2290 Engine?

Neighbor guy has a 2290 that he has had nothing but trouble with. For the first 2 years he owned it, he couldn't use it because of the shift package of sorts. I know that isn't the proper term, but a couple times a day, he would have to call the guy he bought it from to come clean out one of the clutch valves. Long story, but eventually he found some one that went through it and got it where he could use the transmission. Well, the other day, I sunk my skidsteer in a creek, called him to come pull me out. He couldn't, but as we were standing there cussing, I noticed his tractor was dumping oil out. Walked around to the other side, and the front of his block is broke. Dumping lots of oil out. I know for a fact that it has leaked oil for 3 years, and I was the first to figure it out. Pretty easy when the crack was opened up like that.
My question is, what now? He is going to try J-B welding it, and get through this spring. I would guess that he has dumped well over $7000/year into this tractor, for the last 5 years. Before that he had my Allis leased, and could have bought it 10 times over for what he has tided up in this junker.
Were all 2290s lemons, or did he just get HOSED?

It sounds like this tractor has had a hard life prior to your friend buying it. Transmissions and rear ends - yeah, they'll need work especially if maintenance is weak. There's probably not too many that haven't had something done over the years. The engine thing, though, has me wondering, how would you crack the front like that?

I had a 2290 for 26 years, bought new, and when I sold it at about 5600 hrs it didn't burn a drop of oil and had never been opened up. I did have have work done on the powershift and the rear end, though.

The powershift control valves sticking is caused by a contaminated hyd system. Due mainly by lack of proper maintenance or a mechanic failure in the system. Due to the age of these tractors we see more of this type of problem because operators seem to over look servicing older units as much as newer stuff. Also remember these systems have 30+ years of accumulated crud. Proper servicing of the hyd. system on these older units is still very important or be prepared to pay the price. As for the engine block cracking my guess is that is a rare failure caused by something in the tractors passed history. If it were a defective block I would think that it would have happened long before now. But having said all that we all know company's, even CASE had there share of lemons. Rod.

I agree with Jim. It sounds like a hard life tractor. I have a 2294 with 14,000 hours bought new and never been touched. A 2594 with 9,000 and nothing done. I have a 3594 with 12,000 that has been a work horse and only now has a small amount of antifreeze in the oil. However, that tractor owes me nothing. I will gladly rebuild it if I have to. A 4890, 4894, and a couple of 1070's that have been problem free as well. However, we do take care of these machines. They get regular oil and filter changes includeing the hydraulics. Case made some great tractors!

Supposedly, the rearend and transmission had been "touched" up right before he bought it. I know these guys aren't great on maintenance, but he was never able to use the tractor the first couple months he owned it. I would guess that is why the dealer is now out of the Case business.

I am guessing he is going to need a block if he keeps this tractor? Sad part is he traded off a Blacknight 1070, that had over 10,000 hours. Motor finally gave out on it.

I have repaired several "90" series tractors that have been worked on by those who did not know how to properly repair them and they too would not stay running, this is no way a fault of CASE as any brand/model if put together wrong or not repaired completely or correctly will live, I have also done many repairs on other brands that had ill repairs done to them as well, as to the broken block I have seen IH and JD tractors that had been badly abused with loaders and they too had broken blocks, front axle ect is this IH or JD fault ? No, some people just have no idea that a farm tractor is not a piece of industrial equipment and just because they get by doing something once that should not be done with a piece of equipment it does not mean it will continue to do those things without consequences such as a broken block, it may not have been your friend that did the original damage it just failed later is all, I have heard this before how some one buys a used unit and some thing breaks even more than once and it is a "lemon" or a "bad" design some times that is true but you can never know how the unit was treated before it was resold

I see there is going to be a new 2290 engine block on a consignment sale in Richland IA on the 29th of March.