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Lots of info on the application coming first. I have a 2002…

Customer Question

Lots of info on...

Lots of info on the application coming first. I have a 2002 grasshopper 725k, G2 drives, kohler command 27 hp horizontal shaft engine with dsam ignition module. The module went bad (for sure) so I replaced the coils and module with the 25-707-03-S MDI kit and it is installed properly. It now will smother out (not misfire) when hitting any grass or going uphill. The identification tag is missing on the engine further complicating any information search. The mower only has 590 hours on it and is in pristine shape for it's age. Is it possible that I just got weak coils?

Mechanic's Assistant: Do you know the model of your Kohler engine? How old is it?

I'm assuming it is a ch740 and it is a 27hp 2002 model.

Mechanic's Assistant: How long has this been going on with your Kohler engine? What have you tried so far?

Late last summer it started dying, backfiring, and missing on one cylinder. I changed the coil on the cylinder that was

Mechanic's Assistant: Anything else we should know to help you best?

Misfiring. Sorry my laptop has a mind of it's own sometimes. I hadn't finished when it decided to send. It still didn't stop the problem. I had to replace 3 bent pushrods from the backfiring. It's had different brands of new plugs. I am a experienced mechanic with over 55 years experience but don't like working on small engines but do when necessary.

Submitted: 28 days ago.Category: Small Engine

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Answered in 2 hours by:

3/5/2020

Technician: bgsengineclinic, Small Engine Technician replied 28 days ago

bgsengineclinic, Small Engine Technician

Category: Small Engine

Satisfied Customers: 357

Experience: Over 20 years of experience in Small engine repair, Kohler Certified Expert Technician, Self-Employed in my own dealership.

Verified

You could have a dropped valve. blopwn head gasket, sticking valve or a failing coil on one side. I would start with a cylinder balance test - That is where you have engine running full throttle no load, use a grounded test probe to pierce spark plug boot to short out one cylinder at a time and monitor RPM drop - if RPM drops a lot more (or dies) when grounding one side, the opposite cylinder is the one with a problem. Also may do a compression test. though it would not necessarily show a blown head gasket. If you can isolate problem to one side, you may have a bad or shorting coil that side, could be a valve stem seized in a guide (which would shift the valve guide and cause a bent push rod) , valve seat could have dropped out of head, (fairly common if engine has had any cooling problems) - since they are air cooled, debris build-up around cooling fins (or grass blocking the fresh air intake on rotating flywheel screen) overheating can cause valve and head gasket problems. So I'd start with compression test comparison and power balance test, and see if the problem can be isolated to one cylinder.

Customer reply replied 24 days ago

This guy didn't read what i had written very well and just as i knew knows nothing about the problems that are exclusive to this particular Kohler engine which is why I asked for help on a Kohler engine site when just ask popped up and I thought it was from a Kohler technician. So don't take any more money from my card!!

Technician: bgsengineclinic, Small Engine Technician replied 24 days ago

Actually, have been a small engine tech since 1983, retired now, Kohler certified Expert level tech. Im quite familiar actually with these engine, we have had a few. you asked if it was possible if you have weak coils - short answer is no. they either work or they don't. Droppedx valve seats are actually rather common on many Kohler OHV models , we have replaced quite a number of kohler heads due to that, and as noted - bent push rods are usually due to a binding valve train component, and quite often we'll see valves sticking in the guides.. since guides are a press fit in the heads, they can shift out of place, and when they do, they tend to shift towards the rockers, and rockers end up hitting the guides, and the pushrods bend. So, as I noted the best place to start would be to do a power balance test as described, and see if the problem can be isolated to one cylinder or the other, and from there determine what is causing it- as you noted changing the coil on that side didnt stop the problem, it may be possibly a valve train issue, blown head gasket..

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