ENGINE MAINTENANCE

Checking the Engine Oil
Onlyusehigh qualitydetergentoilrated withAPIservice classification
SF,SG,SH,or SJ, Selectthe oil's SAEviscositygradeaccordingto
theexpectedoperatingtemperature.Followthe chartbelow.
f_older _ 32°F _Warmer _
Oil Viscosity Chart
Althoughmulti-viscosityoils (5W20,10W30,etc.)improvestarting
incold weather,theywillresult in increasedoilconsumptionwhen
usedabove32°RCheckyour engineoillevel morefrequentlytoavoid
possibleenginedamagefromrunninglowonoil.
Tocheckthe engineoil, proceedasfollows:
1. Ensurethat the tractoris on a levelsurface.
2. Cleantheoil fill area of anydebris.
3. Removethedipstickandwipe witha cleancloth.
4. Insertandtightendipstick.
5. Removethedipstickandcheckthe oil level.It shouldbe at the
Fullmarkon thedipstick. SeeFigure7.
F
Dipstick
il Drain
Hose
OilDrain
Valve
Figure7
6. If low,addoil slowly intothe engineoil fill. Do notoverfill. After
addingoil,wait oneminuteand then rechecktheoil level.
7. Replaceandtightendipstick.
Changing Engine Oil
Theengineoil shouldbe changedin the first 5 hoursand thenevery
50hours oronce a season.Tochangethe engineoil, proceedas
follows:
1. WithengineOFFbut still warm,disconnectsparkplugwireand
keepitawayfrom sparkplug.
2. Popoff the protectivecapon theendof the oil drainvalveto
exposethedrain port.See Figure7.
3. Removetheoil fill cap/dipstickfromthe oil fill tube. SeeFigure7.
4. Pushthe oil drainhose(packedwiththis manual)ontothe oil
drainport. Routetheoppositeend ofthe hoseinto an appropriate
oilcollectioncontainerwitha capacitygreatenoughto collectthe
usedoil.
5. Releasethevalvebytwistingand pullingthe valveout.The oilwill
begintodrain outof theengine.
6. Afterthe oil hasfinisheddraining,pressthe twotabs inwardand
pushtheoil drainvalveback into lock thevalveclosed. Remove
thehose,twist and pushinto lockvalve,and re-captheend of
theoil drainvalve tokeep debrisfromenteringthedrain port.
7. Refilltheenginewith newmotoroil untilthe oil levelon the
dipstickreadsFULL.Replacetheoil fill cap/dipstick.
Usedoilis a hazardouswasteproduct.Disposeofusedoil properly.
IDonot discardwithhouseholdwaste.Checkwithyourlocal authori-
[tiesor SearsServiceCenterfor safe disposal/recyclingfacilities.
Changing the Oil Filter
1. Draintheoil fromthe engineas describedabove.
2. Removetheoilfilterand dis ure8.
Oil
Filter
Donotoverfill.Overfillingwithoil maycausethe engineto not start,
hardstarting,orengine smoking.Ifover theFULLmark onthe
dipstick,drainoil toreduceoil levelto FULL markondipstick.
19
Figure8
3. Beforeyouinstallthe newoilfilter, lightlylubricatetheoil filter
gasketwithfresh,clean oil.
4. Installthe oil filterbyhand untilthe gasketcontactstheoil filter
adapter,thentightentheoil filter 1/2to 3/4 turns.