John Deere 318

[cArNaGe]

I had an 1982 212 that I used for about 15 years, It had the 38" deck. The only issues we had with it were spindle bearings and the motor mounts all broke. I bought a Ferris in 2019 with a 61" deck. Love the Ferris but wish I had gotten the 54" deck. There are a few spots that are hard to maneuver in my yard with the bigger deck.

[Hoytman]

Our 214 has broken motor mounts as well.

[Rob R.]

I ended up replacing the idler pulley on the deck belt tensioner. The tensioner was bent and the bearings were growling in the idler. I am also fixing the belt covers so they won’t flop around and let so much grass get inside that area. With any luck I will have this back together today.

[davidmcbeth3]

For those curious, these tractors originally came through with Type F transmission fluid. At some point JD started recommending their Hy-Gard fluid, so I refilled it with some fluid I had on hand that meets the JD spec.

The difference between trans fluids includes differences in solvents in the fluid. Solvents can have a huge effect on the transmission parts.

So always make sure sure your tranny fluid is correct. Type F is "FORD" ... I forget but either GM Dextron could have been used in Ford or visa versa (for a while) ...

[Rob R.]

I verified that the Hy-Gard fluid is backwards compatible with this tractor. I got everything back together after lunch and did about an hour of mowing with it, seems to run great.

[davidmcbeth3]

I verified that the Hy-Gard fluid is backwards compatible with this tractor. I got everything back together after lunch and did about an hour of mowing with it, seems to run great.

The effect of a solvents may not been seen for day, weeks, or months. Verification is wise.

[Rob R.]

Other than needing a new battery the 318 was ready for action this spring. I have put a tank of gas through it and it is running great. With one of the boys running the zero turn and me on the 318 we are getting the lawn done in record time.

[Hoytman]

My son and just put all new motor mounts on the 214, as well as new spindle bearings, drive and deck belts, battery (that has already went bad again), new PTO clutch bearings, new carburetor, mule drive spring and plug, one new left front tire (that doesn’t hold air as well as the other 3 tires that are 40+ years old), new gas cap.

The motor mounts were cracked and split and with the PTO bearings bad the engine vibrated horribly. She’s smooth as silk now. We did not remove the engine to remove any of the 4 mounts either, we used 4 hands and a few pry bars.


Fluid Film sprayed under the deck works awesome for keeping it clean. I’m thinking about installing a washout port in the deck too, especially in conjunction with using the Fluid Film which will keep the underside rust free.

Needs another new battery (unless there’s another problem I think we got a bad battery from the store) and a new seat and she’s ready for another 40+ years.

[SMITTY]

Missed this one! I had a customer with a 318 for many years. Thing was built like a brick shithouse! Back when things were still built GOOD.

I remember fixing an oil consumption issue by repairing the breather down in the middle of the engine if I remember right. Was definitely the breather - just can't recall where it was located. Had to have been right under the air cleaner. I think a hose was split, plus something internally to the breather assembly was frigged up and let it pump oil right into the air cleaner. Was able to fix it with no parts required, which was always nice when trying to make money. There was a lot of info about this on some J/D and lawn equipment forums that I seem to remember.

I got in a rush one time with a non-functioning electromagnet for the mower PTO, and broke the damned thing trying to remove it! Like a dummy I tossed a puller on there - BAD MOVE!! Pulled the PTO apart and destroyed it!! That REALLY sucked, because they are NLA and HUUUUGE money! Lucky for me, my neighbor put me in touch with a retired J/D small equipment mechanic, and he had the coil in stock for a TENTH of what I could find on eBay whenever they showed up. Lucky for me he lived on the route home from my dad's house. Thank Christ! Almost bankrupted myself on that one. Then I was able to sell the coil, which was still good, for BIG bucks on eBay (super fast, too! they are VERY sought after!) and ended up ok in the end. Boy was that a close one!!

I threw an inner tube in one of the front tires, changed the oil, air filter, & plugs and guy has been using it since. Had 1100 hours on the Onan last I saw it.

[Rob R.]

The book on my 318 is now closed. I barely used it this summer and had a neighbor ask if he could buy it. He already had a 318 just like it, but with a ton of hours. I figured I could use the shop space and money more than a second mower, so I agreed to sell it.

[SMITTY]

Well that works. A pile of cash is better than anything that's not getting used.

Reminds me, I've got about 1,000 small engines and a motorcycle I haven't started or rode since 2013. I need to get that SOB running and sold! Should've dumped it years ago when prices were through the roof. I could've got $4k for it in average running condition. Now I'll be lucky to get half that.