Kubota L3901 Problems And Troubleshoots: Is The Tractor Worth It?

Are you planning to get a tractor for your farm? If you are after a good performance, then you will most likely come across Kubota tractors.

One, in particular, would be L3901 that suits many people’s needs based on their farm. Yes, I will talk about some Kubota L3901 problems, but it’s still a great one to have!

While it comes with great performance capability and features, it does also have some issues.

So, before you buy the thing, let’s check out some problems that you may come across.

Problems with Kubota L3901 Tractor

So, what are the common complaints of L3901? Here is a short-list:

• Regeneration Problems
• Suddenly Shuts Down
• PTO Problems
• Steering Not Working

Now, let’s talk about them more elaborately. After researching the internet and our personal experience, we found the above problems with Kubota L3901.

These are some common issues many people have gone through with the tractor, so you should be aware of them as you buy the tractor. 

Kubota L3901 Regeneration Problems

Regeneration is a crucial element for any tractor. It’s necessary for operating your tractor properly. One problem with the L3901 regeneration is the light keeps flashing.

Usually, the lights should go off after the regeneration process of your tractor, but on this one, it keeps going on. Even if you raise the RPM, it doesn’t stop flashing. 

Another issue with the Kubota L3901 requires regen around every 30 hours, which is a big problem to face. Especially if it is going into park regen, then most likely there are some malfunctioning parts there. 

The problem of frequent regeneration is that it burns a lot more fuel, causes heating issues to other parts, and may even be dangerous to your surroundings.

As it can heat up too much and burn stacks of hay or grass around the farm.  

Troubleshooting The Regeneration Problem 

To solve the issues or to get to the roots of them, you can try out the following fixes- 

• Try going for a higher RPM until you see the RPM light indicator stops flashing. When the regen, the process is complete, the lights should stop flashing altogether. 
• Let the tractor into regen for about 15 minutes without interrupting it, which should stop the lights from flashing. 
• If you face frequent regen issues, you should contact your dealer or look up the Kubota l3901 manual for the proper solution. 

If these fixes don’t work out, then you have to contact your dealership to get repairs done on your tractor. 

Tractors Startup Then Suddenly Shuts Down 

This is a common problem with many of the Kubota tractors out there. As a result, the tractor shuts down in the middle of your use which can be very problematic.

Usually, this happened due to fuel pumps or air filters in either can be the case. 

Fuel starvation is the common scenario for this problem most of the time. Without a proper fuel supply, your tractor won’t work properly; that’s the gist of this. 

Troubleshooting Starting Issue

Now, this problem can occur from various parts failure or malfunction. Here are some things to check out- 

• First, check the fuel pumps if they are working properly or not. If there are fuel flow issues, then your tractor will not work. 
• Then check out the fuel filters if they are clean or not. If there is too much dirt, sludge, and debris, then the fuel flow will be disrupted, affecting your tractor. 
• Another thing is to check up on the fuel lines. Many times, the fuel can’t go through the line for some adversities. You can clean that up with high-pressure air. 
• Aside from fuel flow, this can come from airflow issues as well. So, you should check up on the air filters and see if they are clogged in any way. 

PTO Problems 

There are several reasons that your PTO or power take-off is malfunctioning. First, it can happen from the bush hog shutting off while the power isn’t connected to PTO. This may lead to getting the PTO malfunctioning. 

Here, you will notice the PTO shaft turning without the engagement of PTO itself. That’s when you know there are issues with the PTO of your tractor.

And sometimes, the opposite may also happen; for instance, the shaft won’t turn even when PTO is engaged. 

Troubleshooting PTO Problems

In case of PTO malfunctions, you can do some things that may come in handy for you. 

• The first thing to do in this scenario is checking your clutch pack. A bad clutch pack may cause this issue quite often. This can even occur from a brake disc from the bad clutch pack. So, you have to check if the clutch pack is working fine or not. 

Depending on that, you may need to replace or fix the clutch pack if it’s possible. 

• Another issue can be from the floating-point that comes from the PTO control valve. You can do a pressure test with the control valve of the PTO to see if it’s working properly or not. A sign of a weak seal on your control valve would be the change of RPM rapidly. In this case, you have to change the valve as soon as you can. 

When you face any issue with PTO, it’s important to take steps right away. Unfortunately, there is no room for delay with this issue.

Steering Not Working 

At times you may face this issue, although it’s not very common like the other ones. When this happens, you will fail to steer your tractor freely; it’s as simple as that to understand. 

It can happen from the air in the hydraulic system, less oil in the tank, or problems with the steering cylinders. 

Troubleshooting The Steering Problem

You can do the following repairs to fix the issue completely. 

• Firstly, try removing all the air from the hydraulic system and see if it works out or not. You can check out the Kubota l3901 attachments to find a way through this. 
• If the oil tank is running low on oil, just fill it up and it should solve your issue. 
• As for the faulty steering cylinders, you have to replace them entirely to fix the issue. 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Summing Up

All in all, just like any other thing in the world Kubota L3901 problems are also solvable.

So, when it comes to your buying decision, you should look for the good in the tractor rather than the bad.

Because at the end of the day, Kubota is a renowned brand for producing quality tractors for you with great performance capacity. And if L3901 suits your need, you should go for it. 

About Author

Den Hicks

Traveler, food lover, interior designer, and blogger. I love gardening a lot! I designed my home myself with the help of my beloved wife. You are welcome!

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