I sell Honda but don't have a lot of feedback on the Smart Drive yet. It seems to work well. I am surprised at your reaction to the HXA drive, the control system has been around for almost 30 years and has been well accepted.

My negatives were aimed at the blade/brake clutch lever, not the hydrostatic drive engagement. I thought that pushing the yellow button and then engaging the lever was not the easiest of tasks, especially as my son starts using the machine. I've noted other HXA owners in message boards complaining about the yellow button, and have had to have them replaced after they broke. It must be a liability issue, but it would work better if the yellow button didn't even exist! Just push one bar to engage the blade, another to engage the drive! Personally I would have preferred this model - maybe it's me but I like the idea of an actual throttle, the reliability of the hydrostatic drive, and the traditional drive engagement/speed lever. Oh, I did think they scrimped a little on the HXA's pushbar. Just painted black tubular metal. The older Harmony's had the custom-look plastic top. The VKA has padding on each side of the smartdrive. I just thought a $700 mower could use some perceived quality additions (whether it helps in real life or not).

If anything, I thought that the VKA and HXA were kind of close in price. I think it was $629 vs. $729 if I'm remembering correctly.

It doesn't matter now - I'll be using the VKA as soon as the lawn dries out. Well, I guess I could exchange it but I don't see a reason to.

My "Yellow button" has been working fine as it starts its 20th season.
I think when YOU actually use it a bit, you'll see that it's quite intuitive.
I think 1/2 the people that complain about Honda don't even own one.

The yellow button may be a bit redundant, but not at all difficult to use. I've had a bunch of mowers over the years, and my HRX217HXA is without question the finest mower I've ever owned.

The yellow button is there to satisfy consumer law. The blade engagement must be a two part operation to prevent accidents.

It also allows you to engage the drive without engaging the blades. Helps when moving from one patch to another. A nifty feature for the lazy ones amongst us.

>>>However I was really surprised with the improvement on the smartdrive (i.e. the thumbdrive). The effort was 1000% easier than the older version sitting next to it, and you can now rotate the entire unit to your desired position.The mower videos at the link below show the new adjustable SmartDrive. Also, on the HRR216VXA, the blade engagement mechanism is a yellow push-button instead of a handle like the ones I've seen in stores. Judging from all the complaints I've read about thumb fatigue I assume at least the SmartDrive revision is worth waiting for.

My question is, does anybody know when these changes took place? Did it start with the 2008 models and are the ones in the stores leftover 2007s? Is there a way to know by serial number which model is in the box? My local Home Depot has these mowers stacked to the roof but none on display!

Thanks

Here is a link that might be useful: Honda Video Gallery

OK, I figured it out by looking at the Honda owner's manuals by serial number, so let me share this:

HRR216VXA models starting with Serial# MZCG-7800001 have the new adjustable SmartDrive thumb control.

HRX217VKA models starting with Serial# MAGA1500001 also have the new adjustable SmartDrive thumb control.

So I'm off to HD tomorrow to eyeball the stack of boxes. ;)

FYI...my HD has this model for $599...the local home store was $629. I bought at the home store as they are really nice, knowledgeable, and will do the service work. Of course you can probably find a HD 10% coupon if you try a little.

The display model at my HD has the old smartdrive.

Other than old stock, are Honda mowers at Home Depot the same as the Hondas at local shops? Or does Honda supply a "cheaper" version to HD like other manufacturers do with certain products?

I don't know if Honda circulates "cheaper" versions of it's lawnmower to Home Depot...I would hope not!
But I was in the same boat as cz9h3d, in the market for a new lawnmower. I went to the across the boarder to HD( our local HDs in Canada do not sell Honda mowers) at the intent of purchasing the 217HXA, after a study of reviews and specs of this specific mower. I was fixated to the HXA having the roto stop.
But after comparing the 217HXA and 217VKA side by side and using the controls, the 217VKA's adjustable smartdrive control won me over with it's comfort and simplicity. To summerize the my comparison, the 217HXA = Manual, the 217VKA = Automatic....I went with Automatic!..
I suspect most of the buyers of the 217HXA are previous Hydrostatic Honda owners or for homeowners and professionals
who want "total"(clutch, choke, speed, Rotostop) control of their mowers. 217VKA buyers are for people who want it simple and comfortable. It doesn't feature the Rotostop I wanted, but on and off is simple with the help of the automatic choke..no turtle -) bunny pictures on this mower! :P Come to think of it, after using this mower, I can probably mow with just one hand because of the Smartdrive. Last thing I want to point out. I've read many reviews about the smartdrive being uncomfortable. It might be because they got the non adjustable Smartdrive. Or the main reason for their woes is because they call it a thumb bar, well you actually use your palms to add or decrease pressure to the Smartdrive rather than your thumbs. Check out he Hondapowerequipment videos..

i have been wanting the 217VKA since last year. threads like these just make me dream more. $429 is a steal!

is the versamow really that great? i mean it sounds good, but does it work well?

I use the Versamow all the time. My wife wants me to bag, I want to mulch, so I set it to mostly mulch and she doesn't know the difference (yes, I'm PW'd, what can I say). It's nice not to have to change blades, put in a plug, whatever. It's also handy for bagging leaves in the fall.