Originally Posted By: NHHEMI
I have always bought those cheap( new ) $99 mowers w/ B&S engines like you see at Wal-Mart, K-Mart, etc... Ran them hard and abused them for a bunch of years then replaced w/ another. They always started easy and despite neglecting maintenance and such they ran like a Swiss watch. The bodies would fail( not the engine )which is what lead to scraping them and getting a new one.
I decided a few years back however to buy a good mower that would last and to take care of it. Bought an expensive Troy Built w/ Honda motor at the local Lowe's. What a TURD it has been and I absolutely HATE it. If I hadn't spent as much as I did I would have run over it with my truck a few times and thrown it out.
From day one( literally )it had a huge oil leak due to a damaged cover on the engine. Repair shop tried to blame me and told me I overfilled the oil which was [censored]. It was packed dry from the factory with a bottle of the correct amount to add. Maybe an ounce or something over but it was spewing oil like the Exxon Valdez. They claimed to have run it on the bench for an hour after draining and refilling the oil with no leak. So I had to pay $100 as warranty wouldn't cover "operator error".
Got home and went to mow and 2 minutes into mowing I see the oil still pooling on the top of the oil deck as it had been. Back to the shop where they take it in and look at it and find the damaged cover where it is leaking( which clearly shows they DID NOT run it for an hour on the bench ). Fixed it and submitted warranty claim.
Troy Built doesn't do the engine warranty but they are the ones who register the engine warranty with Honda when the customer registers with them. Troy Built screws up and registers it as commercial use and not personal so the warranty for some reason does not cover the repair despite it being there from the start. NO help from Lowe's, Troy Built, nor Honda.
The shop sends me a bill for the $120. I end up in a big fight with them and point out they billed me for work NOT done and I was prepared to go to court and fight. They finally dropped it. The oil leak was finally fixed so at least the nightmare was over( or so I thought ).
This mower flat out stinks. BIG TIME! Have had it in to the shop( different one )because things break all the time( on their own )just mowing my simple little yard. Have to use starting fluid to start it and it runs like [censored].
I am just waiting for it to explode and then I will go buy another cheap( probably $150'ish now ) mower with a B&S engine. Never again will I buy a Troy Built, Honda, or any yard equipment from Lowe's.
Sorry for the rant. Apparently the therapy sessions about this failed to resolve my latent feelings of anger and frustration over the situation.
Troy Bilt went down the sewer when MTD got a hold of them. They manufactured some of the best tillers in the world when they were an independent company. MTD bought them for their reputation, expanded the line, and turned it all to junk. Nothing more than a name now, and Troy Bilt products are generally always shared with the other lines, either Cub Cadet or Yard Machines. They just change the plastic and paint and present it as a different product. Cub Cadet's story is basically the same.
Cheap ($100) MTD mowers with all steel decks and the basic Briggs engines are decent for what they are. The more expensive products are not. The most basic Toros and Lawn Boys are exponentially better mowers for not much more money.
And the self-propel system on Troy Bilt push mowers is the most screwed up cluster**** I have ever seen. Complex and cheap with lots of plastic; a recipe for failure.
I have always bought those cheap( new ) $99 mowers w/ B&S engines like you see at Wal-Mart, K-Mart, etc... Ran them hard and abused them for a bunch of years then replaced w/ another. They always started easy and despite neglecting maintenance and such they ran like a Swiss watch. The bodies would fail( not the engine )which is what lead to scraping them and getting a new one.
I decided a few years back however to buy a good mower that would last and to take care of it. Bought an expensive Troy Built w/ Honda motor at the local Lowe's. What a TURD it has been and I absolutely HATE it. If I hadn't spent as much as I did I would have run over it with my truck a few times and thrown it out.
From day one( literally )it had a huge oil leak due to a damaged cover on the engine. Repair shop tried to blame me and told me I overfilled the oil which was [censored]. It was packed dry from the factory with a bottle of the correct amount to add. Maybe an ounce or something over but it was spewing oil like the Exxon Valdez. They claimed to have run it on the bench for an hour after draining and refilling the oil with no leak. So I had to pay $100 as warranty wouldn't cover "operator error".
Got home and went to mow and 2 minutes into mowing I see the oil still pooling on the top of the oil deck as it had been. Back to the shop where they take it in and look at it and find the damaged cover where it is leaking( which clearly shows they DID NOT run it for an hour on the bench ). Fixed it and submitted warranty claim.
Troy Built doesn't do the engine warranty but they are the ones who register the engine warranty with Honda when the customer registers with them. Troy Built screws up and registers it as commercial use and not personal so the warranty for some reason does not cover the repair despite it being there from the start. NO help from Lowe's, Troy Built, nor Honda.
The shop sends me a bill for the $120. I end up in a big fight with them and point out they billed me for work NOT done and I was prepared to go to court and fight. They finally dropped it. The oil leak was finally fixed so at least the nightmare was over( or so I thought ).
This mower flat out stinks. BIG TIME! Have had it in to the shop( different one )because things break all the time( on their own )just mowing my simple little yard. Have to use starting fluid to start it and it runs like [censored].
I am just waiting for it to explode and then I will go buy another cheap( probably $150'ish now ) mower with a B&S engine. Never again will I buy a Troy Built, Honda, or any yard equipment from Lowe's.
Sorry for the rant. Apparently the therapy sessions about this failed to resolve my latent feelings of anger and frustration over the situation.
Troy Bilt went down the sewer when MTD got a hold of them. They manufactured some of the best tillers in the world when they were an independent company. MTD bought them for their reputation, expanded the line, and turned it all to junk. Nothing more than a name now, and Troy Bilt products are generally always shared with the other lines, either Cub Cadet or Yard Machines. They just change the plastic and paint and present it as a different product. Cub Cadet's story is basically the same.
Cheap ($100) MTD mowers with all steel decks and the basic Briggs engines are decent for what they are. The more expensive products are not. The most basic Toros and Lawn Boys are exponentially better mowers for not much more money.
And the self-propel system on Troy Bilt push mowers is the most screwed up cluster**** I have ever seen. Complex and cheap with lots of plastic; a recipe for failure.
Hes currently using it to drag trees around on the land he just bought to build his new house