case 580 super k - need help!

[jbaich]

hello all, i have (on loan) a case 580 super k construction king 4x4 turbo extendaho and a couple of months ago i lost the use of most of my gauges as well as the back up alarm (lost temp, oil pressure, and volts--- still have RPM and warning lights as far as i know) Didn't think much of it at the time, but the other day a continuous alarm went off. From what i've been abel to find out online, this could be for the following reasons;

1.Engine crank speed
2.Parking brake
3.Engine oil pressure
4.Front axle engaged
5.Engine coolant temperature
6.Torque converter oil temperature

If this is not a complete list for a continuous alarm or is in some way incorrect, please correct me!

Anyway, I'm pretty sure it's never had an audible alarm for the parking brake as i've made the mistake of driving it with the brake on for short periods before and never heard an alarm.... The engine seems to be running strong and i'm sure the front axle was engaged, but i did not leave 2nd gear so that shouldn't do it should it? I'm thinking oil pressure and coolant temperature are the most likely culprits, but with out the gauges i'm not sure which one it might be. I hosed off the rad as it had some dirt and grass on it thinking (hoping) that this was the problem, not enough heat able to dissipate due to being covered in dirt, but the next day after about an hour and a half of operation (scrapping and piling dirt) the alarm went off again.

So... any advice on what may have caused all of my needle gauges and back up alarm to quit and how to fix this? i checked the fuse, it was fine, but it was a 20amp in place of where a 10 amp should have been. Is there a main fuse before the fuse box in the cab somewhere?

Any suggestions on how to diagnose the alarm? I'm no mechanic, but pretty handy. I checked the coolant, the resevoir was low, but the rad was full and it looked clean. I filled the resevoir and ran it with the cap off for a bit to see if it would cycle, but it didn't appear to... does it need the cap on to build pressure to open the thermostat or is it temp activated? I also checked the oil, it was full, but black so i'm going giver a change and i'm going to change the air filter while i'm at it. Any thoughts out there on 10w-30 vs 15W-40?

Is there any way to manually test for oil pressure?

I don't know anything about torque converter oil temperature or engine crank speed so i really hope it's not either of those, they sound expensive!

Any help would be super appreciated!

Thanks,
Joe

 

[alrman]

Welcome Jbaich !
First place to look is the coolant level sensor. At front of the head near where the top radiator hose is fitted, there are 2 sensors, one with a bolt on terminal , one with a pull off terminal.
Dissconnect the one with the pull off terminal & see if it stops the alarm. + check if coolant level is OK as it may just be doing it's job!
:drinkup

 

[jbaich]

so run it again until the alarm sounds? am i risking any damage if it's not a coolant issue?

Thanks,
joe

 

[alrman]

Does alarm sound as soon as you start engine or does it come on after running it for a while?

 

[jbaich]

after it's been running for a while. Last time took a little over an hour.

 

[alrman]

If coolant level is OK, the coolant would have be near boiling for the alarm to go off. If it was oil pressure, light would be on. I would wait for alarm to sound again & try pulling the wire on coolant level sensor to see if it stops.

Thinking about it, it could have gone off by temp switch if the thermostat was faulty - the radiator would still be coolish & engine hot.
It could be park brake switch as they also often play up - but that would only be when it was in gear.

re your gauges - if all fuses are good, you need to start checking wiring harness plugs, there are some under the floor above the RH axle, good place to start. + make sure the plug at the back of the gauge cluster is properley fitted & all the copper cotacts not bent & are clean.
re oil - 15w40 is choice here, depends if you are affected by cold weather. Maybe more advise will come from others.

 

[nitro]

check the ground wires directly under the fuse box .theres a nut/bolt with a lot of ground wires there to the chassis ,,,on mine i made a new ground from the batt. to the frame and ran a ground wire to that bolt where all the wires ground under the fuse box

tom

 

[jbaich]

thanks, i'll check that out.

 

[CODMECH]

i ran into a similar problem ona super k, the charging system would work and quit intermittantly, the alarm stayed on almost all the time with the engine running perfectly[temps,pressures etc], the problem turned out to be the fuse panel, on this particular old tractor the plastic fuse holder panel had become badly deterioated on the back side and was allowing wires and fuse terminal ends to short and overheat. might be a good idea to look at the backside of your fuse panel