Had a viewer question from Mark. He wanted to know if he still needed to service his tractor if he hadn't met the recommended hour interval yet. In other words, if the owner's manual says to change the oil every 100 hours and you put 5 hours a year on it, could you only change the oil once every 20 years? That's an extreme case, but he's heard that you do your service once a year, or when the manual says, whichever comes first.

I'm not a petroleum engineer so I don't really know the answer. I think the crankcase is enough of a closed system that it won't get moisture in there, so you can go a little longer time interval with oil changes if you don't put that many hours on your tractor. I'm curious what my viewers think.

The area that I wouldn't risk longer service intervals, especially if I don't use the tractor that much is the fuel system. That fuel filter should be changed once a year, and serviced anytime you see moisture in the fuel bowl. You could probably go a few extra months without changing the oil, but you have to keep clean fuel going in the engine, especially with these new environmentally friendly engines. There are such tight tolerances in the fuel injection system that any debris or water in there and you have a major repair.

The second area that I'd sure want to maintain regularly is the air intake system. Check that air filter often to make sure it's not caked full of dirt, especially in dusty conditions. When you can no longer shake the dirt out of your tractor's air filter, replace it.

Something I didn't mention in the video is to try to keep the tractor's radiator clean and the fins free from obstructions. A clogged radiator can lead to a hot engine and you don't want that.

Diesel engines seem to be really forgiving on engine and hydraulic oil changes, as long as you don't run them too long, or let levels get low (or overfill the system). Keep the fuel clean, filtered air coming in and cool air going through the radiator and your tractor should last as long as you do.



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