Case 465 no steering and lost all fluid

[Jdengle]

I am new to the forum from Iowa but have been reading up on several topics before joining.

I've been looking at buying a skid loader for awhile now and finally pulled the trigger on a 2008 Case 465 series III last night. I got it home and was just playing with it in the driveway when I lost all steering and hydraulic fluid was pouring out. It now appears it's all gone. A light on the instrument panel was going off as well. My operators manual has not arrived, and I am completely new to Case. I've been googling a good chunk of the day but havent had a ton of luck.

Is this most likely a hose or something more catastrophic/expensive? Here is a picture of the light going off. I couldn't find out what it meant. Thanks for any help, I am completely green here.

Jeremy

 

[kith]

I am new to the forum from Iowa but have been reading up on several topics before joining.

I've been looking at buying a skid loader for awhile now and finally pulled the trigger on a 2008 Case 465 series III last night. I got it home and was just playing with it in the driveway when I lost all steering and hydraulic fluid was pouring out. It now appears it's all gone. A light on the instrument panel was going off as well. My operators manual has not arrived, and I am completely new to Case. I've been googling a good chunk of the day but havent had a ton of luck.

Is this most likely a hose or something more catastrophic/expensive? Here is a picture of the light going off. I couldn't find out what it meant. Thanks for any help, I am completely green here.

Jeremy

Sounds like you have blown either a drive hose or a main hydraulic hose. Going to have to raise and lock the loader up and tilt the cab. Welcome to the wonderful world of skid loaders!

 

[kith]

Sorry should have also added that you need to find something to lift the loader.

 

[KSSS]

I am guessing you blew the main line off the pump. The light going off is not good, you must have kept running it and lost charge pressure is my guess. Not that it takes long to do that blowing the main line off the pump. Don't run the machine. There is a pull cord on the right side of the seat, pull that and it should release the hydraulics so you could tow it or lift the arms. Not totally certain as I have never owned a Series 3. Make sure you use the arm lock to lock loader arms up. There is a lever near the rear window that will lock the arms when they are in the air. Release the two levers on each side of the seat and you can rotate the cab forward. If there is a positive aspect to it, a leak that bad should not be hard to locate. Getting the hose out and replaced might take a bit. Hopefully you have not damaged the pump.

 

[Jdengle]

Thanks for the replies. The fluid trail was about 2' wide and 5' long before I shut her down. Then it kept leaking til it was empty. I sure hope I didnt damage the pump either. I would say from the time I started losing steering to the time the machine was off was 10 seconds. As soon as I saw the light flash I turned it off. What does that light mean?

If there aren't two levers beside the seat, is it the two 15/16 bolts on the back of the cab, or will there be both?

Thanks for the positive aspect haha.

 

[KSSS]

The Series 3 may have bolts on the back of the cab. The original 400 series had two levers inside the cab and that was it.

 

[KSSS]

I cant tell from your pic but I would bet that the light that came on was the charge pressure light, there is no hyd oil level light. I advocated for on a customer clinic for the Series 3 in the mid 2000's but it never happened. The bathtub in the 400 series and the 95XT before that is huge and a leak can go for a while before you see it trail out the back. That was my reasoning for the hyd level light indicator. The fact that the charge pressure light came on tells me you lost all hyd oil at the pump, potentially a really bad deal.

 

[Vetech63]

A light on the instrument panel was going off as well

That is the charge pressure warning light. Was it lighting up while you were running it BEFORE the fluid loss?

 

[Jdengle]

I didnt notice the light before the steering started fading. I was backing up fine, but when I started to go forward it got slow and wouldn't turn, then just stopped. It moved forward about 5'. At that time I noticed the light blinking and shut it off. This all happened within 30 seconds I would say.

 

[kith]

You won't be able to tow it. The parking brake will be on. It's spring applied.

 

[Jdengle]

I am guessing you blew the main line off the pump. The light going off is not good, you must have kept running it and lost charge pressure is my guess. Not that it takes long to do that blowing the main line off the pump. Don't run the machine. There is a pull cord on the right side of the seat, pull that and it should release the hydraulics so you could tow it or lift the arms. Not totally certain as I have never owned a Series 3. Make sure you use the arm lock to lock loader arms up. There is a lever near the rear window that will lock the arms when they are in the air. Release the two levers on each side of the seat and you can rotate the cab forward. If there is a positive aspect to it, a leak that bad should not be hard to locate. Getting the hose out and replaced might take a bit. Hopefully you have not damaged the pump.

I've found the arm lockout lever behind the seat, but I wasn't able to find a pull cord anywhere around the seat. Is there something else I can look for? I did find one lever on the right side of the seat that moves about 1/2" over. I wont be able to lift the arms without the pressure being released, correct? I just want to make sure we will be able to lift the arms if I get some help to come over with his loader.

Thanks

 

[KSSS]

That lever should release the pressure. It sounds like it was changed some from the earlier models but the lever you have found is in the same place as the regular 465

 

[jacobd]

If the lever doesn't work for some reason you can always take the lines off the cylinders to get the boom up. Makes a big mess but can't be much worse than you've already got.

 

[Jdengle]

Thanks for the replies, fellas. With the cab tipped up, it just looks like an oily mmess.It seems to be more covered towards the front than the back. Nothing jumped out at me as the culprit, although I cant say I'm familiar with all the lines. To track the leak, can I fill it back up with fluid and watch, or does it need to be under pressure to show? More importantly, if I fill it with fluid would it be safe to start? Can it be started with the cab up? Thanks for the help. Still trying to learn without doing more harm than good. Hopefully my manual will be here this week so I dont have to ask so many simple questions.

 

[kith]

You can add some oil and start it. It helps if someone else can start it while you watch and they can shut it off when you yell! Don't forget eye protection and don't use hand looking for pressure leaks! You'll probably find a hose rubbed through and blown out. Also watch for wire sticking out of the hose where it leaks.

Thanks for the replies, fellas. With the cab tipped up, it just looks like an oily mmess.It seems to be more covered towards the front than the back. Nothing jumped out at me as the culprit, although I cant say I'm familiar with all the lines. To track the leak, can I fill it back up with fluid and watch, or does it need to be under pressure to show? More importantly, if I fill it with fluid would it be safe to start? Can it be started with the cab up? Thanks for the help. Still trying to learn without doing more harm than good. Hopefully my manual will be here this week so I dont have to ask so many simple questions.

 

[Vetech63]

It more than likely a blown hydraulic line. As said above, the easiest way to find it is to add oil to the tank and crank the engine. If it is a main line, you will see it quick.