[mikeduwe]

Turning over a new leaf. I just recently got the chance to purchase a used 28HP Kohler Command EFI engine.

The plan is to put this in place of the 25hp I put in last year as seen in this thread:

http://www.wfmachines.com/discus/messages/335/400475.html

The conversion to EFI will require me to add an Oxygen Sensor to the muffler, mount a high pressure electric fuel pump and pressure regulator with hoses connecting them to the engine and fuel tank, as well as a low pressure return line to the fuel tank. I will use the "reserve" circuit on the tractor for the return to the tank.

Hoping it will give me better starting, especially for winter use. The 3 more horsepower will be nice too, even though its a hot rod with 25 already.

 

[mjpoylio]

Wonderful purchase! Be sure to post pictures of it when you're done. EFI is great!

 

[Richards]

Mike,
Are you going to add a turbo to this one? FI+28HP+turbo = one mean machine!
That is an awesome engine. Where do you come across these engines?

Richard

 

[corvettedion]

Mike,

My buddy put a 26 hp fuel injected kohler in his 317 and it purrs. He did a very nice job with the wiring etc. I need to get some pics of it on the website.

One thing, you'll need to replace the factory deere key switch. the fuel injected engine needs to have power to all posts even when cranking, the factory deere switch didn't allow for this.

Terry could tell you about it better.

Nick

 

[mikeduwe]

Nick, I am aware of the keyswitch requirement and was not sure if the Deere switch would be ok. The 318 does use a 6 pin switch, which I would guess is different than the 317, so maybe I will be ok.

You actually need uninnerupted power when turning the switch from start to run or the computer will reset and the engine wont start.

I forgot to mention, but I will likely switch the air cleaner to a standard filter, as I dont need, and probably cant fit, the heavy duty filter canister.

Engine was a warantee return for a low power complaint. I got it running on the bench last night and it purrs like a kitten and did not have any fault codes. Low power might have just be a perception, or the engine hasn't been fully broken in yet.

 

[corvettedion]

i took some pics last night of Terry's 317, i can't get them small enough to load yet. he did a nice job of locating his ECU. He even put a small green bulb on the dash for his malfunction indicator light (MIL).

even without having but a few hours, his 26 feels very strong. can't wait to see it broken in. your right though mike, that thing purrs like a kitten, and the throttle response is great. I hope for similar action out of my 25 hp in my 420.

nick

 

[mikeduwe]

Please email me the pictures if you can.

You could also put them in a gallery.

Thanks.

 

[corvettedion]

Mike,

I just downloaded some of them into the gallery. Here is the link.

http://www.wfmachines.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=155095

If you look close, you can see his custom made sheet metal valve covers so that the engine would fit inside the tins and still have rocker arm clearance.

nick

 

[Lorenjr]

Mike,I am helping a guy out here in town with his 318. He has dumped a lot of cash in to his onan rebuilding it twice. It now has a nasty knock again and you can grab the rod's and slap them around on the crankshaft. I found a 20 HP kohler freshly rebuilt for 450 cash if it will work. He has already given up on it so I said I would give him a hand. I have figured out I need an adapter 4.75" long for the drive shaft to bolt up. I will have that made at work tonight. But I was wondering if you could give me some dimensions on the mounting plate adapters if you know them. I basically need the locations of the holes, and the over all length.

On this engine I found for him it has the 1.125" crank size for the pto. I will be having a piece made tonight to bring it up to the 1 7/16th needed for the original clutch to fit this. However this crank is only 2 5/8th of an inch long where it looks like your is more around 4 inches.

 

[mikeduwe]

I think the bolt circle is somewheres near 3" Make sure to put a recess for the pilot on the flywheel, because that is what centers it, not the bolts. The bolt holes are just to prevent it from rotating, so they could be slightly oversized.

If you get a bushing made for the clutch that works, please let me know, as my 25hp and also my new 28 both have 1 1/8" cranks and I have not found a clutch with large enough diameter pullies on it.

 

[greenmotorman101]

Mike and Loren
You guys are an inspiring bunch. I would love to tackle putting EFI in one of these tractors but I am not that good at electronics. I am also trying to "build at home" an adapter kit to put a kohler command 20 hp in a 316 that blew a rod. If you could post pictures and dimensions of your adapter plates (bottom of engine), that would really help me get the process rolling along.
Thanks.

 

[Lorenjr]

Mike, do you have any pointers on wiring this kohler engine in the 318? Did you have to have a different ignition switch for your 25 hp repower? The one I am working on had the b series engine in it. I think I have it figured out for the most part, but any pointers would be great.

 

[mjpoylio]

Ahhhh.. this kind of discussion brings fond memories of my days at the university. We modified a Polaris twin for a SAE student competition. EFI, turbocharged, and running on E85. Good fumes, good turbo whine, and good power!

Hmmm... My 400 may need some future modifications too!

 

[Don_b]

EFI on a garden tractor? K.I.S.S.; I have had plenty of headaches with making my living around EFI cars; would my Snap on scanner work on that monstrosity? My last 2 vehicle purchases were a 78 Plymouth Fury (had 38K orig miles 2+ years ago when I got it) and an 83 Dodge 3/4 ton pick up. I like simple! though I did put a cam, headers, and a 4 bbl on the truck!

 

[mjpoylio]

Don, it all depends on the enthusiasm (and "freetime") the owner has. A scanner is great, if you have umpteen different sensors in hard to reach locations. If the person knows how the EFI works, and knows what to look for as far as sensor signal patterns, when something is wrong, one can diagnose a problem without a scanner, to a degree.

Any thing can be "simple", relative to the ability of the person operating/maintaning the equipment.

Personally, I'd like to avoid carb adjustments with the seasons.

 

[hogedog]

I would love to try the EFI as our winters are very cold and small engines are hard to start. Thats the main reason for me. I'm looking forward to hearing how it starts and runs this winter.

 

[mikeduwe]

Loren, the big thing is you will need a relay for the "ground to kill" feature on the new engines. Basically instead of cutting power to the coils, you ground them and that stops spark. There is some discussion about this in my other thread.

The EFI system has built in diagonstics that flash blink codes to an led light and some simple tools like a mulitmeter and a fuel pressure gauge will troubleshoot most components. Diagonstic software is also available fore drilling in further.

 

[mkos1980]

Mike, is this keyswitch mod the same one as swaping a Magnum into a an older KT17 motor? Ground the motor to kill?

 

[mikeduwe]

Should be the same idea.

You could change the keyswitch or add a relay.

 

[ab318]

Matt,
For the relay you need a NC.
Andre