Seat Suspension Kit 126-9868

[Born2Mow]

I love my 2020 E-Series 44" Radius mower, but due to lack of any seat movement it has become increasingly uncomfortable to mow the uneven parts of my yard. On a recent trip to my Exmark dealer to check out trade-in options, the parts man recommended that I simply add the "126-9868 Seat Suspension Kit" for $385. This is the story of that "adventure".

What the Kit does is provide a new steel plate for mounting the seat. This new plate hinges at the front and is suspended at the rear by some high-tech rubber shock units. You unbolt the seat from the existing plate and fasten it to the new plate. Sounds simple.

However, this is ALL predicated on the assumption that the existing plate is punched to accept the rubber bumper assembly. As shown in the kit diagram (above), the plate directly above the fuel tank needs to have 2 rows of slotted holes, into which the rubber bumper unit gloves. And this is the catch.... if that plate is not there, then Exmark expects you to purchase a new Fuel Tank Plate for an additional $125 !! And that was the case with my mower. It would have pushed the cost of adding basic seat suspension to well over $500 on a mower that initially cost well over $5,000. I could hardly swallow the $400 (kit + tax) cost of the initial kit, now they wanted an additional $125 because my mower won't readily accept the kit which all the Exmark manuals suggest using. Sorry Exmark.

If you are considering this Kit, then I highly suggest you take the time to slide your seat all the way forward and look for the double row of slotted holes in the black steel plate just above the fuel tank. If those slots aren't there then you're in for a very expensive upgrade.

 

[Rivets]

The description I looked up said it requires Exmark #135-7013. If your Exmark dealer had looked at the description he would have seen this. I would be having a serious discussion with him, especially if you want to return the kit.

 

[Born2Mow]

The description I looked up said it requires Exmark #135-7013.

That's the plate atop the fuel tank that has the special slots. Thanks for that PN, it helped a lot.

PART II
After some serous thought and new mower shopping, I decided that the Seat Kit, expensive as it was, was a better choice than buying another (new or used) mower. Since I have the 44" Radius, the change required the 126-9868 Kit, plus the afore mentioned 135-7013 Fuel Tank Plate.

Installation is easy and straight forward. First you remove the existing Fuel Tank Plate which is held in place by 2 bolts.

Then install the 135-7013 Plate using the same 2 bolts.

Then install the new Seat Plate from the 126-9868 Kit. Once that's secured you can fasten the existing seat to the new Seat Plate. This is made easy because the seat now hinges forward to expose all the fasteners.

The new seat plate hinges at the front via existing holes in the L&R control lever columns. The gold rod is the hinge pin.
Lastly, a spring-loaded safety latch is fitted to the frame on the battery side to keep the seat from hinging forward during a roll over.

Total installation time was about 45 minutes and only required 3/8 and 1/2" sockets. There were no special knowledge or tool requirements. The Kit raises the seat about 1" over the previous position. All the seat's front-back slide adjustment is retained. The ride is much, much better, but not superb. Still, it's far better than no suspension at all.