Posted by Billy on April 19, 1998 at 06:23:37:
In Reply to: Re: Cub Cadet leaky valve posted by Bill Kidd on April 19, 1998 at 06:15:59:
: : I have an old cub cadet 108 than ran fro about 20 years. rather than overhaul it , the dealer suggested putting in a 12 horse new engine, of which the factory suggested doing and thay had done it with success. a 112 hp Kohler. all is well, has be ok for about 4 years and last summer i noticed a loss in power and a "thunking" noise from the exhaust . Upon contacting the dealer, thay said that compliments of todays gasolines, that carbon has built up around the valve and it is not seating. they suggest that i take off the head and simply scrabe the valve and put it back together. I havaae never tackled head removal before. My luck this will really goof something up. will i need a head gasket. will the head come off easily, do i need to pry??? does all of this make sense? It is strange how the first engine run for 20 years on leaded gas nad this one for 4 on non lead. maybe i should add lead additive to the gas , but theyassured me that this new engine was designed to run on unleaded. I sure could use some guidance before i tear into this and my grass starts getting reall tall!!!!Thank a bunch in advance. Dale
I have worked on these engines before. First, are you sure that the valve is actually leaking? Check the torque on the head bolts. I've found that the bolts on the head closest to the exhaust tend to loosen. If left unchecked and continued to run, it can ruin the head. Pretty expensive repair in that case. About ten years ago a new head for 7hp kohler was $80.00. I check my 8hp about twice a year and usually the bolts on the end closest the exhaust are loose. If it is carbon build-up then you will need a new head gasket. Everything towards taking the head off is pretty obvious. Usually no prying off the head. Hope this helps. Billy