On the job, the builder I often work for just put a ton of money into repair of their old NH 555. (Probably about as much as it's worth.) It had had a problem with the hydraulics, in that it wouldn't move. The dealer (not a NH dealer, but one the owners have working relationship with), replaced a coupling somewhere in the system between engine and pumps, but that didn't fix the problem. Last I knew, they were trying to figure out the eletronics to see if something was locking the hydraulics out from working. That was more than a month ago. Anyway, it finally came back, supposedly repaired. Thursday, the operator came over and asked me to hop in it and see what I thought might be "not right". When moved in either forward, or reverse directions, the travel controls do not return to a neutral position. In other words, you can take your hands off both levers, and the machine will still continue to move of its own accord. They also feel very 'heavy', as far as the effort required to move them. My advice was that there's no way that machine is right, and the fact that it doesn't stop if you take your hands off the controls is a definite safety hazard. Given the amount of money they just spent, there's no doubt that the dealer should be called to make it right, but in the meantime, what might be the cause of the problem?
This kind of stuff is a problem, and it's one of the reasons I decided to continue my career as a mechanic being self-employed. First, there is obviously something wrong with the steering linkage. It should return to neutral if you let the levers go. Simple to figure out, springs, levers and bushings, under the seat or under the cab, something is worn out and/or binding up. It is unsafe, and whoever closed a work order stating that it was repaired is grossly negligent, imo. It may or may not have had anything to do with what the machine was taken to the dealer for, so whether they'll stand behind the current problem without additional cost is iffy. Dealers charge so much and when guys are working on an unfamiliar model, there is a lot of head-scratching going on on the shop floor. The customer ends up paying for a lot of guesswork and/or research and if there is more than one problem the bill is already so high that the dealer is loathe to go the rest of the way with it because they know the customer is going to flip. So my best guess is they "fixed" the hydraulic or electrical problem, but the drive is still an issue, but they're tired of the job and they don't want to write off any labor so they ship it and put the problem off for another day. I believe it pays to take it to the Brand dealer. They all charge high, but at least the brand dealer is usually more familiar with the model, and therefore faster with the diagnosis and repairs. Independents like me might have to do some research and head-scratching, but we're (I hope) not charging outrageous hourly rates, either.
Thanks for that, Shane. Thing is, it didn't have this problem when it stopped working. I know there was plenty of head scratching going on, cause the job super asked me to talk to the shop foreman the one day and see if I could help them out. I'm a "parts changer", and do that as infrequently as possible. I'm sure no mechanic. I wasn't much help...
It developed the current problem during it's lengthy visit with the dealer? There is a strong possibility that they reassembled something incorrectly and they should stand behind it. Getting them to own up and getting it back any time soon might be difficult, though. But what do I know? This may be a stand-up dealer and they'll treat it right. I'm not super-confident that this won't all end in hurt feelings though because: A: The dealer got involved in conducting repairs which cost approached the value of the machine, and B: The dealer shipped the machine in a knowingly unsafe condition. IMO, that's just not right, and a stand-up dealer wouldn't do it. But I fear I'm ranting off subject.....
I can't disagree with you. If I find out how it all plays out, I'll let you know.