OT - John Deere 160 Dive Belt Adjustment

Colin King · Mar 27, 2013

My mid-80s JD 160 lawn tractor will not move in 4th or 5th, and moves slowly in reverse. 1-3 work fine.

I am thinking that the trouble is either with low fluid in the transmission or an out of adjustment drive belt.

The transmission option seems to be out, as it appears to be sealed and lubrication is not an option according to my service manual.

I cannot find any instructions in the service manual for making adjustments to the drive belt. The only reference to drive belt adjustment is followed by a "See Your John Deere Dealer." Grrr. I don't like that idea.

Any thoughts, pointers, tips, would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Colin, MN

Bob Harvey · Mar 27, 2013

I had a similar problem with an old unit that I had. There is an adjustment on the idler pulley that you could check. Worked for me. Same thing, manual was 'sketchy'. HTH

oldtanker · Mar 27, 2013

Colin, try asking this over on weekend freedom machines (one word) dot com. It's only for JD lawn and garden tractors.

Rick

Colin King · Mar 28, 2013

Thanks, Rick. I'll check it out. I think there's a garden tractor forum on this site too...?

Any signs of spring your way yet? I heard some geese yesterday morning, which was nice.

Colin

Colin King · Mar 28, 2013

Bob, Do you recall where that idler pulley was? Did you find it necessary to remove the mower deck to get to it?

Thanks!
Colin

Bob Harvey · Mar 28, 2013

Didn't have to remove the deck,but blocked the unit up off the ground a bit. IIRC it was in fact an idler that was operated by the clutch pedal and used to tighten the belt for engagement. HTH

Colin King · Mar 28, 2013

Great, thanks Bob! Much appreciated!

Colin

oldtanker · Mar 28, 2013

yea it's starting to melt a little, I think I found my trailer! One fender is sticking out of the snow!

Rick

Bob Harvey · Mar 28, 2013

Hope it works out for you. My unit was an older odd brand that I got 8 yrs. out of, but the systems are pretty much the same. b

Anonymous-0 · May 12, 2013

I installed my new belt and it worked great. 2 wks later I couldnt go up the smallest of incline. 4 th and 5th gone. I had an oil leak and the belt seemed a little loose too, but it would go up to 3rd gear. The tensioner pulley is located next to the main engine shaft. It just slides with no springs. Adjusted and now I mowing in 4th again. It was just loose enough and the oil made it slip. The bottom main leak will be fun to fix though...

OT - John Deere 160 Dive Belt Adjustment

Colin King

Well-known Member

Bob Harvey

Well-known Member

oldtanker

Well-known Member

Colin King

Well-known Member

Colin King

Well-known Member

Bob Harvey

Well-known Member

Colin King

Well-known Member

oldtanker

Well-known Member

Bob Harvey

Well-known Member

Anonymous-0

Well-known Member

Similar threads