Hi there--I have a 2008 272c skid steer..right stick lost tilt/lift still had aux hydraulics. Flashing exclamation point also. Scanned with ET and came up with a 2475.3 and 2477.3 Voltage above normal code. Thanks to reading trouble shooting guide from Nigel I checked voltage at harness. Was good. Check sensor wire and checked harness for shorts through the ecm j1 j2 harness. All good...was sure it was down to joystick. Plugged joystick back in and everything was normal....lift and tilt worked great..used ET to calibrate joysticks. Started up and flashing exclamation was back with same codes as before.... So do I buy a joystick base at this point? Hate to spend $500 if I dont have to. Do these base sensors go bad and work intermittently like that? Thanks for any help!
My friend has a 2015 289D that just had this problem, long story short we ended up taking apart the joystick, cleaning it
I'd try cleaning it first, as Smifwal said, but also check the connector pins on the joystick plug itself. A little dielectric grease on the connector after cleaning can help, too. If it still acts up after that, then yeah, I think the base sensor is likely going bad. Maybe try wiggling the harness while it's running and see if the codes come back. Then, you can tell it is a connection issue or the sensor itself.
Thanks! I will try cleaning today. I tried wiggling the harness and connectors etc for awhile. Will report back with the solution in case anyone else has this problem.
Cleaning a connector is a good idea, The pins not being loose is the utmost importance. Die Electric grease is a non-conductor so if any pins are a hair loose it will make the problem worse not better. If nothing is corroded, blown clean is the best as anything between the pins will only add resistance. Die - Electric grease does stop corrosion but is best to keep out of joints. Some cover a connection with it to keep water out, but inside I stay away from. Simon C
I am sorry I meant taking apart the joystick and cleaning inside of the moving parts and I think we put some penetrating oil in there as well. The long version we took the opposite joystick out and hooked it up on the non operational side and we got all the functions that we should have. So we took the bad joystick apart and gave it a once thorough once over and a little bit of 3-1 oil.
I just went through this with my Bobcat, same year as yours. If you compare a Cat joystick base with a bobcat base of that same era, I'm almost certain they are made by the same vendor. There's not a lot you can do inside that little base. You can clean the springs, but all of those linkages just move a magnet at the bottom and then a PC card with a sensor picks up the movement. The PC card is fully potted and very difficult to troubleshoot. I guess you could say you are lucky that the Cat reman part is ONLY $500. Bobcat wants $900 for just the SJC base.
$900 is CRAZY! I almost bought a Bobcat but was reading alot of horror stories on the cost of parts. Honestly this old pre-emissions Cat has been great so far....I've worked it pretty hard knocking down oak trees and clearing my lot for a building this spring. Only problem I've had is this joystick. I did clean it all out today and plugged it back in...no good. My last step is to test the duty cycle of the joystick... I DO have 12v key on and 14.25 with engine on at the joystick...since I have power to the joystick it should pass the duty cycle test if it is good right? I will be doing that Thursday...then ordering a new base if it fails that. Thanks-Jeff
Try swapping in the base from the LH joystick assembly as a test. You can’t swap the complete joystick assembly BTW. Also the LH base is only for a test, put it back when the test is completed. If the base from the other side works fine you have your answer.
If I remember right I think we were able to leave the left hand joystick in place and just bring the wires over but it was a long angry day so I can't say that for sure
Not that it is relevant to your current troubleshooting, but on a bobcat when you swap bases, the only thing that changes is you flipped your pattern. When I swapped left to right bases, the joysticks did the same thing just in the new position. My boom & bucket control were now on the left and the machine movement was on the right. I guess in other words, the joystick bases were smart enough that they still controlled the same functions even though they were plugged into the opposite pigtails on the machine.
Cat joystick bases are not that intelligent. The LH & RH bases are not the same Part Number (450-0166 vs 456-0169) but the part of both bases containing the X & Y-axis position sensors that respond to the joystick handle inputs are the same. Therefore for a test of joystick functionality it is permissible to temporarily swap the bases. Important to note that there is a Reman joystick base available for the RH side, Part Number 20R8912, which should be cheaper than a new base.
Very good to know thanks. Simon C Also very good to know about remans. Simon C
OEM Part Numbers and Reman below. LH - 456-0169. Reman 20R8911 RH - 456-0166. Reman 20R8912
Thanks everyone! I did the duty cycle test on the RH joystick and the numbers were way off. Bought a reman from cat and they ended up giving me a brand new base instead. Plugged it in got it calibrated and it works like new again. Was really worried I missed something and just threw $500 out the window
Thanks Nige! I did run the skid steer around awhile then got a code 0681-6 parking brake solenoid current /voltage above normal. Any idea if a faulty seat switch would cause that by chance? I see alot for the 0681-5 code but nothing on the 681-6 ....Thanks-Jeff
See attached. I don't know if you already have an electrical schematic but if you want one please ask. It will need the machine Serial Number (REDxxxxx.?) because there are a number of options available. Sometimes that happens. Either way you saved a few $$.
Thank you Nige! That's exactly what I needed to diagnose it. I will get into tomorrow and see what happens. Thanks for all that you do!