15
BEFORE STARTING THE ENGINE
CHECK ENGINE OIL LEVEL
The engine in your tractor has been
shipped, from the factory, already fi lled
with sum mer weight oil.
1. Check engine oil with tractor on level
ground.
2. Remove oil fi ll cap/dipstick and wipe
clean, reinsert the dipstick and screw
cap tight, wait for a few seconds, re-
move and read oil level. If nec es sary,
add oil until “FULL” mark on dipstick is
reached. Do not overfi ll.
• For cold weather operation you should
change oil for easier starting (See “OIL
VISCOSITY CHART” in the Main te -
nance sec tion of this man u al).
• To change engine oil, see the Main te -
nance section in this manual.
ADD GASOLINE
• Fill fuel tank to bottom of fi ller neck. Do
not overfi ll. Use fresh, clean, regular
un lead ed gasoline with a minimum of
87 octane. (Use of leaded gasoline will
increase carbon and lead oxide deposits
and reduce valve life). Do not mix oil
with gasoline. Purchase fuel in quan-
ti ties that can be used within 30 days to
assure fuel freshness.
CAUTION:
Wipe off any spilled oil or
fuel. Do not store, spill or use gasoline
near an open fl ame.
IMPORTANT:
When operating in temper-
atures below32°F(0°C), use fresh, clean
winter grade gas o line to help insure good
cold weather start ing.
CAUTION:
Alcohol blended fuels
(called gasohol or using ethanol or metha-
nol) can attract moisture which leads to
separation and for ma tion of acids during
storage. Acidic gas can damage the fuel
system of an engine while in storage. To
avoid engine problems, the fuel system
should be emptied before stor age of 30
days or longer. Drain the gas tank, start
the engine and let it run until the fuel lines
and carburetor are empty. Use fresh fuel
next season. See Storage In struc tions for
additional information. Never use engine
or carburetor cleaner products in the fuel
tank or permanent damage may occur.
TO START ENGINE
When starting the engine for the fi rst time
or if the engine has run out of fuel, it will
take extra cranking time to move fuel from
the tank to the engine.
1. Sit on seat in operating position,
depress clutch/brake pedal and set
parking brake.
2. Place gear shift lever in neutral (N)
position.
3. Move attachment clutch to dis en gaged
po si tion.
4. Move throttle control to choke po si tion.
NOTE:
Before starting, read the warm
and cold starting procedures below.
5. Insert key into ignition and turn key
clockwise to start position and release
key as soon as engine starts. Do not run
starter continuously for more than fi fteen
sec onds per minute. If the engine does
not start after several attempts, move
throt tle control to fast position, wait a few
minutes and try again. If engine still does
not start, move the throttle control back to
the choke position and retry.
WARM WEATHER STARTING (50° F and
above)
6. When engine starts, move the throt tle
control to the fast position.
• The attachments and ground drive can
now be used. If the engine does not
accept the load, restart the en gine and
allow it to warm up for one minute using
the choke as de scribed above.
COLD WEATHER STARTING ( 50° F and
below)
6. When engine starts, leave throttle control
in choke position until engine warms up
and begins to run roughly. Once rough
running begins, im me di ate ly move the
throttle control to the fast position. Engine
warm-up may take from several seconds
to several minutes (the colder the tem-
per a ture, the longer the warm-up).
• The attachments can also be used dur-
ing the engine warm-up period.
NOTE:
If at a high altitude (above 3000
feet) or in cold temperatures (below 32 F)
the carburetor fuel mixture may need to
be adjusted for best engine performance
(see “TO ADJUST CARBURETOR” in the
Service and Adjustments section of this
manual).
