Looking for a problem free 42" Zero Turn Mower

[DonnyB]

My riding mower will not last the season, so I'm looking for a zero turn mower(ZTM). I had a Cub Cadet ZTM several years ago and now have a 0.75 acre lot. I have looked on YouTube for "Best ZTM for 2023" and there is nothing bad ever mentioned. I have narrowed my list of potential mowers to Bad Boy Rambler, Cub Cadet ZT1, and Ariens. The 42" desk is plenty for my 0.75 acre lot. Recently, I started to read that each has some bad history. For example, the Bad Boy has spindle problems, the Ariens has transmission problems, etc.
All this to say, what brands have the least amount of problems?

 

[Bertrrr]

None are problem free - I've run Badboy for a while now and only had normal issues - I don't recommend getting anything with electronic fuel injected systems - anytime is has a problem it will need to go back to dealership.
Just my 2cts.

 

[bertsmobile1]

The most problem free mower that is available to USA owners are the articulated ones by Stiga followed by the Rider Pro ( Pro-Rider ? ) by Husqvarna
They are also very low maintenance .
The original Husqvarnas imported from Europe are head & Shoulders better than the downgraded cheapened made to a price ones that they make in the USA

Both of these are reasonably priced for the quality of the design which is not suited to all yards and like so many posters you have given us absolutely nothing upon which to give you sound advice

CC are now relegated to "Rebranded MTD Throw Away Junk " because that is what has happened since MTD took over & now that Stanley- B & D have taken oover MTD the quality will only go further down so I advise my customers not to by any CC product .


The only 2 residential grade ZTR's I suggest to my customers are the EZ range from JD and the Time Cutters from Toro and of these 2 the JD is head & shoulders less problem than the Toro which has that silly electric brake module that is prone to failure but apart from that they are fairly well bullet proof
In my run there are 5 x z225 ( now discontinued ) 3 of which are being used commercially & done 2000 to 4000 hrs , 1 x 255 ( also discontinued ) , 1 x 335 , & 1 x 355 .
None of these JD's has given any problems apart from the 3 225's being used commercially, all of which have needed repair to the deck lift arm but then they were not designed to be mowing 10 to 15 residential yards a day let alone multiple yards up to 5 acres a day . The ones that are used domestically require noting but routine maintenance .
IMHO nearly all of major break downs are due to owner abuse and the big repair bills come from lack of proper maintenance .
So no matter how good the design is or how well it is made if you do not look after it the mower will fall apart 1 day after warranty expires .

 

[GrumpyCat]

Local dealer says he has far less trouble and easier to work on with Country Clipper vs Exmark or Bad Boy. Problem is the Country Clipper is a lot more expensive. I bought one for the reliability and that it has an optional handrail for getting on/off that is unlike any other... after I fell off a mower at the dealer which didn't have the handrail.

Harder to see but I also have an optional step mounted to the front.

This ZTR is steered by a single joystick on the right. The silver handle on the left is just something to hold on to.

Bad Boy has an optional pole to aid in egress. Probably good enough but not nearly as nice as Country Clipper's.

 

[bertsmobile1]

Just wait till the joy stick requires adjustments
Clippers are big for the elderly & dissabled for the reasons you posted
BEcause they get bought by people who usually can not do simple maintenance hey are made very well, the build quality is excellent and this is reflected in the ticket price

 

[ChrisBFRPKY]

I mow 3 acres.

In the zero turn department I have 2 Cub Cadet RZT 50 zero turns, a White 50" zero turn (MTD rebrand) and a faded paint older Bad Boy 48" zero turn. The Cub zero turns have had the decks rebuilt twice (new spindles, belt and blades, Chinese parts) since 2020. One is out of action as it recently had the right side Hydrogear drive go "kaput" (that's not going to be fun or cheap). The White 50" always seems to come up with a new electrical issue weekly so it sits out "mow day" more often than not. I've started bypassing the safety switches and much of the wiring now rather than reordering new switches that also fail quickly. Yes, I know that's not the correct way to do things but needs must on that one.

The Bad Boy has the 27HP Briggs and has yet to fail. It has only required oil and filter changes, also a few blade sharpenings (once per season). I'm doing my best to keep the factory blades on it as the replacements will likely be made out of tin foil.

I don't know if the new Bad Boy mowers are anything like the older Bad Boy units but I do know I'd pick the Bad Boy mower over the others. That's also why I'm on the look out for a few used ones myself to replace the Cub and White zero turns.

 

[bertsmobile1]

Goes to what was posted earlier
MTD products with any brand on them are to be avoided
All built down to the lowest possible price so are throw away junk
Only good part on any of them is the Chinese Loncin engines.
You might like to search for "Burning De-Walt ZTR "
And that was a brand new mower hand built for a mower show to a much higher quality than what rolls of the production line.

Way way back I was taught
Quality products sell themselves
Junk has to be sold to the customers

From that comes the inverse square law of quality
"Quality of a product declines by the square of the amount of money spent advertising it "

Now social media has changed that a bit because brain dead sheep like to follow "influencers " on the web, most of which have less than no idea about what they spruke but the blind deciples lap whatever they flog up with glee

Which only goes to prove we are no more advanced than when we crawled out of the caves with a club in our hands

 

[Tiger Small Engine]

Goes to what was posted earlier
MTD products with any brand on them are to be avoided
All built down to the lowest possible price so are throw away junk
Only good part on any of them is the Chinese Loncin engines.
You might like to search for "Burning De-Walt ZTR "
And that was a brand new mower hand built for a mower show to a much higher quality than what rolls of the production line.

Way way back I was taught
Quality products sell themselves
Junk has to be sold to the customers

From that comes the inverse square law of quality
"Quality of a product declines by the square of the amount of money spent advertising it "

Now social media has changed that a bit because brain dead sheep like to follow "influencers " on the web, most of which have less than no idea about what they spruke but the blind deciples lap whatever they flog up with glee

Which only goes to prove we are no more advanced than when we crawled out of the caves with a club in our hands

Of the mowers mentioned for the residential use, Bad Boy or Toro would be my choice. 15 years ago, Bad Boy was junk, but have really upped the quality and features and dealer network. Toro is overall, a pretty solid product. See a lot of Timecutters come through my shop. Usually minor problems and tune ups.

 

[slomo]

Around here it's Snapper, SCAG and Toro.

 

[StarTech]

As said none are trouble free. They all will have problems. It just the nature of mechanical equipment. They all have their weak points.

Its like people that bad mouth autos. Some hate the Ford line, Some hate the Mopar line, and some hate the Chevy line. Well I reckon I can bad mouth my Chevy PU for the transmission failure. Now of course it has 343,000 miles on it and now I got to put in a rebuilt transmission. For me it cost as much to rebuilt it myself as getting one that has a 4 yr warranty. The Ford I brought was someone else's failure that they didn't fix just pawn it off on the dealer., THe Mopar I had had engine and transmission problems but they were well over 200,000 when these occurred. My brother blew up my IH pu at 180,000 and none us mechanics could where the block crack was. Ended selling it for scrape as was 30+ yrs old.