Export thread

Backup resistance

#1

A

acutabove

I have a Honda HRX217HXA mower. It has become very resistant to pulling it backwards when the wheel drive is fully released. It acts like some kind of clutch is not releasing as it should. The front wheels are OK, but the rear wheels don't want to go backward. I've adjusted the drive clutch cable according to the specs in the manual, but that doesn't help. The problem exists whether the engine is running or not. Would appreciate any help in solving this so the mower will free-wheel when I need to pull it backward.


#2

Ric

Ric

acutabove said:
I have a Honda HRX217HXA mower. It has become very resistant to pulling it backwards when the wheel drive is fully released. It acts like some kind of clutch is not releasing as it should. The front wheels are OK, but the rear wheels don't want to go backward. I've adjusted the drive clutch cable according to the specs in the manual, but that doesn't help. The problem exists whether the engine is running or not. Would appreciate any help in solving this so the mower will free-wheel when I need to pull it backward.
Click to expand...

I know the Honda lovers out there are not going to like this post but there have been more than a few discussions about this problem and there seems to be No fix to the problem. I had four different Honda mowers over a five year period and all have done the same thing, when first purchased they work fine but after a while they start to resist being pulled backwards and finally the wheels get to the point of locking up. According to threads I've been reading here and on other forums people have even taken them back to dealers and they along with Honda they are all baffled by the problem, seems no body has a fix for the problem and what's depressing is that Honda doesn't seem to care. My remedy for every Honda I've owned has been curb side trash pick up, I'll never own another Honda mower.


#3

exotion

exotion

That's helpful ric. Simply put take it to your dealer they will fix or replace.

I've owned a honda for a while no problems with the wheels. In fact I'm overall impressed with this engine.

And ric really if you don't have anything nice to say just dont. Telling him to throw it away because its trash is not the answer to his question so what's the point of your post? Its not productive in any way.


#4

Ric

Ric

exotion said:
That's helpful ric. Simply put take it to your dealer they will fix or replace.

I've owned a honda for a while no problems with the wheels. In fact I'm overall impressed with this engine.

And ric really if you don't have anything nice to say just dont. Telling him to throw it away because its trash is not the answer to his question so what's the point of your post? Its not productive in any way.
Click to expand...


I never told him to throw away anything. He can can do as he pleases. I simply told him my experiences with Honda mowers and what I did with the mowers. The Facts are nobody seems have the answer or the fix, people have posted they took them back to the dealers and all they have done is scratch there heads, talked to Honda Reps. only to have them do the same. The thing is and I said in the last post the Honda lovers may not like what I have to say on the subject but the number of threads and complaints about this problem is proof in it self.


#5

exotion

exotion

Ric said:
I never told him to throw away anything. He can can do as he pleases. I simply told him my experiences with Honda mowers and what I did with the mowers. The Facts are nobody seems have the answer or the fix, people have posted they took them back to the dealers and all they have done is scratch there heads, talked to Honda Reps. only to have them do the same. The thing is and I said in the last post the Honda lovers may not like what I have to say on the subject but the number of threads and complaints about this problem is proof in it self.
Click to expand...

From what I read from a few of your posts is you have a bias against honda mowers in general. But here is the deal they are good mowers they get lots of good reviews people use them everyday all day with no problems. There is a service bulletin about this problem and I'm sure that a proper dealer can fix there are only so many things it could be. You have a habit of bashing this brand and its a little annoying. These are quality machines they are not commercial grade but dam close and they last a long time. And they cost less than commercial grade and I think that's your bias.

my honda hrr is a simple machine and I love it less parts and features mean less things that can go wrong. And when something goes wrong its a fraction of the price to fix than a similar problem with a commercial grade. These machines properly maintained will last as long if not longer than a commercial mower. User error seems to be the biggest problem with machinery because they don't know how to maintain and identify potential problems and deal with them. They don't know how to source there information and therefore cannot take care of this machine.

You have also said before that my160cc engine is under powered? I believe your full of it commercial machines have used less than that amount of power for a long time kawi 5.5 hp engine has about the same power. Torque is another story it might have a little less torque but honda makes up for that with their double blade cuts. If again people would realize you can't just push through a foot of wet grass and expect miracles then that problem wouldn't exist.

The point of this is that you are bashing a brand that has made a name for it self good quality for less money so people will buy them and people will break them. And when something is wrong like a factory defect in the transmission honda will fix or replace assuming people don't go messing around under there. And they are going to have to deal with the steps involved in this process. The dealer will look and be confused call honda. Honda will give them a few things to try. They won't work they call honda and this proves to honda that it is in fact a factory problem and sends a new transmission or in some cases a new machine... so you don't have a right to come on here and bash something people love and care for because you don't like them.

Don't have anything nice to say? Don't say it.


#6

Ric

Ric

exotion said:
From what I read from a few of your posts is you have a bias against honda mowers in general. But here is the deal they are good mowers they get lots of good reviews people use them everyday all day with no problems. There is a service bulletin about this problem and I'm sure that a proper dealer can fix there are only so many things it could be. You have a habit of bashing this brand and its a little annoying. These are quality machines they are not commercial grade but dam close and they last a long time. And they cost less than commercial grade and I think that's your bias.

my honda hrr is a simple machine and I love it less parts and features mean less things that can go wrong. And when something goes wrong its a fraction of the price to fix than a similar problem with a commercial grade. These machines properly maintained will last as long if not longer than a commercial mower. User error seems to be the biggest problem with machinery because they don't know how to maintain and identify potential problems and deal with them. They don't know how to source there information and therefore cannot take care of this machine.

You have also said before that my160cc engine is under powered? I believe your full of it commercial machines have used less than that amount of power for a long time kawi 5.5 hp engine has about the same power. Torque is another story it might have a little less torque but honda makes up for that with their double blade cuts. If again people would realize you can't just push through a foot of wet grass and expect miracles then that problem wouldn't exist.

The point of this is that you are bashing a brand that has made a name for it self good quality for less money so people will buy them and people will break them. And when something is wrong like a factory defect in the transmission honda will fix or replace assuming people don't go messing around under there. And they are going to have to deal with the steps involved in this process. The dealer will look and be confused call honda. Honda will give them a few things to try. They won't work they call honda and this proves to honda that it is in fact a factory problem and sends a new transmission or in some cases a new machine... so you don't have a right to come on here and bash something people love and care for because you don't like them.

Don't have anything nice to say? Don't say it.
Click to expand...

You would be right, I do have a bias opinion against Honda Mowers. I was just like you, I thought Honda was the best thing made and there wasn't anything that could be better it"s just a shame that I had to waste the money on four of there mowers before I found out just how bad a mower they really are or have become and that's why I tell people about my experiences with the mower and it's not bashing the mower it's just the simple truth. The Truth is Like I said I went through four of there mowers in five years and that was before I went into business so if I look back to that time that means Honda was having these problems with wheels locking up or resisting backing up when you disengage the mower for at least the last 14 years and they still don't have a fix so if that's Quality I'll do without.

It's funny you should talk about Honda and and there Quality and when something is wrong like this issue with the wheels and the dealer calls Honda because their confused and they need to know what to do or what the remedy is for the problem and ( Honda says here's a few things to try) I mean REALLY what does that tell ya when they (Honda) doesn't know the answer and can't fix there own mowers. :confused3:


#7

exotion

exotion

Ric said:
You would be right, I do have a bias opinion against Honda Mowers. I was just like you, I thought Honda was the best thing made and there wasn't anything that could be better it"s just a shame that I had to waste the money on four of there mowers before I found out just how bad a mower they really are or have become and that's why I tell people about my experiences with the mower and it's not bashing the mower it's just the simple truth. The Truth is Like I said I went through four of there mowers in five years and that was before I went into business so if I look back to that time that means Honda was having these problems with wheels locking up or resisting backing up when you disengage the mower for at least the last 14 years and they still don't have a fix so if that's Quality I'll do without.

It's funny you should talk about Honda and and there Quality and when something is wrong like this issue with the wheels and the dealer calls Honda because their confused and they need to know what to do or what the remedy is for the problem and ( Honda says here's a few things to try) I mean REALLY what does that tell ya when they (Honda) doesn't know the answer and can't fix there own mowers. :confused3:
Click to expand...

By no means do I think these mowers are the best thing ever made... read my review of my hrr. I do however think that these mowers don't deserve the bias towards them because of a few problems I mean you get what you pay for I paid 400 and it has paid for it self 2000 percent already. Its not that honda doesn't know what's wrong I'm sure they know and or are fixing the problem the amount of posts regarding this issue is nothing to judge at I mean people don't come find these forums just to say how good they are they come here with problems so we only get one kind of people not the happy people. You of all people should understand this this is word of mouth and negative travels faster and harder than positive. And looking through the "honda" section of these forums I come across mostly dirty carb stuff which most of this forum is dirty carb stuff. And the wheel problems. That tells me no one has much else to complain at. Go look at the craftsman forum and the whole section is about mowers basically falling apart.

You also know that a good percent of people don't post the answer to the problem so we don't even know how or what was wrong with peoples mowers so how are going to judge that when we don't even have all the data available to us. It would be super nice if all these one time posters would post how the problem was taken care of then we would have people asking the same question over and over.


#8

A

acutabove

exotion said:
From what I read from a few of your posts is you have a bias against honda mowers in general. But here is the deal they are good mowers they get lots of good reviews people use them everyday all day with no problems. There is a service bulletin about this problem and I'm sure that a proper dealer can fix there are only so many things it could be.

Thanks for your comment. You mention a service bulletin. Do you happen to know its title or reference number, or other identification so I can cite that to my repair shop personnel in case they're not familiar with the problem? Many thanks.
Click to expand...


#9

exotion

exotion


I would ask rober@honda he has all that information

Also you wouldn't be the "a cut above" that resides here in spokane washington?


#10

A

acutabove

exotion said:
I would ask rober@honda he has all that information

Also you wouldn't be the "a cut above" that resides here in spokane washington?
Click to expand...





My e-mail service says that rober@honda isn't a valid address.

No, I'm not in Spokane, but in the midwest.


#11

exotion

exotion

acutabove said:
My e-mail service says that rober@honda isn't a valid address.

No, I'm not in Spokane, but in the midwest.
Click to expand...

No he's a user on these forums his name is robert@honda :) and we have a cut above mow service in spokane


#12

M

mechanic mark

acutabove said:
I have a Honda HRX217HXA mower. It has become very resistant to pulling it backwards when the wheel drive is fully released. It acts like some kind of clutch is not releasing as it should. The front wheels are OK, but the rear wheels don't want to go backward. I've adjusted the drive clutch cable according to the specs in the manual, but that doesn't help. The problem exists whether the engine is running or not. Would appreciate any help in solving this so the mower will free-wheel when I need to pull it backward.
Click to expand...
go to honda forum and scroll down to rear wheels locking up posted in june this year, this website, click on forums then honda, hope this helps you out.


#13

A

acutabove

mechanic mark said:
go to honda forum and scroll down to rear wheels locking up posted in june this year, this website, click on forums then honda, hope this helps you out.
Click to expand...

Thanks for this reference. Sounds like a fix might get pretty involved. Could well be beyond my meager mechanical abilities, so would probably be better to have the pros take a look at it.


#14

robert@honda

robert@honda

acutabove said:
I have a Honda HRX217HXA mower. It has become very resistant to pulling it backwards when the wheel drive is fully released. It acts like some kind of clutch is not releasing as it should. The front wheels are OK, but the rear wheels don't want to go backward. I've adjusted the drive clutch cable according to the specs in the manual, but that doesn't help. The problem exists whether the engine is running or not. Would appreciate any help in solving this so the mower will free-wheel when I need to pull it backward.
Click to expand...

Is your mower in warranty? If you're not sure, share the serial number with me and I can check:

lmserialnumber_zps63822669.jpg


I would of course get it to a Honda dealer if in warranty for sure. If you want to DIY, "hard to roll backwards" sure sounds like the control arm may be binding, or the clutch cable may be damaged or binding. There may be debris or a lack of lubrication near the control arm that is compounding the problem; here's a screen grab from Service Bulletin #93 from April of this year that shows what to do:

hrxrollbackfix_zps2dfcf208.jpg


#15

A

acutabove

robert@honda said:
Is your mower in warranty? If you're not sure, share the serial number with me and I can check:

lmserialnumber_zps63822669.jpg


I would of course get it to a Honda dealer if in warranty for sure. If you want to DIY, "hard to roll backwards" sure sounds like the control arm may be binding, or the clutch cable may be damaged or binding. There may be debris or a lack of lubrication near the control arm that is compounding the problem; here's a screen grab from Service Bulletin #93 from April of this year that shows what to do:

hrxrollbackfix_zps2dfcf208.jpg
Click to expand...

Thank you very much for this information. No, my mower is no longer under warranty, sad to say (bought it in 2006). The screen grab will be very helpful in getting the problem handled, as will the Service Bulletin number if I decide to take it in for authorized repair.


#16

D

Dickman

acutabove said:
I have a Honda HRX217HXA mower. It has become very resistant to pulling it backwards when the wheel drive is fully released. It acts like some kind of clutch is not releasing as it should. The front wheels are OK, but the rear wheels don't want to go backward. I've adjusted the drive clutch cable according to the specs in the manual, but that doesn't help. The problem exists whether the engine is running or not. Would appreciate any help in solving this so the mower will free-wheel when I need to pull it backward.
Click to expand...

acutabove, I purchased a Honda mower (HRR216K9VLAA) about 3 years ago. Everthing worked great the 1st year. The 2nd year I started experiencing this very issue. I adjusted the drive clutch cable so many times I can do it in my sleep, but nothing helped. This year (3rd year) I did a major underside cleaning, thinking the accumulated crud was somehow causing the issue. That didn't help either.

Then I mistakenly loosened 4 bolts on a cover plate of a mechanism that the rear drive axle goes thru. It's kind of a transmission, but it only engages/disengages the drive axle. Oil leaked out. I did some googling and someone said it was 10w30 motor oil, so I topped it off and tightened the 4 cover bolts. It still wouldn't disengage tho.

So here's what I did. I flipped the mower over, removed the 4 bolts & cover plate, and sucked out the old oil with a turkey baster. It was full of metal shavings. Then I refilled it with 5w30 oil, thinking something thinner might help. I tested a few passes in my yard and it never locked up.

I will know for sure if it's fixed, when I mow the entire yard next time.


#17

H

Horsehockey

Very interesting dickman. Let us know how your beta test goes.


#18

D

Dickman

Horsehockey said:
Very interesting dickman. Let us know how your beta test goes.
Click to expand...

UPDATE
Yesterday I mowed about half my yard and the rear wheels starting locking up when I wanted to pull the mower in reverse. So my attempted fix was a bust.

Today I googled my mower ( Honda Lawn Mower Model HRR216K9VLAA ) to see if the transmission assembly was available to purchase. This site came up: repairclinic.com

Then I put in my Honda model number in the box at the top and clicked Search. Up popped a list of parts. On the left side of the window was a Parts Category. Scroll down to Transmission, Brake & Clutch, and click it. That returns a list of parts, one of them being a Lawn mower pinion gear.

Below the Lawn mower pinion gear was a link to a video on how to replace it, so I watched the video. The video shows them being well greased before they are installed. So I went to look at my pinion gears - they were dry as a bone. I cleaned them up, and threw in some wheel bearing grease where the pinion gear slides onto the axle. Then I fired up the mower and finished the yard. The rear wheels are not locking up any more.

This procedure may become a preventative maintenance thing I do every spring. And I may order a couple of these pinion gears for backup, as some people say they will wear out over time.


#19

H

Horsehockey

Thank you sir. Very helpful.


Footer Links 1

Top