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1978-9 Cat D3

T

traviss224

Member
Hey y'all I have a D3 79u dozer. I notice that once it warms up the steering doesn't steer as well. Today after running it for a couple of hours, I shut it off for about 30 minutes. I go back to run it some more, and it doesn't want to shift into any gear. After being in gear for about 15 seconds, it would move. I check the transmission fluid its about 3 inches over the full line. The fluid isn't warm at all, nor is it ever, no matter how long I run it. Any idea guys? What fluid should I change it out with? Thank yall
 
use Cat TO4 spec oil---it was formulated for gearboxes that have friction disks and far superior over using diesel motor oil
Make sure your transmission and steering clutch filters are clean
 
(quoted from post at 17:48:49 02/25/22) use Cat TO4 spec oil---it was formulated for gearboxes that have friction disks and far superior over using diesel motor oil
Make sure your transmission and steering clutch filters are clean
Click to expand...


Thank you for the quick reply.. Is there a specific weight? Also where are these filters located? I have a manual and I can't seem to find it in there. Should the oil be getting warmer than what it is? It can't be anymore than 70-90 degrees. There is absolutely no warmth in it .
 
depending on your climate 10w to 30w---the filters are located under the seat toward the rear of the machine---temp seems cold but i don't know if there is a way to regulate it---there is an oil cooler by the transfer pump--what temp is your engine cooling system running at??
is this a D3 or a D3B??
 
If you are trying to maintain pressure a bit longer put in 30W engine oil in the transmission. The steering clutch release cylinders feed off the transmission pump, this is why after warm up you don't have enough pressure to make the steering work, your pump is tired. You can do a simple pressure check by attaching a pressure gauge on the outer side of the bevel gear case, just above the the track (while applying the brake on the same side as the plug). It takes 220 lbs. pressure to release the steering clutches, once the pressure goes lower than that, you have to apply all the more pressure to the brakes in order to steer. I had this scenario on one of mine.
 

I am in south Georgia. The engine temperature is showing "normal" on the guage. It is a D3.

I am going to try and get new filters tomorrow. I will look into checking the pressure.

Thank you for the help
 
I should have mentioned that it is critical to check the transmission oil level with the engine running, it makes a big difference on the reading on the dipstick. I have had the level turn out to be low (due to a slow leak) after the machine being parked without use for a stretch of time. This has caused the gears to be slow to engage. That said, with a worn pump everything would work normal for about a half hour before steering became tough. Good luck on your trouble shooting.
 
(quoted from post at 19:25:27 02/28/22) I should have mentioned that it is critical to check the transmission oil level with the engine running, it makes a big difference on the reading on the dipstick. I have had the level turn out to be low (due to a slow leak) after the machine being parked without use for a stretch of time. This has caused the gears to be slow to engage. That said, with a worn pump everything would work normal for about a half hour before steering became tough. Good luck on your trouble shooting.
Click to expand...

So the level doesn't change from dead cold to running it for an hour. It stays about 3"s above the full line, but the fluid is still cool after an hour of running..
 
If the trans. oil stays cool that is a good sign that it is not heating up from slippage inside the tranny. It will be interesting to hear how much pressure you have coming to release the steering clutches, both upon start up as well as when warm. There can be other reasons for steering clutches not releasing but if both sides are the same and it happens after running for a while it sounds like a common denominator is at play. Being a 1978 you likely still have dry clutches and brakes, once they introduced oil bath style it was a 100% improvement in my opinion. I guess you have no service history on your machine... your brake bands may be worn out, also poor adjustment can be contributing factors to tough braking.
 
(quoted from post at 20:18:23 02/28/22) If the trans. oil stays cool that is a good sign that it is not heating up from slippage inside the tranny. It will be interesting to hear how much pressure you have coming to release the steering clutches, both upon start up as well as when warm. There can be other reasons for steering clutches not releasing but if both sides are the same and it happens after running for a while it sounds like a common denominator is at play. Being a 1978 you likely still have dry clutches and brakes, once they introduced oil bath style it was a 100% improvement in my opinion. I guess you have no service history on your machine... your brake bands may be worn out, also poor adjustment can be contributing factors to tough braking.
Click to expand...


I have finished clearing my property and Changing the filter and fluid fixed the issue. It's an awesome machine.

This post was edited by traviss224 on 06/19/2022 at 05:39 pm.
 
Unfortunately the picture you tried to post did not get on the thread. This happens if you are a new user to the forum, a safety feature to keep spam away. I'm not sure how soon picture posting will work for you. The. pressure plug you need to access is below the tanks on each vertical (out)side of the bevel gear case, just above each track. I have never worked on these transmissions but I suspect the oil pump is behind the converter. The transmission is a real 'bear' to re and re. If you study the repair manual you will probably be able to see all the details and location of the oil pump. If all is accessible behind the converter the easier route is to pull the engine out and that's far easier than pulling the transmission in my opinion. I have done an engine re & re as I have owned four of these machines over a period of 22 years. If you do pull the engine, remember that there is a lot of oil in the bell housing.
 
(quoted from post at 11:10:36 03/01/22) Unfortunately the picture you tried to post did not get on the thread. This happens if you are a new user to the forum, a safety feature to keep spam away. I'm not sure how soon picture posting will work for you. The. pressure plug you need to access is below the tanks on each vertical (out)side of the bevel gear case, just above each track. I have never worked on these transmissions but I suspect the oil pump is behind the converter. The transmission is a real 'bear' to re and re. If you study the repair manual you will probably be able to see all the details and location of the oil pump. If all is accessible behind the converter the easier route is to pull the engine out and that's far easier than pulling the transmission in my opinion. I have done an engine re & re as I have owned four of these machines over a period of 22 years. If you do pull the engine, remember that there is a lot of oil in the bell housing.
Click to expand...


Ok thanks, on the side I have about an 1.5" plug and about a 1/2" plug that is recessed. I'm assuming it's the smaller one?
 
(quoted from post at 11:10:36 03/01/22) Unfortunately the picture you tried to post did not get on the thread. This happens if you are a new user to the forum, a safety feature to keep spam away. I'm not sure how soon picture posting will work for you. The. pressure plug you need to access is below the tanks on each vertical (out)side of the bevel gear case, just above each track. I have never worked on these transmissions but I suspect the oil pump is behind the converter. The transmission is a real 'bear' to re and re. If you study the repair manual you will probably be able to see all the details and location of the oil pump. If all is accessible behind the converter the easier route is to pull the engine out and that's far easier than pulling the transmission in my opinion. I have done an engine re & re as I have owned four of these machines over a period of 22 years. If you do pull the engine, remember that there is a lot of oil in the bell housing.
Click to expand...


Ok thanks, on the side I have about an 1.5" plug and about a 1/2" plug that is recessed. I'm assuming it's the smaller one?
 
I have finished clearing my property and Changing the filter and fluid fixed the issue. It's an awesome machine.

This post was edited by traviss224 on 06/19/2022 at 05:39 pm.
[/quote]

I recently got a 1980 D3 and it has the exact same problem as you describe... I am new to a computer forum. You say that the problem you had with the steering clutches not disengaging was fixed by changing the filter? And how did you get to it? did you have to remove the seat? There is a winch on the back of mine and it seems like it would block access to those filters.

Thanks for the info...
 
While traviss224 may be following along and not posting or may be using a different handle for some reason, it looks like that this thread has his only posts, made over a year ago.

You would help yourself by starting your own post and fully describe your needs. This site uses two different views. Modern View brings old posts to the "top". People using Modern view will see your post and the original post you are tagged onto, so they see the "whole" story related to your post. People using the Classic view only see your post as "Re" to the original post, if they see it at all, none of that original post since Classic does not bring old posts to the top like Modern does; they stay in the list where they were posted in time, where you post shows as current. When I looked on Classic this discussion is on page 15, buried in the past. People, using Classic, can swap over to Modern to see the original post, but likely many will not bother to do that.

This post was edited by Jim.ME on 03/19/2023 at 03:59 am.
 
(quoted from post at 03:55:02 03/19/23) While traviss224 may be following along and not posting or may be using a different handle for some reason, it looks like that this thread has his only posts, made over a year ago.

You would help yourself by starting your own post and fully describe your needs. This site uses two different views. Modern View brings old posts to the "top". People using Modern view will see your post and the original post you are tagged onto, so they see the "whole" story related to your post. People using the Classic view only see your post as "Re" to the original post, if they see it at all, none of that original post since Classic does not bring old posts to the top like Modern does; they stay in the list where they were posted in time, where you post shows as current. When I looked on Classic this discussion is on page 15, buried in the past. People, using Classic, can swap over to Modern to see the original post, but likely many will not bother to do that.

This post was edited by Jim.ME on 03/19/2023 at 03:59 am.
Click to expand...

Ok. Thanks alot. Ill take a look and see if i can figure it out.
 
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