My 1992 Ingersoll 3118 Garden Tractor

[OldCarGuy]

This was my uncle's tractor that was left to me by my Aunt. His pride and joy. He cut several acres of grass and plowed a garden that covered another acre. In the winter he'd use the 48" snow blower for the his and nearby neighborhood driveways. It had 15 years of heavy use and didn't run when I picked it up. Needing some work along with a paint job to get it back on line.
 
The 1992 invoice price was $9,200.00, that's $20,600.00 today. This wasn't your average tractor and weighs 700 pounds. Compared to today's John Deere 48" weighting 250 pounds less with a price tag of $2,800.00. What do you get for the extra bucks other than 250 extra pounds? First off the Ingersoll is a garden tractor and not simply a lawn tractor. It has an 18HP Onan twin cylinder air cooled engine that drives a hydraulic pump. Everything is powered by hydraulic oil. The 48" 3-blade deck, lowering deck movement, the 3-point hitch,  power steering, along with attachments 48" snow blower, chipper, log splitter, tiller, and hydravac.

The Ingersoll is an amazing tractor. None of my riding mover come close. Having power steering, it's a cinch to cut the lawn. It cuts at idle speed, sips gasoline, and nearly as quiet as an electric model. More like driving a Cadillac compared to a tank...






48" snow blower spiffed up


Single bottom plow, most likely I'll never use..



Last fall the 35 year old tractor had a major mechanical failure. The engine started to bog down and eventually quit. Now barely turns over. Put it on my lift to get it running for this season... Having it waist high makes it easier on my back and easy to get under.



I disconnected the hydraulic pump from the engine. Diagnosing if it's the pump or the engine. Extremely close quarters.Took several hours just to remove four bolts.


Picture at another angle..


Still turns over slow.. Most likely the pump is okay. So the problem must be in the engine. Hope it's not all busted up inside!

Took another two hours to remove air filter and sheet metal shrouds.Then five minutes to remove the two heads...


Spread out parts on a workbench..


The cylinder walls look great.


With out compression the engine turns over a tad better using the starter motor. But I could hardly turn it over by hand. The piston go up and down. And valve action is good. I'll have to tear it down more to find the issue..