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Hi all, may be pulling the trigger on a new JD lawn tractor soon. Is there a difference in quality between buying one at a big home store vs a smaller JD dealer? I mean, if you take the same exact model, one from big box store and one from local JD dealer are they manufactured any differently?

I will be mowing grass only, slight inclines here and there. Will need enough power to pull cart or thatching attachment. Which models should i be looking at?

Whats the difference between the X series and the E series?

Very simple answer, with a dealer you have someone who knows their equipment and can help you if any problem arises. With the big box stores you only have a body who primary job is to sell you something and after it leaves the store he knows the rest is up to you. My question to you. Where will you be going for any warranty work is needed? If you don’t do your own maintenance, where are you going? If you need JD parts where are you going? I believe the difference between the E and X Series is the X series is only sold at dealerships. Don’t quote me on that, I’ve been wrong before.

I do all my own maintenance. I would think if anything needed a replacement under warranty, any authorized JD dealer would work no matter where it was purchased. Will a "lawn tractor" be sufficient enough to pull a loaded cart or thatching attachment or would those require a "garden tractor"? The E series is within my budget but I have only seen E series available at box stores.

That would depend on three things. How much you put in the cart, type of thatching equipment and condition of the lawn. Hills, slopes, number of obstacles all will take a toll on the equipment. With the E Series you are buying the low end of the line and you must remember you get what you pay for.

Things may have changed since I got mine, but the L and E series mowers have the undersized and poorly designed K46 TuffTorq transaxle. Do a search on the net and you'll see the problems with that gearbox. May be OK for routine mowing for small flat yards for a couple years, not at all recommended for any other service. I'd sure make the trip to the local dealer and get his recommendation for a reliable machine to suit your service. Get a three year machine, or pay double and get a 20 year machine.

pmgnut said:

I do all my own maintenance. I would think if anything needed a replacement under warranty, any authorized JD dealer would work no matter where it was purchased. Will a "lawn tractor" be sufficient enough to pull a loaded cart or thatching attachment or would those require a "garden tractor"? The E series is within my budget but I have only seen E series available at box stores.

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That is because the big box stores specify how much they will pay for the mower so thy can sell what looks to be good for a very cheap price & still make a 100% mark up
With mowers you will only get 75% of what you are paying for on anything under $ 10,000.
Lawn tractor is not a tractor, it is a mower that looks like a tractor in layout.
If you want to pull then you really need a Garden tractor or budget to replace the lawn tractor every 5 years.

It's true that once you leave HD or Lowes with it, it's between you and your nearest JD dealer.

If it's like it used to be, the dealer sets up all the HD and Lowes mowers. I'm sure the dealer gets a cut. I really don't think the dealer cares where you buy it.

I bought an L120 in 2003 from HD. Had warranty issues (leaky main seal) within the first year, called dealer, they picked it up, fixed it, delivered it back to me. Never had a single issue for the next 13 years.

If you're mowing lots of hours a year and pulling, you might step up to a beefier trans than the sealed K46. If you're putting less than 20 hours a year on it, you should get several years of service out of the cheaper mower.

In the John Deere lineup you have the K46 in everything E170 and up. The automatic (CVT) in the E100 and the other hydrostatics used in the E110 through E160 are not robust enough for pulling a dethatcher or loaded carts. My personal opinion would be to either stick with the K46, at which I would recommend the X350 as your mower, or step up into the X380 and get the K58 which is rated for ground engaging equipment. You can get other brands of machines for less money with heavier duty transmissions (example - Husqvarna TS348D for $3k) but the overall quality of the John Deere is better. A machine with a K46 can certainly last for many years doing simple chores around the yard and cutting grass, but anything with a K58 or better should give you more capabilities and better odds of it not failing.

Back in 07 I bought a new X324 and she still cuts great. The X350 of today from a JD dealership will give you great service. I’m not to impressed with the 30 sec oil change ones.

The box store line since the Saber has always been of lesser quality.

pmgnut said:

I would think if anything needed a replacement under warranty, any authorized JD dealer would work no matter where it was purchased.

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Put yourself in the dealer's position. You have customers who bought their mower from you and need work done. You also have mowers from people who bought their mowers elsewhere and they need work done, too.

When you prioritize your shop work, which units will you work on first?

cpurvis said:

Put yourself in the dealer's position. You have customers who bought their mower from you and need work done. You also have mowers from people who bought their mowers elsewhere and they need work done, too.

When you prioritize your shop work, which units will you work on first?

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I agree with you in this statement, but it shouldn't be the acceptable way of running a business. Of course each customer has a "value" to them. If you consider the commercial contractor who purchases 20 new Exmarks every 2-4 years, of course they will get some preferential treatment when need service. Why? Because it is in our nature to reciprocate whenever someone does something beneficial for us. Also, a business exists to make money of which the commercial account brings more of. Like I said, this is not acceptable, but it's just the way it is. All we can hope for is that a business is "built" on principals to which all customers are treated equally. An honest business can operate this way so long as expectations are set in the beginning and policies are enforced.

Please do not place all dealerships in the same category as you described. There are good dealerships in all parts of the country, even the world. Yes, there are those that do meet your description, but I feel that there are more good than bad. The dealership I work at has been around for more the 65 years, so I doubt that we would be in the bad category. Yes there are times when we will put our dedicated customers ahead, but that will depend on the situation. The biggest complaint we have is that some customers who purchase a brand we do not sell from the Big Box stores, come to us for service, then expect to get one week service when we are two weeks out. “MY GRASS IS GROWING AND I CAN’T BE WITHOUT MY MOWER THAT LONG”. At this time of the year we have a waiting list of residential customers for about 3 weeks out. 99% understand and have no complaints. Four mechanics, working 45-50 hours a week, means we must be doing something right. Our commercial customers plan ahead, right now we don’t see many emergencies from them. Many times for them it means OT for us. Do what you have to do. This is the reason I’m always saying when you purchase, look to see who will help you out in the future if a problem comes up.