Bought new Honda mower with hydro static transmiss

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Guys:

Just bought (deliver tomorrow) Honda HRX217HYA lawnmower. Got it delivered from local dealer for $735 total. Decent deal? Maybe. Seems like a good mower, except a little heavy. I have 1/2 acre to mow, but have a lot of trees etc so would have preferred a lighter mower but could not find another with Hydro Static transmission (hope it will hold up better than convention transmission).

Any advice/guidance with maintenance? How many hours before first oil change? Any advise on oil to use? I use synthetic Moble 1, extended, in my cars, would it be a good choice for lawnmower?

Thanks

JR
 
Manual will (should) point you in the right direction for both of your questions, but I'd speculate that a break in OCI would be something like 5 or 10 hours and will likely recommend 10w30 as most Honda motors do.

In Tx for most of the year I would run a quality Xw40 HDEO in it after break in though. The 40wt will withstand your summer extremes better than a 30 wt.
 
Hi, JR. With the composite deck they have, the HRX mowers about the lightest mowers you can buy these days (though yours, perhaps, is one of the heavier models with its hydrostatic transmission and other bells and whistles). As far as oil, I think the book recommends 10W-30 for most climates. Mobil 1 is fine. I personally use Shell Rotella T5 (10W-30) or T6 (5W-40) in my small Honda engines (and I have three of them). It's an HDEO (which reportedly stands up to fuel dilution better than a PCMO) and a known quality lubricant. The GCV engine that's on the mower has an aluminum bore, and I'd probably change the oil after the first hour or two of use, then maybe once again after another few hours, then probably go to once or twice a season, depending on your use of it.

I have a 2003 model HRB217 (with the same type of composite deck yours has) and a 2001 model HR215 with a thick aluminum deck. Now, THAT mower is heavy; it's a real beast! I think it gives a slightly better cut than the plastic mower. Both of mine have the quad cut blade system, as I presume yours has. My HR215 also has the blade brake clutch. Your HRX may have that also -- it would add to the weight of the unit. These blade brake clutches are usually pretty durable on these mowers.

Enjoy it!
 
Congrats on the new mower. I changed my oil after the first hour and then after the 5th. After that it's twice a year; mid-year and then before storage in the winter.

Disclaimer for the next part: I don't consider the oil the reason the engine failed. Sometimes things happen and 1 data point is not enough data to lay blame. Just providing my story at face value.
On my first Honda with the 160 motor I ran VWB 10w30 and the piston seized in the bore 1 week out of the 4 year warranty. My current one, 190 motor, I'm running M1 5w30 and it's been happy for the past 3 years.
 
Nice mower, I have the same one but I got it in 2011. Change after 5 hours and then once a season, maybe twice since you aremowing a half acre.

I use Pennzoil Platinum 10W30 because I had some leftover. I hardly use mine now that I've moved to a house with a bigger yard. Currently using a 4wd John Deere1145 with a 72" deck.
 
If your looking to use your left over oil from the cars, then that would be fine as long its not 20 weight. While HDEO oils are great for lawn mowers, they are often not required. Honda just require a API certified 10w30. Being you said your using Mobil 1 Extended Performance and if its 5w30, that would be better than the cheapest 10w30. But if you want to buy just for the lawn mower then a HDEO oil would be the way to go.
 
I got that same model mower in 2014. Excellent mower in every regard! I decided on Mobil1 10w30 High Mileage oil, since it is somewhat more viscous than M1 10w30 EP, and has anti-wear additives harmful to cataletic converters, but good for non-cat, air cooled mowers. I would like to use M1 10w40 HM, but I can't bring myself to 'defy' Honda's recommendations. YMMV
 
Congratulations! I have a couple of Honda mowers and my experience has been great. Take care of it and it will be the last mower you ever buy. I have one from 1989 and on from the early 90's that I just picked up. I use 15-40 in my OPE but it really doesn't matter. I know of a guy running a lawn service with the mower you just bought with about 3000 hours on it according to the little meter he installed when he bought it.
 
They are very nice mowers and you should have no issues with the drive system provided you keep the machine clean and dry and try not to mow with it when the grass is wet. I've mentioned this in many Honda mower threads; The only real issue I've seen with Honda mowers, gear drive or hydrostatic, is with the rear axle shaft bushings at the wheels ends. The bushings loose their lubricity, corrode and get dirt in them, which causes excessive drag on the rear axle, which will eventually lead to drive system failure. Like most things Honda OPE, they're not bad to replace.
 
Guys: Update

Update: So they delivered the mower and I started to try it out. The drive assembly locked up and wouldn't move. So I called the dealer and they came back and picked it up. The delivery guy said it was probably the actuators (?SP) that allow the mower to free wheel when not in drive mode. He said there are plastic gears in there that sometimes get damaged or out of alignment. Not sure if I described it exactly correctly. Anyway they took it back and will repair and return it next week.

Sometimes nothing goes right, seems I have had a series of mishaps with equipment recently (BMW required extensive and costly repair recently, be wary of BMW V8's)

Hope it turns out right the next delivery.

JR
 
Yeah, that's a weird one. There's basically just plastic teeth in the wheels with a spring loaded detent/cam on the axle that allows you to freewheel forward/reverse while not under power from the drive system. Sounds like something bound up. I've not seen this problem.
 
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