Stuck in reverse

doggman

Member
We had a guest driving our RTV900 today and he got the thing stuck in gear. Not only that but it was crosswise ( he was doing a back and fill U-turn) in a country lane that was lined with trees and thick brush so we couldn't just back it around. On top of that we were waiting for an out of state truck to pick up a sawmill -and the lanewas blocked by the RTV. </P>


Anyhow, we wound up getting the thing straightened out (Try pushing one of these in gear - not! My back still hurts) and drove it in reverse for a mile or two to get where we could work on it. The mail delivery gal was entertained when we driving "stem to stern" down the lane...</P>


After the sawmill headed down the road I called the dealer to see if there was a quick fix or if it was a common issue. No quick fix and it involved the dealer opening the trans to fix it.And, yes,they do see this problem from time to time.I never remembered seeing it in this forum. </P>


We figured that if it was going to the Kubota shopthen they wouldn't care if it was in pieces or not - so we marked everything and pulled the plate on top of the trans that has the shifting mechanism. It wasn't evident at first but we figured out the problem. There is a "fork" that fits around a "rod" under the trans plate that we removed. The other end of the rodrests intwo separate "cups" that are attached a sliding mechanism that moves the gears to the appropriate H-M-L-R range. Somehow therod (probably by forcing it) got out of the 2 "tines" of the fork. Consequently,since the rod was now "separated" from the shifting fork (at this pointI was leaving the"f" out of shift...) it was impossible to change gears.</P>


We aligned the cupsacross from each otherby sliding them with a screwdriver to get to the neutral position. We then put the rod back between the tines of the fork and moved it so that it would align and drop into the cups when we replaced the whole shifter plate assembly. The first time we missed the cups with the rod and were stuck in M. The second time we hit the mark. I could probably do the whole thing in 15 minutes now. </P>


We saved ourselves 6 hours of back and forth trailer time to the dealer, a repair bill, and the aggravation of being without the RTV and having to drive the Gator...</P>


Sometime, if I get the time and figure out how to post photos (I've tried unsuccessfully using the posted instructions) I'll do it for the benefit of the forum. </P>


And - don't ever get too far away from your tools...</P>
 

bczoom

Senior Member
Staff member
Gold Site Supporter
That doesn't sound like fun.

Did you bill your "guest" for the work? I'd go with at least a case/hour so it sounds like at least a 12-pack.

If you took pics but can't post them, go ahead and send them to me and I'll upload for you. It could be a size issue.
 

rfreeland

New member
I think I have the same problem I was stock in the woods in the snow i had to use a come-a-long to turn turn it around. Do you have any pictures you could e-mail what you did.
 

doggman

Member
Unfortunately, I don't have any photos. If I get the time I'll do it again and take photos. I think this is a more common problem than is known. Maybe kubotatech(one of the forum members) could comment on this. </P>


If you have ever worked on a transmission or are mechanically inclined you can probably do it yourself.Print out a copy of my posting before you start and make sure you clean the top of the transmission before you start. It's basically a simple matter of lining 3 things up and putting them back in place. </P>
 

Fitch

Active member
I just did the same thing on mine. The shifter mechanism on these things isn't all the robust now that I've looked at it.

I have to take the top off mine again to put some sealant in the joint. When I do I'll get some pictures. If I remember. My 73 year old cranial velcro isn't as sticky as it once was.

Fitch
 

bordercollie

Gold Site Supporter
Gold Site Supporter
This is a copy out of my manual for the old style RTV900. Hope it helps someone someday.. I've never had to do this job, and ha... don't want to neither. But anyways ,here is a picture and list .. collie
 

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David69

Active member
This is a copy out of my manual for the old style RTV900. Hope it helps someone someday.. I've never had to do this job, and ha... don't want to neither. But anyways ,here is a picture and list .. collie

Collie where did you get your manual for the old style RTV900?
 

bordercollie

Gold Site Supporter
Gold Site Supporter
Collie where did you get your manual for the old style RTV900?

I referred to it as old style to differentiate from the new models recently introduced out there. I bought this repair manual and parts list in 2005 from Messicks (and later bought one on the web on a CD) , before they were available on the web's "auction site". I said that so someone with the new style would know. ( I don't know about the transmission being the same or not on them) .
Hopefully the new manuals are improved because the directions are unclear on some "jobs". -and words don't make sense- I guess it was a translation thing back then.. collie
 

Fitch

Active member
Up until recently I've always purchased the service manuals for my cars and trucks. The Kubota manual is more like kindergarten scribbling with a dull crayon compared to manuals from the major car manufacturers. Ford, GM, Honda, Toyota and Chrysler manuals will spoil you really quickly.

The parts book with it's exploded views is a huge help. I really like having it available on line, especially because it stays current with any recent developments, like mod kits, etc.

Fitch
 

ovrszd

Well-known member
Up until recently I've always purchased the service manuals for my cars and trucks. The Kubota manual is more like kindergarten scribbling with a dull crayon compared to manuals from the major car manufacturers. Ford, GM, Honda, Toyota and Chrysler manuals will spoil you really quickly.

The parts book with it's exploded views is a huge help. I really like having it available on line, especially because it stays current with any recent developments, like mod kits, etc.

Fitch

I agree. I've actually done repairs just using the exploded parts diagrams online with Kubota.

It's obvious the Kubota WSMs are written by Japanese. Sometimes you have to read a sentence a few times to understand what they are trying to say. :)

I paid $10 for an electronic RTV Work Shop Manual that's 479 pages. It's pretty detailed with very good pictures. Just gotta get by the grammar at times.
 

bordercollie

Gold Site Supporter
Gold Site Supporter
Yea, it's nice being able to go to the Messicks Eqpt and get a detailed parts diagram such as what I posted. You just type in the model info and they email it to you pronto. collie
 

Fitch

Active member

Yes, really. Even better, it's e-mailed as a PDF file so you can print it and haul it to the shop, get it greasy and print another one.

I print and 3 hole punch them. put them in the looseleaf that has the service manual.

Fitch
 

ovrszd

Well-known member
Yes, really. Even better, it's e-mailed as a PDF file so you can print it and haul it to the shop, get it greasy and print another one.

I print and 3 hole punch them. put them in the looseleaf that has the service manual.

Fitch

I do too. Just seems more useable when it's laying there in paper form rather than having to "wake up" the computer after it goes to sleep from lack of activity. :(
 

Nevadablue

Member
I agree. I've actually done repairs just using the exploded parts diagrams online with Kubota.

It's obvious the Kubota WSMs are written by Japanese. Sometimes you have to read a sentence a few times to understand what they are trying to say. :)

I paid $10 for an electronic RTV Work Shop Manual that's 479 pages. It's pretty detailed with very good pictures. Just gotta get by the grammar at times.

Richard, where did you get the manual?
 
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