I am looking at an older WA500 1L for my remote mine pit. I need an older model due to the lack of an ability to hookup to a scan tool, or have a computer engineer/mechanic fix the later model loaders codes and sensors. So i landed on pre'2007 models and this 1993 Komatsu WA500 popped up with only 4,100 hrs. It just needs to move coarse rock tailings medium distances. Doesnt need to be fast. Any opinions or reasons why i should avoid this model? My ultimate was a Cat 980G with lower hours buy i havent had any luck tracking one of those down.... thanks in advance!
Unless a little old lady only drove it to church on Sundays it would take some serious documentation to believe those hours and if they were somehow true why wasn't it working Totally understand needing a easy to fix machine I don't know much on the Komatsu's right now a 980G with 20,000 hours would be considered low houred and still a good machine
I believe that this unit comes with either a S6D 125 Series Engine or comes with a S6D 140 Series Engine. I have overhauled both of these style engines. The 140 Series engines are harder to get at the bottom end as they have a block extender. They are both individual cylinder head engines that are not as bad for blowing head gaskets. The 125 Series engine can last 25 to 35000 hours if taken care of well. That being said " These engines have very specific fuel timing done by fuel Spilling the Number 1 pump of injection pump." I have done this process too many times to get bothered by but probably only 2 percent of the mechanics out there would know how. Very often pulling the valve covers off of the 125 Series engine valve spacer assembly, the threads will all pull out stripped if it was not put together with lube on the bolts into Aluminum. Something this old may not have Wiring Harnesses available any more. Unless they used the unit only 150HRS per year, I would say that the Hour meter has been changed many times. Don't be fooled by a hour meter. Insist on seeing the maintenance records. A fool is born every day, not saying you are one, but some people will sell pure junk to the unknowing. Don't be scared to have a super competent mechanic check it over for you. Better waste $1000 for a quick inspection, than $75000 for a complete overhaul of engine at todays cost or even more. Tranmissions and pumps are big dollars. I have done a lot of work on same vintage WA 370 Loaders. Komatsu parts are very expensive, and not a lot of people know that much about them versus Cat Loaders of the same era. Hope this gives you some things to find out and consider. Simon C
Ex Komatsu dealer tech checking in. Those were great machines in 1993. Lots of concerns with a machine that old such as rotten wire harnesses and parts availability issues. Not sure how a remote, production orientated mine would keep it running.
I have a customer with two of them about that age. From the nineties. Lots of electrical stuff in them. Engine shut down motor, a ton of relays behind the operator seat and in the right side console. Transmission is electro hydraulic controls. Pumps are not quite under the cab and aluminum bodied. They are hard to get to and may not be available any more. Engines are SD140. Internal wet disc brakes, good steering system. Hourmeter is inside the module which has likely been replaced at least once. They are a good basic machine. You can get most parts from the used parts guy at Modern Machinery in Missoula, Montana. Engines of that vintage and buildup are no longer available. My client has a knocker on one of his machines. $40K minimum to rebuild it. As I recall the tires are 29.5-25 and probably around 6K new. Bottom line, I would never recommend one unless I looked at it first.
Found out it actually has 7,150hrs, but still you make a good point about the hours being so low. I have some faith that it actually may be the correct hour meter reading. Here are some pictures of the machine. The original tires match what a 7k hr machine would have. the body work does as well. The seller is in his late 70's and is retiring (so the story goes) but he is selling all of his farming equipment at the same time, so that story adds up. Its located in rural Washington. I found out he did a large engine rebuild at the cost of $30,000 and am being supplied with the receipts this week. He sent me videos of it running, forward, reverse, loading and dumping gravel, etc. I know it works well, I am more concerned about the reliability and what folks on here know about that. The availability of parts is a concern, as is the wiring in an old machine. However, what are my other options? A Cat 980G would have better availability of parts, but it has an old wiring harness as well. I am fighting with the remoteness of my mine site and which vintage of loader to buy. I already have older Cat iron (D10, D9, D8, etc) so sticking with Cat makes sense from a parts perspective (if Cat loaders use generally the same size hoses, etc). Sorry trying my best not to put all my **** on you guys
Any suggestions on what vintage loader to buy then? I need something that isn't brand new (even though i have the budget for a new one) but can be worked on in remote setting without flying in a geek squad to fix...
I'd say get on over there and look at it John OP, if you can talk John into looking at it, I recommend him to do a good job for you. This is what he does.
For a remote and logistically challenged project like yours, I would consider going with a Cat certified rebuild. The 980g qualifies.
They don't build them like that anymore. With most mine operations I have been at in the past, most of the electrical stuff was hacked and didn't work anyways. I would suggest having someone with experience check it out for you. Great machines in their day and I still see some running today. Repairs can be difficult but not overly complicated. Parts availability would be my biggest concern.
Well, the good news is this machine is in Washington State not over in Montana so it is relatively accessible. My suggestion still stands.
Thanks guys! I am headed to test it out and bring my mechanic along with for an inspection. Any way to investigate the hour meter and see if its been tampered with?
As old as it is, would it really make any difference. Take an oil sample from the engine, transmission and hydraulics. Check the center hitch for movement. The lower hitch is where it will show the most. The sheet metal looks pretty good but it also hides all of what you need to look at. I always crawl underneath and look up with a strong flash light. The level plugs for the axles have magnets so you can check for chunks and hair. You can check the harness on each side of the engine to get an idea of how things are with it. There is a short harness under the cab that goes to the transmission control valve. Beware if it is oil soaked. It can make the transmission lock up eventually. Check for coolant at the line between the block and heads. Coolant leaking at the ends of the heater and radiator hoses is kind of normal on something this old. Good Luck!
Curious if the 7150 hours is since the engine was rebuilt? If the seller claims it's the actual hours, what did he do to need such premature engine work? It looks good but if it was on a farm all its life could explain that.
I can't like your post enough. John, you're very generous with your knowledge.
Thank you so much! I found a Komatsu specific mechanic that I am going to have tag along and inpsect it with me. I will share your suggestions.
cool. If it runs out well and the inspection goes well I would use it. That color of Komatsu was always good to me. IF it was beat it was beat, just like any other iron.
I have one of these and it is horrible. I don't like leaks and have spent probably 100 hrs trying to get it dry and it is better but not dry ,they are a pig to work on just try to see the pumps much less get to them. the led dash was $3000 a side to replace and with the mess of wiring who knows if the problem is sensors or the wires or the gauges. I made new dash and installed mechanical gauges. the forward reverse switch went bad and the thiefs wanted $2700 for it and it is a very simple contact switch worth about $5 so I bought a shifter out of a backhoe on ebay and rigged it and it works. I have equal time under this pig of a machine as in the seat. I had a 980b cat which is 15 years older and it was very good and trouble free, I have a L190 volvo/michigan that is very good to work on and way smoother to operate and an old 988 which is a lot dryer all of these are way better than the wa500
Did you buy your WA500 new or used?
I bought it used and in defense of it I presume it was ran too hot as I have replaced about every oring on it. I have other Komatsu machines which are wonderfull, a D68, D57,pc200-6. these are great machines as long as you don't need parts
I'm struggling to figure out why a supposedly 7000 hr machine needed a full engine rebuild. As a former multiple Komatsu machine owner (around 25 Komatsu's in the mid-1990's), I can only agree with the adverse opinions previously voiced. These machines were good when new, but age badly, with expensive electronic and electrical requirements, and poor parts availability. I'm trying to recall which model Komatsu loader it was, that was initially produced with an inadequate-sized oil pan - but my memory fails me at this point. This particular model Komatsu suffered constant early engine failures because of the inadequate oil supply, and Komatsu ended up enlarging the oil pan on later models by a sizeable volume. 7000 hrs in 30 years is only 233 hrs a year. I find it hard to believe someone would invest a very substantial amount of dollars into a loader, to only use for less than an hour a day on average. Construction equipment is bought to work, to earn lots of money, so they can pay for themselves and provide a return on dollars invested to the owner. Only billionaires can afford to have mega-dollar "toys" sitting around being admired. I'd have to opine 90% of construction equipment shows an incorrect level of total hours worked. And the other factor is that machines sitting around with low levels of use, generally incur more problems, caused by the inactivity and unsatisfactory maintenance levels. To the WA500's credit, they have a very robust frame and loader tower structure, their oil-immersed wet brakes are very very good, the transmissions are robust and reliable - and in the early 1990's here in Oz, Komatsu ran rings around Caterpillar sales and put a sizeable dent in Cat's market share in that period. But the Komatsu's suffer from an excessive level of electrics, and failures in any of these electrical items stop the machine just as effectively as blowing a major component, because of the sizeable number of electrically-operated controls. Their electrical system is complex and the wiring harness layout can provide some major headaches unless you have a good trouble-shooting electrician on hand.
If it was bought used it's hard to make a fair comparison to other machines. You have no idea how well it was maintained and/or abused in the past. The hour meter could be kaput or was changed at some point.
I wonder what the OP decided and if he bought it, is it working out?