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MTD vertical shaft P90 engine service manual lawn mower
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Professional Shop Manual
P90 Series Vertical Shaft Engines
NOTE: These materials are for use by trained technicians who are experienced in the service and repair of outdoor power
equipment of the kind described in this publication, and are not intended for use by untrained or inexperienced individuals.
These materials are intended to provide supplemental information to assist the trained technician. Untrained or inexperi-
enced individuals should seek the assistance of an experienced and trained professional. Read, understand, and follow all
instructions and use common sense when working on power equipment. This includes the contents of the product’s Oper-
ators Manual, supplied with the equipment. No liability can be accepted for any inaccuracies or omission in this publication,
although care has been taken to make it as complete and accurate as possible at the time of publication. However, due to
the variety of outdoor power equipment and continuing product changes that occur over time, updates will be made to these
instructions from time to time. Therefore, it may be necessary to obtain the latest materials before servicing or repairing a
product. The company reserves the right to make changes at any time to this publication without prior notice and without
incurring an obligation to make such changes to previously published versions. Instructions, photographs and illustrations
used in this publication are for reference use only and may not depict actual model and component parts.
© Copyright 2011 MTD Products Inc. All Rights Reserved
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I
Chapter 1: Introduction
Professional Service Manual Intent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Fasteners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Assembly instructions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Model and serial number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Spark plugs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Air filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Oil type and capacity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Changing the oil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Oil filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Oil pre-screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Fuel system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Servicing the fuel system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Fuel filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Valve lash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Exhaust system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Cleaning the engine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
General torque specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Chapter 2: Basic Troubleshooting
Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Steps to troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Define the problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Identify factors that could cause the problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Repairing the problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Prime test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Leak-down test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Compression test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
PCV testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Chapter 3: Air Intake System
Air filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Blower/air filter housing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Carburetor and Insulator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Table of Contents
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II
Chapter 4: The Fuel System and Governor
Inspecting the fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Test fuel for alcohol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Choke/throttle cable adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Carburetors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Inspecting the carburetor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Disassembly and rebuilding the carburetor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Engine speed adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Afterfire solenoid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Testing the afterfire solenoid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Governor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Governor arm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Governor shaft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Governor cup and the governor gear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Chapter 5: Lubrication
Oil type and quantity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Oil dipstick . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Dip stick tube removal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Lubrication system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Testing the oil Pump . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Positive crankcase ventilation valve . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Chapter 6: Starter and Charging Systems
Starter removal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Bench testing the electric starter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Rebuilding the starter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Charging system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Charging system testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Stator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Rotor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Chapter 7: Ignition System
Troubleshooting the ignition system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
The module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Module removal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Installing the module and setting the air gap . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Flywheel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Spark plug . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Cleaning the spark plug . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Inspection of the spark plug . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Spark plug removal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
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III
Chapter 8: Exhaust
Spark arrestor (if equipped) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Muffler removal/replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Catalytic converter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Chapter 9: Cylinder Head
Cylinder head removal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Cylinder head installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Valves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Push rod guide plate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Chapter 10: Crankshaft, piston and Connecting Rod
Crankshaft inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Piston Inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Connecting rod inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Cylinder inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Balance Shaft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Reassembly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Engine specifications chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Engine torque values chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Chapter 11: Failure Analysis
Abrasive Ingestion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Insufficient lubrication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Engine Overspeed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Overheated . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Mechanical Breakage/ Wear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Detonation/preignition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
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IV
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Introduction
1
Professional Service Manual Intent
This manual is intended to provide service dealers with an introduction to proven diagnostic and repair proce-
dures for MTD P90 series vertical shaft engines.
Disclaimer: The information contained in this manual is correct at the time of writing. Both the product and the infor-
mation about the product are subject to change without notice.
About the text format:
NOTE: Is used to point out information that is relevant to the procedure, but does not fit as a step in the proce-
dure.
• Bullet points: indicate sub-steps or points.
1. Numbered steps indicate specific things that should be done, and the order in which they should be done.
1a. Substeps will be lettered and nested within steps. Two or more substeps may be combined to describe
the actions required to complete a step.
Disclaimer: This manual is intended for use by trained, professional technicians.
• Common sense in operation and safety is assumed.
• In no event shall MTD be liable for poor text interpretation or poor execution of the procedures described
in the text.
• If the person using this manual is uncomfortable with any procedures they encounter, they should seek
the help of a qualified technician or MTD Technical Support.
Safety
This Service Manual is meant to be used along with the Operator’s Manual. Read the Operator’s Manual and
familiarize yourself with the safety and operational instructions for the equipment being worked on. Keep a copy of
the Operator’s Manual for quick reference. Operator’s manuals may be viewed for free at the brand support website.
It will be necessary to have the complete model and serial number for the equipment.
Caution is used to point out potential danger to the technician, operator, bystanders, or sur-
rounding property. ! CAUTION
Warning indicates a potentially hazardous situation that, if not avoided, could result in death
or serious injury. ! WARNING ! DANGER
Danger indicates an imminently hazardous situation that, if not avoided, will result in death or
serious injury. This signal word is to be limited to the most extreme situations
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
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P90 Series Vertical Shaft Engines
2
• Be prepared in case of emergency:
Keep a fire extinguisher nearby
Keep a first aid kit nearby
Keep emergency contact numbers handy
• Replace any missing or damaged safety labels on shop equipment.
• Replace any missing or damaged safety labels on equipment being serviced. ! CAUTION
• Grooming and attire:
Do not wear loose fitting clothing that may become entangled in equipment.
Long hair should be secured to prevent entanglement in equipment.
Jewelry is best removed.
• Protective gear: includes, but is not limited to
Clear eye protection ................................ while working around any machinery
Protective gloves ..................................... where necessary
Armored footwear .................................... when working around any machinery
Hearing protection ................................... in noisy environments
Chemically resistant gloves ..................... when working with chemicals or solvents
Respirator ................................................ when working with chemical or solvents
Appropriate tinted eye protection............. when cutting or welding
Flame resistant headgear, jacket, chaps . when cutting or welding ! WARNING ! CAUTION
• Remember that some hazards have a cumulative effect. A single exposure may
cause little or no harm, but continual or repeated exposure may cause very serious
harm.
• Clean spills and fix obviously dangerous conditions as soon as they are noticed.
• Lift and support heavy objects safely and securely.
• Be aware of your surroundings and potential hazards that are inherent to all power
equipment. All the labels in the world cannot protect a technician from an instant of
carelessness.
• Exhaust fumes from running engines contain carbon monoxide (CO). Carbon
monoxide is a colorless odorless gas that is fatal if inhaled in sufficient quantity.
Only run engines in well ventilated areas. If running engines indoors, use an
exhaust evacuation system with adequate make-up air ventilated into the shop. ! DANGER
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Introduction
3
Fasteners
• Most of the fasteners used on the MTD engine are metric. Some are fractional inches. For this reason,
wrench sizes are frequently identified in the text, and measurements are given in U.S. and metric scales.
• If a fastener has a locking feature that has worn, replace the fastener or apply a small amount of releas-
able thread locking compound such as Loctite® 242 (blue).
• Some fasteners, like cotter pins, are single-use items that are not to be reused. Other fasteners such as
lock washers, retaining rings, and internal cotter pins (hairpin clips) may be reused if they do not show
signs of wear or damage. This manual leaves that decision to the judgement of the technician.
Assembly instructions
• Torque specifications may be noted in the part of the text that covers assembly. They may be summa-
rized in tables along with special instructions regarding locking or lubrication. Whichever method is more
appropriate will be used. In many cases, both will be used so that the manual is handy as a quick-refer-
ence guide as well as a step-by-step procedure guide that does not require the user to hunt for informa-
tion.
• Lubricant quantity and specification may be noted in the part of the text that covers maintenance, and
again in the section that covers assembly. They may also be summarized in tables along with special
instructions. Whichever method is more appropriate will be used. In many cases, the information will be
found in several places in the manual so that the manual is handy as a quick-reference guide as well as a
step-by-step procedure guide that does not require the user to hunt for information.
• The level of assembly instructions provided will be determined by the complexity of reassembly, and by
the potential for damage or unsafe conditions to arise from mistakes made in assembly.
• Some instructions may refer to other parts of the manual for subsidiary procedures. This avoids repeating
the same procedure two or three times in the manual.
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P90 Series Vertical Shaft Engines
4
MTD Vertical Engine Model Designators
• Starter/Alternator
s 1=Recoil start
• 2=Electric start (12V)
• 3=E. start/alt. 18W
• 4=E. start/alt. 3A/5A
• 5= AutoChoke/ Recoil
• 6= AutoChoke/Electric
Start
• 7= AutoChoke/Electric
Start/Alt
1 P 6 1 M U A
P= Vertical (1 cyl.)
Q= Vertical (2 cyl.)
Bore Dia. (mm)
End Product
B Mower (long shaft M0)
C Chipper/Shredder M Mower (long shaft/no shroud)
D Mower (long shaft M1) N Mower (short shaft M0)
E Mower (short shaft M1) P Mower (long shaft M0)
F Mower (short shaft/no shroud) Q Mower (short shaft M0)
R Mower (long shaft/no shroud) T Tiller
L Log splitter W World Tiller
Compliance
U United States (50 State)
H Europe
C California
0 (Zero) 49 State
G U.S.(49) and Europe
W U.S.(50) and Europe
Major Revision
Change
MTD Engine Serial Numbers
Model number
1P65FH/0510271A0023
Month Year
Producing Line# and Shift#:
1A=Line 1, 1
st
Shift
1B=Line 1, 2
nd
Shift
2A=Line 2, 1
st
Shift
2B=Line 2, 2
nd
Shift
3A=Line 3, 1
st
Shift
3B=Line 3, 2
nd
Shift
4A=Line 4, 1
st
Shift
4B=Line 4, 2nd Shift
Date
Engine
number
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A comprehensive service manual for the MTD vertical shaft P90 lawn mower engine is available. This manual spans 120 pages and contains detailed instructions for maintenance, repair, and troubleshooting. It is an invaluable resource for both professional mechanics and DIY enthusiasts seeking to understand and work on this specific engine model.