Just bought HRR216VYA

[krusej23]

I just bought the HRR216VYA last night from my local John Deere. I am loving the thing but I have a few questions.

1) The smart drive system is very comfortable compared to my old mower's speed throttle selection. It seems to be very touchy though. I have found that using it with one hand instead of two helps that but it's very touchy still. This mower is much faster than my old one too so I have to get used to a slow jog when mowing.

2) This mower has the blade brake so when I start the mower it doesn't start the blades. I am loving this feature! When I go to start the blades, it sounds like the mower is going to stop running. Is that normal?

3) My old mower had the nicest feature ever, one motion to adjust deck height. I could not find another mower that had that, especially a honda. Is this not something that people want and I'm the only one. I loved it because I could change the deck height on the fly while mowing through deep patches of grass.

Overall, I love this mower after one mowing.

 

[robert@honda]

I just bought the HRR216VYA last night from my local John Deere. I am loving the thing but I have a few questions.

1) The smart drive system is very comfortable compared to my old mower's speed throttle selection. It seems to be very touchy though. I have found that using it with one hand instead of two helps that but it's very touchy still. This mower is much faster than my old one too so I have to get used to a slow jog when mowing.

You'll get better with some practice, and remember the angle of the control is adjustable with the slider switch for your preferences.

When I go to start the blades, it sounds like the mower is going to stop running. Is that normal?

Absolutely normal for the engine to "bog" a bit and drop in speed when the blades are engaged. Be sure the throttle lever is always set to FAST when engaging the blades. If the engine does die when engaging the blades, double-check and make sure you aren't in tall/heavy grass, or move the mower to a smooth area like a sidewalk, driveway, or previously mowed grass.

3) My old mower had the nicest feature ever, one motion to adjust deck height. I could not find another mower that had that, especially a honda. .

A few years ago, there was a Honda mower model where both rear wheels used a single knob to adjust. However, it was not a big seller, and all current Honda models have individual height controls.

 

[krusej23]

You'll get better with some practice, and remember the angle of the control is adjustable with the slider switch for your preferences.

I did noticed holding the back of it with my index finger helped but it will definitely take some practice. I have adjusted the angle a couple times to see if that helped.

Absolutely normal for the engine to "bog" a bit and drop in speed when the blades are engaged. Be sure the throttle lever is always set to FAST when engaging the blades. If the engine does die when engaging the blades, double-check and make sure you aren't in tall/heavy grass, or move the mower to a smooth area like a sidewalk, driveway, or previously mowed grass.

Ok, I knew that it would bog a little, just wanted to make sure that was normal. I had that happen when I started it on cement.

A few years ago, there was a Honda mower model where both rear wheels used a single knob to adjust. However, it was not a big seller, and all current Honda models have individual height controls.

That is the feature I am going to miss the most. It was just so easy.

 

[krusej23]

I have been having some suction issues with the right side of my mower. It doesn't suck up the bent over grass from the wheels on the last pass. Is it ok to move the spring on the governor so the engine is faster? I did it yesterday for a part of my lawn and it seemed to have helped a lot. Is it bad for me to leave it at that speed? It's definitely much louder and I can see why Honda didn't want to leave it at that speed for noise reasons.

 

[robert@honda]

I have been having some suction issues with the right side of my mower. It doesn't suck up the bent over grass from the wheels on the last pass. Is it ok to move the spring on the governor so the engine is faster? I did it yesterday for a part of my lawn and it seemed to have helped a lot. Is it bad for me to leave it at that speed? It's definitely much louder and I can see why Honda didn't want to leave it at that speed for noise reasons.

The governor can be adjusted to set the to engine speed, but it should not exceed 3,100 rpm. Higher speeds will cause more wear and tear on the engine, and also violate safety standards for blade tip speed. Best bet is to get a small gas engine tachometer and measure / adjust the speed correctly. Or, have your Honda dealer do it:

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