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Anyone used a John Deere 160 LC ?

JD9545R

Member
Joined
Jun 14, 2009
Messages
11
Location
West Coast
My brother and I are looking at getting one to use on a farm (remove small trees, bury trash, clean ditches, etc).

Any areas that are weak / strong? Any pitfalls or plauging engineering problems?


Thanks in advance for any information.
 

KSSS

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 27, 2005
Messages
4,321
Location
Idaho
Occupation
excavation
My brother and I are looking at getting one to use on a farm (remove small trees, bury trash, clean ditches, etc).

Any areas that are weak / strong? Any pitfalls or plauging engineering problems?


Thanks in advance for any information.


They have had some overheating isssues here. Especially at altitiude.
 

"Two-Books"

Member
Joined
Nov 14, 2009
Messages
10
Location
Falkland B.C.
I spent some time on a 160, the thing I didn't like was it's balance. I usualy spend all my time on a 200C-LC and the differance between the two is unbeleivable. The 160 also with it's narrow track base gives up a bunch when it come's to stability. All in all it's an O.K. machine but I would step up to the 200 and still take on the same job's as the 160 regardless of the increased size. That's my 2 bit's worth.
 

"Two-Books"

Member
Joined
Nov 14, 2009
Messages
10
Location
Falkland B.C.
Back at ya on the 160, same as above we also experienced over heating with the cooling system in the hot summer month's when givin er !!
 

Abscraperguy

Senior Member
Joined
Aug 2, 2009
Messages
265
Location
Grande Prairie, Ab
I don't run one myself but my neighbour does. He bought it new a year or two ago. He went with the 160 because of its size and manueverability which was important for his residential water and sewer business. He loves the machine. It replaced a 10 year old 160 size Komatsu.
 

grapple1

Well-Known Member
Joined
Nov 24, 2009
Messages
96
Location
Campbell River
C or D model? 160 historically are tippy in all brands. they are the beginning of a real machine, but not all there if you know what i mean. Volvo 160 is VERY tippy, Deere 160 not tippy in comparison. Many write ups on volvo 160 tippy, many guys put extra cwt. on these.

the deere or hitachi 160 is a good, solid unit.
 

Schwartz319

Member
Joined
Apr 19, 2008
Messages
10
Location
Greeley Colorado
I run a Deere 160c Lc every day. Not a bad machine but it does over heat during the summer. We also have a Hitachi 160. It is a slightly better machine. It does not over heat during the summer like the Deere. I did basements with both and also water and sewer services. Seems like a decent machine. I ran 320b and c models and liked them much better than the 160 size.
 

RobVG

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 20, 2009
Messages
1,028
Location
Seattle WA
Occupation
17 excavators and a stewpot of other stuff
We had one. No overheating issues. Turbo went out around 8000Hrs. Engine had to be rebuilt the next year.

The machine had been very poorly maintained but still managed to put on those hours before needing work.
 

John C.

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 11, 2007
Messages
12,865
Location
Northwest
Occupation
Machinery & Equipment Appraiser
That size of machine is basically the step up from a 120 size machine without the trucking costs associated with the 20 ton machine. I believe it can be hauled on a two axle trailer without width permits but I could be wrong about that.

I haven't seen a lot of difference between any of the manufacturers of that size class. The 315CL Cat, PC150-6LC Komatsu and the Deere 160D all operate about the same. They are like a swiss army knife in that they doing clearing OK, site work OK and underground utilities OK. All will overheat if you don't keep the radiators clean. All are pretty reliable with good maintenance.

Good Luck!
 

JD9545R

Member
Joined
Jun 14, 2009
Messages
11
Location
West Coast
We ended up with a 2001 model with 2100 hours, thumb and extra bucket. Once again, thanks for all of the information. This is a picture of my brother and the machine shortly after unloading it. He thought the wreath was in order as this is our first excavator......just in time for Christmas.

Oh yeah.....for those that are wondering about the snow and my location as the West Coast. I live in CA and my brother and the farm are in Missouri. Anyone that has followed the weather recently will understand the snow pile. Actually, the truck was a day late as he took the "south" route (Las Vegas) as opposed to I-80 and Reno.
 

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ontarioparts

Member
Joined
Dec 14, 2009
Messages
9
Location
USA
John Deere Overheating Problems-possible solution

John Deere machines are some of the most reliable machines manufactured today. If the engine is overheating in summer, then, check four things:
1.0 is the thermostat functioning properly?
2.0 Is the water pump in proper condition?
3.0 What kind of coolant is used? A denser coolant will move heat away from the engine faster than a less dense coolant. Recheck.
4.0 When last has the radiator had flush? Built up sediments in the radiator from improper cooling liquid can have an increase in the temperature and a reduced volume flow.

I've seen these deeres operate in the tropics with no problem.

regards

John Deere Tractor Parts
 

KSSS

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 27, 2005
Messages
4,321
Location
Idaho
Occupation
excavation
John Deere machines are some of the most reliable machines manufactured today. If the engine is overheating in summer, then, check four things:
1.0 is the thermostat functioning properly?
2.0 Is the water pump in proper condition?
3.0 What kind of coolant is used? A denser coolant will move heat away from the engine faster than a less dense coolant. Recheck.
4.0 When last has the radiator had flush? Built up sediments in the radiator from improper cooling liquid can have an increase in the temperature and a reduced volume flow.

I've seen these deeres operate in the tropics with no problem.

regards

John Deere Tractor Parts




Well bring up to 6-9000 and tell me how they do. Deere Co. spent time up here working on them getting them to run cooler. Its not a new issue. Check into it if you don't think it is for real.
 

I AM IRONMAN

Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 23, 2009
Messages
156
Location
Spearfish, SD
Occupation
Sales & Consultant Rep.
Great Looking machine JD9545R. Looks like it's well care for from what I can see.
One of the nice things about these units is that it can be moved easily in most states with a Dump Truck and a tag trailer without much trouble. They can be either 8 1/2 ft wide or 9 ft wide, depending on the pad width.
If it seems light in the rear with the thumb on it, you might want to check into a rear bolt on counter weight to go on the bottom of the original counterweight. That will really balance it out.
I've had very good luck with that model up to about 7200 ft above sea level, with no overheating. I havent had them any higher than that, but you can always look at a high speed fan to help.
 

whiteline

Member
Joined
May 25, 2010
Messages
7
Location
abbosford bc
Nice machine just keep the rad as clean as you can with air, once the rad gets plugged on that machine you will have nothing but issues mentioned above with overheating. I had it happen myself but it was in a dusty wood chip enviroment that you probably wont encounter on your farm
 

Landworks

Well-Known Member
Joined
Sep 19, 2009
Messages
50
Location
Nashville, TN
Occupation
Owner/CEO
I bought a '99 160LC new and used it for many years. Never had any issues with overheating (we are in the 400ft alt range) although I do remember that machine being very dependent on new fuel filters. I have that same engine (4.5L Powertech) in some of our Deere dozers and compressors and have had fuel issues with one or two of those also. Overall, for the ease of being able to haul on a 20 ton tag a long trailer, these were nice. But I will say that heavy work (digging stumps, etc) are better left for the 200LC and larger machines. I did change our machine over to 28 in pads which helped tremendously. We used a CP 48" 1.35 yard bucket on that machine which was as large as it would handle.
 

ditchdiggerjcf

Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 1, 2010
Messages
66
Location
arkansas
spent a couple months on a brand new 160d this past summer. No overheating isssues, but the entire machine felt cheap. Noisy(gear whine,clanks?, bangs?). No way in the world I would buy one after that experience, and I am a deere man.
 
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