I have recently encountered a problem where about 10 seconds after releasing the traction control it re engages on its own. I traced the wiring leading from the foot brake and find it to be fine. I need to know where to find the solenoid that controls this feature so I may go forward with troubleshooting. Am I correct in assuming that the solenoid is power released? Is there any more safety switches than the seat and hand bar? will disconnecting these switches disable them so I can eliminate them as problem areas? PLEASE HELP!
OK I found that the connection to the solenoid must have been loose because when I pushed a probe tester into the coupler to check for power on the hold wire it stayed lit and normal function resumed.
Newbie here. I have a question. What can I use instead of "BobCat Fluid" I have neen told SAE 30 oil. TIA
Problem not solved. I was able to resume operation initially. left to run errands and returned to go to work to find that the problem was back with me. need help
Welcome to the forum jamucat. :usa May be a topic for debate, but I've simply been using AW32 hyd oil in Bobcat systems for years, never had an issue with it. I can't remember every detail of different Bobcat machines, but I'm thinking by the time they made the 863, they no longer used a seat switch, could be wrong though. I'm also thinking the 863 would have had a BICS display with LED lights that would indicate a problem with the seat bar or something. That brake solenoid on the chain case should have 3 wires going to it. The black would be ground, the red would be 12V to hold the solenoid engaged, but the white should only have 12V on it momentarily while the solenoid is being pulled in. If there's 12V on the white wire for more than, say, 5 seconds, it will burn up the solenoid coil. If all the LEDS are lit on your BICS display, and your brake solenoid still releases, could simply be a failing solenoid. Be sure and check all along your wiring harness, Bobcats are bad about rubbing spots in the harness. And I'm not certain about the 863, but with the cab raised, check the harness coming down the backframe from the cab wiring, see if there's a large plug connection in cab harness where it meets with lower frame harness. If so, check the pins/sockets in that harness connector.
The white wire is momentary the red wire on the solenoid has power for around 10 seconds and then releases. How can I test the relay involved? or should I purchase a new one? Solenoid appears to hold until power fades. Do the safety switches work on a grounding principle, ie: no ground equals release and ground equals lock? In other words is the solenoid turned on and off with relay control circuit grounding? Thank you I really appreciate any help
Relays are fairly cheap, but best way is to swap it to a know good one. Then if you have troubles on that other circuit you know it was a bad relay. Do you get any codes? The controller may be cutting power because the coil is drawing too much current.
The relays send power to components. The grounds that activate relays are controlled by the ECU. I'm near certain the momentary power on the white wire of brake solenoid is controlled by ECU. If you are loosing voltage on the red wire, the solenoid would release. This voltage should come from the Parking Brake relay. Check the relay socket that relay plugs into real good, look for evidence of plastic melting. I've seen many problems with parking brake relay sockets and heat/AC relay sockets.
thanks atco I have checked to see if the relay was plugged in tight. it was. Are the all of the relays circuited the same? can I exchange it with another one? if so which one would be best to trade out? Am I correct in assuming that the only drop out switches are the seat bar, floor brake, and seat switch? If one of these wires are shorted to ground would a ten second delay before disconnect be common? Your knowledge has been exceptional. Thank you!
Oh! the BICS shows normal until the coil kicks and then all lights flash continuosly. thanks again!
Those type relays all work the same, you could switch it out with any of the other relays. I'm not sure what it means to have all the BICS LEDs flashing continuously. Let's say you have a problem with the safety bar circuit, a fault would activate the parking brake, but in that case, I'm thinking it would simply make the safety bar LED go out, not make all LEDS flash. It might be useful info to know how many amps the red wire on the brake solenoid is pulling when it's activated. I'm not sure what the amps current is supposed to be on red wire, but you can bet it should be several amps less than the fuse on the parking brake circuit.
Thanks again atco. long day today so I will swap the relays tomorrow or Saturday and post the results. Finger and toes all crossed!
Just a thought but I think when all the lights blink it is an Out of range voltage problem. I would guess low voltage due to a bad ground or weak battery. Just a thought good luck.
Hi guys, newbie here...I have a 753G that the mice ate the wiring harnesses both the 14/7 main and my 1812 snowblower harnesses. I replaced all the harnesses with new. Everything worked fine until it started getting dark and I turned the lights and heater on. Then the machine slammed to a stop just about throwing me through the cab door! As above, all the lights flash and the unit will not start. Let sit for 10 minutes and it starts and runs for another 5 or 10 minutes then slams to a stop and kills again. I called the bobcat dealer I just spent close to $700 on harnesses to see if possibly it could be a low battery and all they would say is I have to bring it in to have it checked out....by the way there are no codes being recorded. Any help would be great.
Our 763G was doing that this summer while we were baling hay. Problem was a slightly loose and severely corroded ground connection at the battery. Cleaned up the terminal and clamp, tightened it down and no problems since. The service manual lists the loose/bad ground as the first thing to check, but I don't recall what the other possible causes were.
it could also be a bad brake solenoid on the hold circute staying up when you release it and droping because the hold in the coil is bad. also did you check to see if the pins are loose in that conection and possibly pushed back only making partial contact?
bobcatmechanic, I did check and clean the ground wire at the battery. I actually put a new battery in also. I don't know where to look for the brake solenoid or the pins you speak of. Thank you for the help. Tomorrow I plan to tilt the cab up and see if the mice have done any wire damage under the seat area. They destroyed all my other wiring harnessess.
Thanks trukfan, I already tried that solution along with putting a new battery in. Problem still exists. One thing I noticed..when it did start my seatbelt light stayed on until it timed out even though I had it on and buckled. That is why I am suspecting more mice problems under the seat. What do you think?
Thanks for this great site! After much history reading..I finally went out, lifted the cab and began my search. After I was about to give up because I really found nothing seriously wrong..I lifted a plug assembly on the big wire harness under the cab and spotted a black wire partially pulled out of its socket. I realligned the long silver end and gently pushed it back into the socket it came from until the green rubber seal disappeared. I closed the cab and took her for a spin and everything seems to be working great right now. I even ran the heater and lights and it just kept working!!! Such simple things sometimes...but boy was that cab hard to lift after all the rain yesterday and now it is 16 degrees out. Hope it is a permanent fix. One thing I noticed under the cab was a switch mounted to a plate under the control arm bars..it had two white wires connected to it but nothing to activate the little micro switch sticking out the other side. Anyone know what this is and if I need to replace this microswitch? It appears to have had a small bar that pushed down on the tiny switch, but the whole assembly (bakelite) is broken away. Thank you!! Brad
If your cab is really hard to raise, probably need to replace the gas springs. The switch you referred to is to activate a back up alarm when going in reverse.
Thanks ATCOEQUIP, I think it was only really hard to raise because it was frozen down. Once the ice was broke loose I was able to raise and lower it much easier! About that switch, that really ticks me off. I was blowing fuses last year when going into reverse so the DEALER mechanic disabled the backup alarm. Now I know how.(By breaking the switch) Is the bar connected to the joy sticks supposed to rub on the top of that broken switch? One of the screws is worn from it rubbing. Maybe that was why the fuse kept blowing.
It should be a snap action switch similar to this, it might have a small roller on the end of the lever, can't remember for certain. http://www.alliedelec.com/search/productdetail.aspx?SKU=6422118 The bar from the drive lever should rub against the lever on the switch, depressing the lever and activating switch.
ATCOEQUIP, Alright, thanks for the site link. I have several of these type of micro switches on hand due to the electronics I used to work on in Detention Facilities. They should work just fine. I have straight arm style and roller style. Thank you.