Need help troubleshooting progator 2020

[aziroc]

Its a 2001 gas version, hydrolic bed

History; g/f has had this gator since new but it sat since 2004-2005. Has a total of 24xx hours on it. She wants to sell it to help her pay off some of her student loan, but it didnt run. In comes me. The issue was a $3 fuel line (all the lines were old/cracked). Added new line and then it ran again, and stayed running. she said she wanted me to "make it pretty again" so i changed EVERYTHING out. new hydrolic fluid, filters, oil, filter, plugs ,wires, fuel filter, radiator fluid, hoses (u get the picture) then i took all the plastic panels apart, wet sanded them with 2000 grit and polished/waxed them. bed i took apart, sanded with 120 grit, primered/painted in JD green and black. redid the seats, lights, new battery, cleaned the engine, frame, wheels blah blah blah. basically it looks better then new. 3-4 weeks ago it ran fine. i drove it around the block multiple times, the hydrolic bed worked fine. only thing was alittle smoke at start up, but i figured its cause it sat for so long. 2 weeks ago i needed to move it out of the garage to clean up the garage and such. go to start it and here lies the problem.

When i go to start the gator, the only way it will stay "running" is if i hold the ignition/key all the way to the on position. I can keep it running on the on position for prob 10-15 secs before the starter starts screaming at me. the sec I let go of the ignition, the engine dies. *sometimes i get a puff/spray of I think gas that flys out of the top of the carb after the engine dies* I checked all 3 plugs, they are good. i checked all 3 coils, they are good. fuel pump is good. battery is good. I checked the ignition itself and its good. checked all 2 or 3 fuses it has, they are all fine. I thought maybe the carb got gummed up since it sat for years then ran for a bit then didnt for a week or so. Had a friend who knows JD type carbs and bought the carb rebuild kit and he rebuilt it for me. I got home tonight, did a prayer, and installed the carb. started it up again, same thing. hold the ignition it stays on, let go, it dies. When you try to give it gas (either by throttle or by manually moving the throttle on the carb) the engine will just automatically die. if u hold the ignition and give it gas, it just revs up. the sec u let go of the ignition, again just dies. Any ideas on what i am missing?

[Kiwi06]

Wild guess is that the ignition switch is bad. I'm a little confused by:

When you try to give it gas (either by throttle or by manually moving the throttle on the carb) the engine will just automatically die. if u hold the ignition and give it gas, it just revs up. the sec u let go of the ignition, again just dies. Any ideas on what i am missing?

For the first sentence, I'm assuming you mean if you don't hold the key in the "start" position, but since you already said it dies in "run", I wasn't sure. The fact that it does rev when you hold it in "start" indicates that the carb is probably OK. My guess is that in the "run" position, the ignition switch is open. For "run", ignition circuit should be closed; for "start", ignition circuit and start circuit should both be closed. Sounds like latter is true which gives you spark and starter, but when you release to "run", both circuits open and you lose spark.

Easiest test without a new ignition switch would be to jumper ignition circuit and then start and release key (to "run") and see if it dies. If not, the problem is the switch. If so, then I need to make another wild guess.

- Steve in cool CO

[aziroc]

I tested the ignition switch with a volt meter and it was where it was suppose to be, but i didnt try jumping anything. I will try that.

sorry for the confusion, it was late and i was tired. If you have the throttle open THEN try to start/hold the ignition to the run position, the engine starts for a sec and just dies. if u start/hold the ignition THEN give it gas, the engine will rev up.

[aziroc]

Just got back from the JD parts store. Got a new ignition switch. put it in, turned the key and...... Same issue. i double checked all the connections, cleaned the connections (on the new switch and the connector it goes into) put it back in, and same thing.

[jergeod]

I would think the run juice comes off either a relay or the starter solinoid.

[Kiwi06]

I tested the ignition switch with a volt meter and it was where it was suppose to be, but i didnt try jumping anything. I will try that.

sorry for the confusion, it was late and i was tired. If you have the throttle open THEN try to start/hold the ignition to the run position, the engine starts for a sec and just dies. if u start/hold the ignition THEN give it gas, the engine will rev up.

OK, trying to make sure we're talking the same lingo... To me, "giving gas" means "opening the throttle". "Throttle closed" would be how the machine idles - with the throttle butterfly closing off most of the airflow.

So, my understanding of the symptoms are, with throttle closed, start/hold gets the engine to fire briefly and then continues to turn only because of the starter motor. With throttle open (to some degree - not necessarily wide open), start/hold gets engine to run and rev up/down with throttle inputs, BUT if you release key to "run" position, it dies.

I'm still confused by the

When you try to give it gas (either by throttle or by manually moving the throttle on the carb) the engine will just automatically die.

line.

Sounds like you have two issues. One is mixture - keys are fires but won't stay running with throttle closed but will with throttle open, and the puff out of the carb. Off hand, I'd guess the mixture is too rich. For starting issues, you typically open the throttle wide if the engine is "flooded" to blow out some of the extra gas.

The other issue is why it dies when you return the key to "run". That has me confused. If it didn't rev in that position, I'd say it was likely to be mixture. I could see how opening the throttle would help it continue to fire, as it would change the mixture. The "fire" might be enough to make noise, but not enough to impel the engine without help from the starter. Since it revs, it is running the engine faster than the starter will turn it, so it is actually "running" (at least in my mind). Perhaps there is something with the starter that is shorting the ignition when it disengages??? Since you've tried a new switch, I'm grasping at straws.

Have you checked the spark? It sounds like you are getting spark when the key is in start, but losing it as soon as you release. If you pull a plug wire and hold it near a ground (the engine), you should see a spark - typically, I stick a screwdriver or something in the wire socket and hold that near the engine to get it close enough to see. (Other alternative is to put a spark plug - either one you pull or a spare - in the wire and hold the plug on the engine and look for spark across the gap.) If I'm understanding right, I would expect to see sparks until you release the key (back to "run"), and then the sparks will stop immediately. Normally, you would see sparks for a while (at least for a couple of turns of the engine as it slows) after you release. If you still see spark after the key is back in "run", then you've got me really stumped as to why the engine appears to run OK - at least with open throttle - with the key in "start"! But at least you'll have ruled out spark issues. (But that won't stop me from posting more opinions. )

- Steve in CO

[aziroc]

** UPDATE **

Thought I would revisit this post since it is now fixed/running. After a month of on and off tinkering with it, I finally broke down and took it into a John Deere shop for repair. Fearing the worse, i waited... 2 weeks. Got a call and it was good to go. damage, imo, not bad. $300.20. What was wrong with it;

Module am128907
Resistor
*misc wiring

The guy who worked on it explained to me that 2 wires were bad, 1 by the starter and 1 buy the ignition. he even said he couldnt figure out the issue at first cause the wiring he replaced, before he replaced it, looked fine. Then a module by the starter was also bad. The under the seat (drivers seat) resistor was bad as well. After replacing those items he said it ran perfectly. I wish I would have asked exactly WHERE the wires were just so i knew in the future, but I forgot. I know where the under the seat 1 is, but the other 1 he replaced (gave me the old/bad one) was white, box shaped, and about 2 - 2 1/2 inches long with 1 wire going in and 1 wire going out.

[milesajw]

Glad you got it running . Thanks for posting fix , it may help somebody.

[MANUEL NARVAEZ]

Guys i need help with a progator 2020 it runs but the engine gets full so quick with hydraulic fluid! Any idea about what the problem could be?