2019 brush bandit xp issues

J

Jefftron

Location
Nashville
We bought this chipper- 2019 XP- new and right from the start it was having issues operating in the hot TN sun. The local dealer took it back and put a bracket that moved the gas pump and fuel filter to the outside of the engine compartment. Every time we are in the heat (95F plus) it throws a code-94- and shuts off at operating (chipping) RPM's. The local dealer shop can't figure it out. It works fine at regular temps. We have changed O2 sensors in both spots plus put a new filter and pump on. Anyone have the same issue or have any advise besides never by another Bandit. I emailed the company as well-no answer no surprise. Thanks
 
I'm starting to hear bad things about the legendary Bandit company. I have a 2014 model year and it is amazing but perhaps the new owners aren't up to the task like the original owners were.
 
Which model is this chipper, and which engine does it have? It sounds like a gas engine, and if so, it is probably a PSI. There were some issues with the PSI engines around that time, largely due to cap, rotor, and coil.

I am not an expert on those engines, I believe some here are, but knowing which model chipper and which engine specifically it has will help us figure out what may be wrong.

Don’t blame Bandit right off of you’re having engine problems, a lot of companies had issues with the PSI engines at that time, not just Bandit.
 
Jefftron said:
12XP Intimidator is the model. Yes Chrysler (gas) . Thanks
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Thank you. Which specific engine does it have? The engine model number would be helpful, if possible, or at least the displacement to try to track down the model number.

Does that engine have a distributor ignition system, or coil packs?

What does that code mean? “Code-94” doesn’t mean anything to me, but the dealer should be able to tell you what that code says is happening. Knowing that would be a tremendous help to a diagnosis, otherwise I am just giving random diagnoses based on minimal information.

A poor fuel tank vent can cause issues working in the sun, and so can an overheated fuel pump or filter, though I haven’t seen that one before.

Something in the fuel tank getting randomly sucked up against the pickup tube can cause that - we had a brand new Morbark we leased for a year do that to us, it was baffling until we opened up the fuel tank and found it.

A bad coil will run fine until it gets hot, then it quits until it cools down again.

A bad spark plug, or wire, or distributor cap can also act up when it’s hot.
 
Jefftron said:
I think they know they put out a faulty chipper and scurried to find a solution.
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I’m not so sure about that. Yes, the chipper may have problems. However, Bandit does not build the engines and has no responsibility when it comes to the engine. The engine manufacturer has that responsibility, you should be contacting them rather than Bandit.

I have run dozens of Bandit chippers over the years, as well as a Morbark and a couple Vermeer machines. Bandit is by far the best, and in my experience stands behind their work. We just bought a new 18XP with the 174 CAT last month, and it’s had no issues at all thus far, it’s got 150 hours or so on it already.

I can’t say much about the gas engines, the one and only gas chipper I’ve run was the Morbark we had last year with the PSI engine, and it had a list of problems. The chipper did too, but the engine problems had nothing to do with Morbark.

Your dealer should be figuring these problems out for you, not Bandit. If your dealer is not, you should look for a new dealer to work with. The dealer I use here in PA would probably talk to you, or you could call up to an independent shop near here that knows Bandit machines very well, if you can’t find a local dealer that’s any good.
 
cory said:
Good call re PSI but no reply to his email? That's totally unprofessional imo.
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You are right, that does seem unprofessional. I’ll give Bandit a one-time benefit of the doubt though and say maybe they didn’t get the message - it went to spam or something, perhaps. I’ve had customers call us and tell us they emailed or filled out our contact form and we never got it.

Maybe an actual phone call would be warranted, with a long wait on hold planned for, see if that gets you any further.
 
Thanks everyone. Took it back into the shop. Ran great last week, weather was in the 80's. Pooped out today and the temp. here was 97. Wouldn't even accelerate so we could chip. This has happened since we bought the damn thing! One of the techs said it sounded like poor air/fuel ratio. There was guy waiting in the shop asked me what chipper I had and did I like it. There were a few office folks there and I said no comment. He said he had an 18 that was constantly falling apart. I hate to bash any company but if I was inn the market to blow $60,000+ for a chipper I'd look elsewhere.
 
That is certainly frustrating, and should not be happening. However, I still don’t think you can blame Bandit for engine trouble.

We have a new 18XP that has been running great, it has the 175 hp Cat diesel though, and I suspect that makes a difference. We bought it to replace a 2007 1590XP that has 8300 hours on it, and is still hammering along every day.
 
Have you chipped any cottonwood or dusty dead wood while it was raining? How does the radiator look?
Years back my Vermeer was shutting down during high temperatures midsummer. There are two thermostats and one needed replacing
 
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