WHY IS MY FINAL DRIVE LACKING POWER?

Operational breakdowns or slowdowns are truly annoying. They are time consuming and sometimes they are also expensive. We created a list for you with five of the most common issues related to final drives.

Lack of hydraulic pressure is by far the most common problem.  If the final drive is worn out, the pressure inside the travel motor will go down. If you are unsure about what the correct amount of pressure is, asking your supplier is a good way to go. If the pressure in you travel motor doesn’t correspond with the amount informed to you by your supplier, the final drive is likely worn out, and you’ll have to decide if it’s time to buy a new one, or get spare parts for your current.

If the measured pressure in your final drive is equivalent to the amount your supplier informed you, the problem is unlikely occurring in the final drive but somewhere else.

If you don’t feel you have enough power, or your machine seems to steer to one side, you are probably right - but it’s not necessarily the fault of the travel motor. The final drive can be in perfect condition, but a track which is too tight, causes more pressure inwards, which the final drive might not compensate for. Track tension outside the optimal working margin might also cause excessive wear to idlers, rollers and other undercarriage parts.

Are you experiencing trouble climbing with your excavator? Or maybe trouble driving a plain n’ straight road? This issue is often caused by a machine, which has the speed control system set in high-speed mode. The final drive can produce a higher amount of revolutions per minute in second speed, but the one-speed can produce a much higher amount of torque. You won’t necessarily have to replace your travel motor. But you might want to have a look at your control system.

Is loud noise coming from your travel motor? If so, and you are lacking power from it, you might have a broken charge pump. It’s one of the most probable causes since the travel motor requires at least a minimum amount of pressure to start and disengage the motor’s internal brakes. If the internal brakes are not disengaged, your excavator will force the travel motor to drive with the emergency brakes on. Even though your final drive isn’t the criminal in this case, it will likely get damaged from driving around while emergency braking! So, if you hear loud noise coming from down there, investigate – don’t force it!

The reduction lies within the top part of the final drive. This is one of the more fragile parts of the travel motor. If any damage has been applied to the reduction gear, the travel motor will not last much longer. Relatively spoken, this is without doubt the most common reason for which operators are forced to replace their travel motors.

Preventive efforts and good maintenance habits will without doubts make the travel motor last much   longer. This includes servicing the drives every 100 workhours.  You should also remember to change the filters and the transmission oil.