Same old internet miss information. First off I don't know about the past. But as of 2021 there is no such thing as a "Box store John Deere".
What the "Box stores" sell is the EXACT SAME THING, that the John Deere dealers sell. It does come with a 2 year bumper to bumper warranty, or if memory is correct 120 hours what ever comes first, that is for the S100. The Transaxles used to be made from plastic, and I think other brands used them as well. All JD tractors all have a metal transaxle now. And like anyother make out there if the transaxle manufacture would have used the correct metals, they would last a long time, and there would be no reason for extra wheel weights if you need that sort of thing. But then of course the price would go up to probably 4 times the cost they are now (for the transaxle).