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gregd_gw

My JD LT155 - now 7 years old. REPORT

gregd
15 years ago

It's hard to believe that my LT155 is 7 years old. I thought that some of you might be interested in my ownership experience.

My yard is 1.3 acres, probably 1/2 of which is heavily treed. I cut the lawn, occasionally pull a small cart for firewood or mulch, and during the fall I pull a 42" sweeper to clean up the leaves.

It's now 7+ years old and the hourmeter shows 286 hours of use.

To cut to the chase, I'm still smiling!

Here's a report of what has needed repairs over seven years of ownership and use.

ENGINE: The 15hp Kohler engine has been flawless. I've simply changed the oil, spark plug and all filters as reccomended. And made sure that the gas is fresh and stored with Stabil in the winter.

FRAME/BODY: Repairs here have all been of my own doing. I ran into the back of the shed pretty hard and broke the plastic bumper/hood hinge. Seems to me that part was about $50 or so. No biggie. During a full-lock turn my front wheel contacted a railroad tie and broke the wheel bearing housing. Another $80 or so for that.

MOWER DECK: The Freedom 42 deck does a fantastic job of cutting and mulching grass, but I've found that it is a bit delicate compared to a standard mowing deck. One fall I ran over a softball-sized rock that was covered with leaves. The result was a snapped mower deck timing belt and a pair of mangled blades. New belt and blades, about $120.

DRIVETRAIN: I replaced all belts in 2005 after the transmission drive belt began to get funky and wouldn't stay in it's pulleys anymore. The transmission cooling fan lost a few blades when the belt came off, so it got replaced as well. Had the dealer take care of this one to the tune of $125 for all belts, fan and labor. No other issues.

OTHER: The original battery lasted 5 years. No complaints there.

All in all, the tractor has been a pleasure to own. It's certainly not "bulletproof," but I've found that with proper maintenence it's a very reliable unit. I suspect it has at least 7 more years of service left in it provided I don't drive it off a cliff........


My only concern is the K51 transmission. While it has been just fine, having read other Gardenweb member's problems with this unit I feel like changing the oil would be a smart thing to do. My research on this site shows that others have done this by removing the unit, popping off the fill cap and draining the oil by turning the unit upside down to drain. Refil with approx 2 quarts of 10w30 oil (others have reported using 5w50 synthetic with good results.)

Any other needed maintenence at this point would be appreciated, if you have any suggestions.

Thanks,

Greg

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