rcubid
05-11-2009, 09:00 AM
I bought a new Fastrak 44 with the Honda 16hp motor in fall of 2005 that I use for my 1 acre residential lot. Its light-duty stuff and the mower has only 42 hrs total since I started using it.
I was mowing my yard yesterday and about halfway through the mower lost power and ran rough when I engaged the blades. I disengaged the blades and it seemed to go back to normal. I stopped the motor and did a check all around to make sure I didn't run over something (which is unlikely because there is nothing in the yard to hit) and everything looked fine. Nothing around the blades and nothing disconnected that I could tell. I fired it up again and it was the same - started right up, but got rough if I engaged the blades.
I turned it off for a second time and things became much stranger. After the second shutoff, the engine won't even crank. Engine light comes on, but starter won't fire at all. I just hear a buzz when I turn the key.
The steering is parked, the blades are disengaged and the switches for those are working fine because I don't even get a buzz if I try to start with either set wrong.
If it had not started up normal 4-5 times in the previous hour, I would think the battery was bad. I also don't know how a bad battery would cause the motor to run rough only when the blades were engaged (load). I pulled the battery and cleaned up the connections, but still no change.
I'm stumped on this one. This mower is like new with less than 50hrs on the motor. Oil has been kept up and I can't imagine a motor issue with what these units can take.
Let me know any thoughts. I was thinking the battery may have just decided to give up and I can change it out, but the rough running right before it died makes me wonder if that is the right direction.
I was mowing my yard yesterday and about halfway through the mower lost power and ran rough when I engaged the blades. I disengaged the blades and it seemed to go back to normal. I stopped the motor and did a check all around to make sure I didn't run over something (which is unlikely because there is nothing in the yard to hit) and everything looked fine. Nothing around the blades and nothing disconnected that I could tell. I fired it up again and it was the same - started right up, but got rough if I engaged the blades.
I turned it off for a second time and things became much stranger. After the second shutoff, the engine won't even crank. Engine light comes on, but starter won't fire at all. I just hear a buzz when I turn the key.
The steering is parked, the blades are disengaged and the switches for those are working fine because I don't even get a buzz if I try to start with either set wrong.
If it had not started up normal 4-5 times in the previous hour, I would think the battery was bad. I also don't know how a bad battery would cause the motor to run rough only when the blades were engaged (load). I pulled the battery and cleaned up the connections, but still no change.
I'm stumped on this one. This mower is like new with less than 50hrs on the motor. Oil has been kept up and I can't imagine a motor issue with what these units can take.
Let me know any thoughts. I was thinking the battery may have just decided to give up and I can change it out, but the rough running right before it died makes me wonder if that is the right direction.