FYI - Tractor Recall

[yeoman]

I don't know about the recall but the Tuff Torq factory is in Morristown, Tennessee, where I live. Roy

[HPuck]

My wife just received a call from the dealer I purchased my tractor (AGCO Allis model 1615H with 16HP Kohler engine) from last summer. They will be picking up the tractor in order to replace the transmission. The dealer told my wife that there is a potential problem with the transmission and that the manufacturer is having the dealers replace the transmissions with no cost to consumer. The AGCO 1600 series is equivalent to the Simplicity Broadmoore series. According to the Operator's Manual, it has the Tuff Torq K61 transmission. I only have 20 hours run time and have had no problems with the tractor; it's a great machine! Maybe some other members can continue this thread and provide details of model years or serial numbers affected by recall. GT

[Guest]

Thanks for the heads up. I have a 2000 Broadmoor with the K61 Tuff Torq (I always wondered where they were made). I may inquire to my dealer if they know of any recall. Mine works fine except it makes somewhat of a whining noise going uphill or when fully depressed. Does yours make this noise too? I was wondering if that was normal. (this is my first hydro). I did the purging procedure in the manual but didn't make much difference. Seems quieter after it gets warmed up. Is this normal for a hydro? All in all, I agree this is a very nice machine.

[dlcentral]

Yes hydros will make somewhat of a whining noise - this is a characteristic that is normal. Any "fillable" ones that you can add fluid to that are questionable should have the oil level checked.

[HPuck]

Mine also makes that whine while going uphill or while under load (pulling dump cart). If Jeff says this is normal I'm not worried - judging from his posts he knows his stuff. I'm going to call my dealer today to find out when he'll be dropping off my tractor - I'll try to get more info. on the recall. GT

[Al]

Hi, We are a dealer and have a number of these tractors out. I have heard nothing about any Tuff Torq problems. I was just talking to factory service Thur about an unrelated transmission problem and I'm sure they would have mentioned it if something were coming. I know from experience that the Tuff Torqs seem to be a lot tougher transmission than the Hydro gears they replaced a couple of years ago. We have never had a single Tuff-Torq problem yet. All hydros have a whining sound and some are worse than others. A few years ago one of the tansmission companies reduced this noise quite a bit by chamfering the corners where two drilled passages made a right angle turn. Simple things like this can have an effect on how quiet they run. Remember when you have oil going from a pump to a hydraulic motor under very high pressure, maybe 20 times the pressure in your house water pipes you will have some sound, just like you can hear the water running in your pipes. Its normal don't worry about it. Good luck, Al

[Guest]

Thanks for the responses. All I can say is wow the hydros are nice to drive. Wasn't sure I would like the foot control or not but actually I love it.

[dallenx]

The pedal control does make for manuverablity! It is nice to have "cruise" or a dash lever if you have a lot of long rows to do. Think of all the new "lawn sculpturing" you can do now!

[HPuck]

I spoke with my dealer this morning - he said the transmission problem was identified by Tuff Torq and was limitted to approximately 2000 transmissions. According to the dealer the oil passageways in the transmission were not drilled correctly. The dealer said he was told to only replace the transmissions on Agco 1615 models with certain serial numbers. I guess Simplicity was able to narrow down which machines were built with the faulty transmissions. Note that my Unit MFG Number is 1693596 and Unit Serial Number is 00004. The dealer also said that John Deere was notified of the potential problem but decided not to take any action unless a customer experienced transmission problems.