It really complains if the bags are loaded and I have to let off the forward peddle and repress it to get it going again. Is it a good machine for the 2000 dollars. They agreed becasue they said some of the K-46’s could be serviced. No way!!! so i was completely wrong on which trans i had. Made in China, I’m surprised – I thought John Deere was all American? I would suggest you scour Google for a suitable replacement. This was my first riding mower and I know it’s going to be my last John Deere. but still will not rotate wheels when I move the belt . I am not buying a transmission for more than what I paid for the mower. looks and runs great. Honestly … If you have one of these models and use it for ANYTHING more than mowing a small residential lawn on level ground, you either need one NOW or will need one later. We are now buying brand new K66’s directly from Tuff Torq and are continuing to produce and sell the popular K66 Upgrade Kits. Looking for an update. This tractor sucks. Still cuts nice, that wasn’t an issue before, just my painful ears. Thousands of Sears, Ranch Kings, Yard Man and the like are sold at similar price points and run forever with no maintenance on the hydro transaxle. Grass is coming up in one month. Insert top portion of hose thru the hole you just drilled and secure with a wire tie. Man, I loved that tractor. Lt180 with 250 hrs cant climb hill slow in reverse, I too have a k46 in a huskquvarna I bought from Lowe’s ,I put a new belt on it and that didn’t work,took it to the dealer and they told me the belt was stretched and sold me a new belt(145.00),still under warranty,only 50 hours on it,3 rd time my wife came up our small hill it wouldn’t make it,so I called Lowe’s and had someone drop it off,have to see if they do anything about it,the dealer told me huskquvarna wouldn’t warranty if I ever pressure washed it,sounds like they are trying to wait until the warranty runs out within a month. I bought an LT180 (and snowblower attachment) about 6 years ago. Jul 29, 11: I have made an error ! I have to throttle up to get it to run efficiently. Chris. Can I use the Super 500 upgrade kit. Hi Kelly, I’ve updated the page as to where we stand. 148 hours of use and after 30 minutes it will not move in reverse and the forward speed is about half. Ps: There is NO certainty that ANY additional K66’s will be available. I never hardly have any problems other than a spark plug coil burnt out while mowing. Well at least i am not alone in this. Bought my L111 20 hp from a friend that was moving and found that on flat yard would hardly move let set for half hour ran good till warm up slow again,I really thought John Deere was the best until now. Only have 39 hours on it. J/D snuck one by me. Of course it’s a “crime” to have to spend that money on a 4 year old tractor. I’ve got an LA130 that is about 5 years old that only has 124 hours on it and it appears the transaxle is shot. John Deere gave an alternate dealership but it’s 2 hours away. It is now doing the crawl of death. I’ve always operated mine as the operators manual says; always with the throttle full open. I’m not sure if it’s the entire tractor that’s been upgraded, or the transmission, but I can tell you this… That k66 transaxle is still kicking butt and no change in performance! It is the customers responsibility to make sure the transmission does not have a buildup of grass on the cooling fins, or that any fluid leaks are noticed and tended to as soon as they start. Thanks. Bought it when I retired was expecting it to last the rest of my life. Got a D 170 with less than 100 hours. Too much for a heavy-duty paper weight…….. Everyone is jumping on John Deere and their poor quality. I can tell you that Roger is serious about his customer service. have a JD LT180 rated 2and a half acres only have 1 and 3/4 now it wont climb my 4ft septic hill MY last john deere. Buying the $1800 replacement is not an option as the cost is no longer warranted. For Chet: We are not a JD dealer. My drive way is at a 30% slope. Very frustrated and now to find out i5 may be the transmission and have to shell out as much as the initial purchase, unacceptable. I was just into a John Deere dealer to buy some new blades and overheard a salesman pushing this junk. Push the tubing on the end of oil can snout, so it fits sung and doesn’t leak or slide off. Oil that is entrained has inferior hydraulic properties in comparison to fresh oil, resulting in less than optimal sys… Jens. You guy’s crack me up. Any input? As a former JD Technician I can tell you this from fact. Remove your vent-plug cap and insert a thin copper wire down the newly-installed fill tube… until it won’t go down any further… bend top end of wire over the hose. They should never have put that junk out it has hurt their reputation. Sometimes it was so deep I had to first go through with the blower lifted, then back up to go again with it down. The K46 transmission is a TERRIBLE DESIGN and should be replaced with the K66 BY John Deere and Tuff Torque at THEIR cost as BOTH knew they were bad. And where, do I give it drink of lube ? Will never buy a John Deere again. We are currently selling about five kits per week … and that rate is getting faster as the supply gets lower and the grass gets greener. I too will never buy another JD product and will paint it a different color if I keep it! I have a new love for my John Deere and knowing that I have a tricked out tractor makes it all that better. The hood and body parts do crack easily. (I had already thought they might do that). Yea thats right, think I should have got a sears .Dont have much good to say about jd equipment. kcir. And the fact when i was getting transmission fluid from the dealer and i couldn’t even get an answer on how much fluid the tranny holds, just a “Whatever you pour out, put in”. Maybe something can be done after all. Interesting reading everyone. This probably means we will have two different upgrade kits available. INSANE!! I’m guessing that the fluid they put in initially was non-synthetic. UPDATE REGARDING AVAILABILITY OF THE K66 UPGRADES. Now I’m torn. One of the first problems we saw, was that the reverse lost power. The price of the kits have gone up in direct response to the price of the parts. I must be included with all the above …..I have have a 2006, 155c Automatic. I am very mad about this tractor. You can buy real John Deer product, for they offer $ 200.00. I don’t know if anyone answered Bill’s question on September 13th, 2009 regarding whether these kits would fit the JD L111. Maybe there is a special tool to remove the plug? Please understand, by “put together” i really mean, get the motor running again (original 11hp briggs/straton) and the shell (did some body work). I want the thing to last as the only problem is no power. Minimal improvement. I will never own another small JD lawn tractor. I will go on flat ground just fine. I have a 2004 Deere L118 and it stopped climbing the hills in my yard. Very disappointed to find out that so many others have had similar experiences with a company that built it’s reputation on its name and supposed quality. I ended up finding a great mechanical condition 1992 265 with the 17hp Kawasaki and a 48” deck had some scratches but got it for $750 awesome rider built like a tank mows great. The kits will be delivered in order of reservations made. I also exchanged the drive belt, but both “exercises” didn’t help and my tractor still didn’t make it up a slight incline. I have an extremely steep hill, so steep that I have to bend down when riding so that my center of gravity is lower. If you are considering buying a new tractor to replace your malfunctioning JD, please keep this in mind: >In my opinion, virtually all the current tractors on the market in the “under $3000” price range are still using the TT K46 (or close variant) transaxle. Great! Same problem with my L118; sign me up for class action suit if you get that going. If any intrest on buying the motor let me know. Later took 2 mowers including the JD and built my boys a go-cart. For the most part, this is all good information. The mower has just over 200 hours is all. In 2005 I bought my LT190 at a John Deere tractor supply store. Discussion in 'Dozers' started by pogfmk, Jun 6, 2016. pogfmk New Member. I trusted John Deere, I felt that no matter what the price, I could count on it lasting forever. Or is there some other place for that? I bought a JD L120 almost 4 years ago.This spring I started having the infamous transaxle problem that many of you have. The only reason they never noticed the issue is their short mowing time and flat yard. same problem with tranny. So the A.G. office of Michigan said I could sue because they had no jurisdiction over a company based in Illinois. Now I can’t wait to receive my upgrade kit! I had Dealer pick up the tractor after I replaced the drive belt (no better result). I have a newly acquired 1978 JD 750 (E or B?) My tractor is like new again (except I now have yellow rear rims instead of gray ones) and runs like a top. (Don’t have the part number with me). Oil change is performed twice per year even though the hours are very low. of hose.). I was very careful when topping it off to get all the bubbles out; gentling rotating and just patiently filling it to the brim. Charles Miller Ps: Anyone ready for a Fully Electric, Solar rechargeable, conversion? 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