great day! Everyone of these drove outa the shed on its own! They all fired up and ran good!

That deck didn’t come with a wheel horse part number. Was fabricated by my dad at a shipyard in Paducah, KY.

Some Hubley products are becoming valuable collectibles, I would start the kids off with some junky Chinese kits to see if they have an interest in doing quality work. Kind of like starting them out driving a clunker before a nice Corvette.

Here’s what I use for a points file, it’s a points file!! It was given to me years ago by my neighbor. The same guy that owns the Bronco 14 with the loader.

Engine gaskets Points were NOS.... ish

Thank you for the info, Blasterdad.

Thanks mister. 4 different thumbs. Cute. 😂

I put oil down in the release hole, until it came out the other end!! It helped (45%)..but it still falls with me messing around with the lever. It’ll hold for this winter, then I’ll take it apart. Thanks guys!!

I own a 315-8 from new . It's a good machine but I had to make a few adjustments - leaked oil after a couple few years from the overhead valve cover - thinking this was an easy fix went to the parts list - long story short there isn't gasket - Kohler did what we use to do years ago for a short term fix - called them smear gaskets - run a bead of form a gasket on the cover channel re-install . I ordered gasket material cut my own installed a real gasket - 10-12 years later still dry . Next , the engine has an air induction tube from the blower housing to the air cleaner - mow the grass ( my acre ) 3 times the air cleaner was packed full of dirt and grass - to me this was designed to self destruct so the tube was eliminated , closed off the opening on the housing and air cleaner with sealant and sheet metal . Unlike my Kohler K's these aluminum jugs accumulate a lot more grass under the tins around the jug and fins - regular trips to the air compressor to blow out debris is highly recommended . Exhaust - Kohler is proud of that muffler - 1 month off warranty cracked off the flange- repeated trips to get it welded - kept cracking behind each repair bead - 3-$400 for a new one - fast forward to last year #2 muffler had a crack at the flange -long story short I put the problem on anther forum- found a tig welder who said these needed a delicate touch you can't overheat the metal - his number is now stored in my phone - talk about a pro bead - this guy knows his weld/metals - I don't mow much at all with the 315 anymore it's a dedicated blade tractor for snow -mulch -ground etc etc , I'm hooked on the 416-8 with a 4ft deck for mowing and blowing duties . Would I go 5300 on it - probably not - new or not these tractors have a very limited audience - sitting all these time without oil moving around coating the gears and seals would be a major concern - something tells me oil leaks right out of the gate with dry cracked seals - these cast iron cases like moister half the gears are above the oil - I once rebuilt a Troy built horse that sat for years - the main drive shaft that sat out of the oil from non use was .......toast ....just my 2 cents

@jagco yea ,there is no way I’d buy that WH. Now where “exactly” is it located again ?

Yes reverse pawl was stuck