CVT Shaft Came out of Front Wheel

C

Colorado_High

Member
Had a disaster with my fairly new RTV x1100c. I was snow plowing and lost 4 wheel drive. The CVT shaft for the right front wheel came out of the wheel hub and was flopping around free. We tried to stuff it back in, but found a broken bearing race and some loose bearings. I am going to take it into a Kubota dealer to hopefully get it fixed, but just curious if this has happened to anyone else. The RTV has only 75 hours on it, so I am very disappointed in the product. I mostly use it for snow plowing, which is not the easiest thing on the vehicle, but still...
 
Doc

Doc

Admin
Staff member
Gold Site Supporter
Strange. Many here have used their RTV's for plowing and I've never heard of this issue before. Any chance it's still under warranty?
 
foxalaska

foxalaska

Active member
If you're plow has "down" power, you may have over extended your suspension, allowing the shaft to drop out.
 
foxalaska

foxalaska

Active member
Colorado_High said:
That is an interesting comment. Yes, I use a Boss V-Plow, and it does have down pressure, and will lift the front a little.
Click to expand...

I want a Boss plow for my 1100c, but can't justify the price(5500 bucks here in Alaska)for what little I have to plow. Do you like it?

I think the blade lifted the machine when you went over a big bump, allowing the suspension to abruptly over extend and allow the shaft to drop out fully or partially. If the shaft partially came out and jammed, preventing it from going back in, may explain the bearing damage. Speculation on my part, but if that's the case, it may be something all of us should check out. Too bad you had the problem, but your experience may save the rest of us from avoidable grief and for that I thank you for bringing this to our attention.
 
A

aurthuritis

Well-known member
Site Supporter
pretty sure there is a castellated nut and cotter pin that would have to fall off before the shaft could just flop out of the hub. there is also a joint next to the diff case that allows the shaft to extend and retract. could there have been an ingress of water that froze the shaft in an extended position putting a bind on the hub??
 
C

Colorado_High

Member
foxalaska said:
I want a Boss plow for my 1100c, but can't justify the price(5500 bucks here in Alaska)for what little I have to plow. Do you like it?

I think the blade lifted the machine when you went over a big bump, allowing the suspension to abruptly over extend and allow the shaft to drop out fully or partially. If the shaft partially came out and jammed, preventing it from going back in, may explain the bearing damage. Speculation on my part, but if that's the case, it may be something all of us should check out. Too bad you had the problem, but your experience may save the rest of us from avoidable grief and for that I thank you for bringing this to our attention.
Click to expand...

I am not very experienced at plowing snow, having spent most of my years in south Texas. However, the Boss V-Plot seems rugged, and capable of pushing the snow wherever it is desired.
 
C

Colorado_High

Member
I dropped the RTV off at the dealer today, and hopefully it will be ready to pick up in a couple of weeks. I need to check into the warranty, but I think the time has expired on my unit. Big snow is forecast for this weekend at higher elevations, so hope I can get it back into the property after I pick it up. That fat little RTV does not ride up on the snow very well.
 
C

Colorado_High

Member
aurthuritis said:
pretty sure there is a castellated nut and cotter pin that would have to fall off before the shaft could just flop out of the hub. there is also a joint next to the diff case that allows the shaft to extend and retract. could there have been an ingress of water that froze the shaft in an extended position putting a bind on the hub??
Click to expand...

Thanks for the comments. I just purchased a service manual, and will take a look at it to see if I can better understand what might have happened. You are correct that there is a castellated nut and cotter pin, and they are still in place. They did not fall off. And you are correct that there is extension and retraction movement allowed in the joint next to the differential case, and that is working fine. The RTV has been stored outside, and there is snow there, but I am not sure about the possibility for ingress of water. There is a bearing race that was torn up when the shaft pulled out of the wheel hub. I need to study the service manual to see what I can learn.
 
A

aurthuritis

Well-known member
Site Supporter
the hubs on all wheels run in oil. the brakes are a wet brake also. i wonder if you had a dry hub and bearing failure ???
 
C

Colorado_High

Member
I owe everyone an apology. After looking at the service manual and reviewing the problem in my mind, I made an error in describing the problem. The CV joint near the axle broke. It looks like the "CVT shaft unit" is made up of 3 shafts, with two CV joints. The outer CV joint at the wheel separated, leaving the shaft flopping around but no longer connected to the wheel when placed in 4 wheel drive.

It is hard to diagnose a problem when someone cannot describe it correctly. Sorry.
 
V

VA1100

Member
I bought second unit over the summer, an X1140. The first time I had to use four wheel drive the front left axle snapped at the outboard CV joint, it only had 15 miles on it. The dealer replaced it without any questions, it wasn’t abused, I’ve had my X1100 in this area many times with no issues. It snapped where the splines started, I believe just a defective axle.
Pete
 

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C

Colorado_High

Member
VA1100, yes, similar to mine except my my shaft was still connected to the "splines." So I would say in my case the CV joint itself separated. I have only 76 hours on mine, so it was a real disappointment. The only thing different that I did this time was roll my right wheel up on a snow/ice embankment around the barn that was 12" to 18" high. (The embankment was created by snow sliding off the metal roof of the barn/garage.) Perhaps that was when the CV joint broke.
 
V

VA1100

Member
Colorado High,
I don’t think it was due to suspension travel issues all by itself. I have a Kubota V blade on my X1100, which has downforce and have never had any issues. I also have a two inch lift on both units and 27” tires on both as well, the lift does increase the angle on the axles, but have never had issues with them. I agree with Aurthuritis and Foxalaska, that something kept the CV joint from sliding in the housing.
Pete
 
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