I here you Saxman ! I remember back when you routinely changed Plugs and Point & Condenser much more often. I guess with new Electronic Ignition , Computerized Fuel Delivery and better Plug Technology we are seeing much better performance and reliability. I just picked up a 1997 Geo Tracker for a Rural Mail Route. I changed the Fuel Filter , Air Filter along with New Plugs , Wires and Distributor . All appeared fine but since it had 250,000 KM thought I might as well get this along with Valvoline High Mileage Oil and Fram Filter out of the wya. I was surprised at the increase in performance and fuel economy change for the better , since all had appeared in the ball park previously ...guess you never know ? Anyhow time for the Mail to Go lol , Have a Great Day All :)

I just purchased a 2013 Honda HRX217HZA a couple of weeks ago. It supplants a 2003 Toro 20033 SR push mower here, which still is in mint condition. After recent spine surgery, I decided to finally purchase a self-propelled mower! Here are my thoughts on the HRX217HZA which cost me $849, plus tax (high here in IL (9%) - at a local mower shop. - Versamow System... So far, I exclusively use it in the mulch position, as I always mulch here. This fall I will try it out in the partial mulch and partial discharge when the leaves begin to fall. I never bag, as I have no way to get rid of the clippings. The mower mulches very well on par with the Toro SR. - The 190cc engine starts immediately with either the recoil or electric start. NOTE: With the 2013 HRX217HZA, Honda eliminated the "wall wart" charger for the battery. The battery is now charged from the engine's electrical system when the mower is running. No engine surging is noted, either at partial or full throttle. However, I am using non-Ethanol gasoline provided by the selling dealer. I will see if any surging begins when I start using the 10% Ethanol gas sold at all gas stations in this area. I do use an additive called Star Tron Enzyme Fuel Treatment - I find it superior to Sta-Bil. - Blade Brake... the blade brake feature is very nice, especially when you need to pick up something from the yard which was overlooked prior to mowing. I know this adds to the complexity of the mower, but it's a big plus for me. When the blade brake bail is pushed in which engages the blade, or more specifically, the blades, the mower's dBA noise level increases significantly. The HRX217 is definitely a louder mower than my Toro SR 20033 with the flat-head B&S 6.5HP Quantum engine. - Nexite Deck... The Nexite deck is very nice, and rugged, but it may be more sensitive to spilled gas, fluids, etc. than a cast aluminum or steel deck. This is not confirmed, but it is noted in the HXA's owner's manual. - Ball Bearing Wheels... This mower is heavy (102 lbs.), but I honestly can't tell much of a difference between this mower with the ball bearing wheels and the Toro with sleeve bearing wheels. Granted, the Toro is only 69 lbs., but when I drop the Clutch Bail on the Honda to either trim or go back and forth around obstacles, the Honda is not necessarily easy to maneuver - ball bearing wheels or not. Not that it's hard to maneuver per se, but simply more so than my Toro push mower. - Hydrostatic Drive... The Hydrostatic drive is wonderful in operation. I can set it to its lowest setting, and it will simply crawl at a snail's pace. I will never use it at its highest speed setting, as I don't enjoy jogging when I mow the lawn! It's very nice to be able to change the speed on the go, and when you want to disengage the drive, you simply drop the Clutch Bail. You can also "feather" the drive system by partially dropping the Clutch Bail similar to a single drive or variable drive system. As to potential cost-of-repair, yes, I expect the Hydrostatic drive to be most costly to maintain, and certainly to repair than other systems. I've heard stories here on this site of high repair bills on the Hydrostatic drive, so I am a bit concerned about this myself. I understand the Toro's Personal Pace (originally designed by Lawn-Boy), and the Snapper Disc design is more simple, and thus, less-costly to repair. - Honda Warranty... The HRX comes with a 5 year warranty, but since I purchased the mower on or before May 31, Honda added a Bonus 1 year, so it has a 6 year warranty. I've also read on this site where Honda can be quite picky about some warranty claims, thus this also concerns me a bit. I never had the need to test the Toro 5 year warranty on my 20033 SR, as it never had one single problem in the 10 years I've owned it. The only negatives I've discovered so far are as follows: - When mowing laterally across a slight rise or hill, the mower wants to slide sideways down the incline a bit. This is due to its weight. It's not a significant problem, but it does occur. - The HRX217 is a complex walk-behind mower... from its OHC 190cc engine with a belt-driven cam drive to its Hydrostatic drive, it's likely the most complex walk-behind mower available for residential use. Unlike the Toro 20033 SR with the "old" B&S flat head engine which has only required annual oil changes, annual air filter replacements, and annual spark plug replacements, plus a thorough cleaning after each use, the Honda's maintenance schedule "reads more like an automobile maintenance schedule." The dealer strongly urged me to consider annual check-ups at $69+ per service, and the owner's manual directly addresses this, such as checking the valve clearance on the OHC system, as well as checking the Hydrostatic drive. Thus, this mower will certainly be more costly to maintain than the Toro I own. During the 6 year warranty period, the dealer will pick up the mower and deliver it back to my house for no charge - other than the service fee of course. Just a thought to consider, as I doubt HD would do this for you. One of the benefits of buying from a locally-owned dealer is that they generally provide excellent service. redballoon - I hope this answers some of your questions. I know this is not the exact model you are considering, but I have tried to cover most questions on the mower's features.

Thanks to this Thread I was able to repair the LT180 I just bought at an auction. All was good until about 30 minutes of mowing when the world stopped turning and the machine was barely moving. After reading all the info above I took a slightly different approach to remedy the slow trans-axle condition. Taking the least aggressive path, I was curious if just a fluid change would make a difference, I decided to jack the rear end up and pop a couple drain holes into the Axle cast housing where Tuff-Torq suggests. Here is a Link https://www.tufftorqservices.com/EnvEEdefault/FlatHTML/TechInfo/ttcoil/pdfs/K46%20Drain%20Port%20Location.pdf I used a 1/8 stubby drill as not to injure any interior components, both holes drained over night. I then added 2 self tapping screws 1/2 inch long with a neoprene washer. Without the deck on the machine I was able to reach under the frame and pop the fill hole cover off using a stubby flat screwdriver. I cleaned up the magnet and filled the unit. 24 inches of 3/8 clear tubing and a small funnel allowed me to add back the 2 quarts of cheap 10-30 oil for my test. Popped the magnet and cap back in place and DONE! I am pleased that the result was success, the machine runs very well without growling and slowing after 30 minutes of use. My intention is to replace the 2 small drain holes with real drain plugs after about 5 hours of use and refill the unit with synthetic oil for hopefully many more years of use. Happy Mowing!!

Hey, you can't have all of this fun without me!! VBG Seriously some of what is being said about piston slap is true. Piston slap alone is NOT a reason to tear an engine down and do a repair. Piston slap is in fact normal on a cold engine because aluminum expands faster than the cast iron engine block. if the piston is tight enough cold, it will be too tight when warmed up. Piston slap should a repair actually be indicated actually does not even mean that a piston needs to be replaced! If the problem is a collapsed skirt, it can in many cases be "knurled" and reshaped to take up the slightly excessive clearance. A knurled piston is one that has many tiny marks made into it's surface, that cause the outer edges of the mark to rise up. Sort of like the way a center punch makes a "crater" in a piece of metal. These two links give both a description of knurling, and an actual application. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knurling http://www.hastingsmfg.com/ServiceTips/international_v8_engines.htm Now the one big problem I have with this thread is the idea that $100 in parts, a saturday, and a twelve pack of beer is all that is required to make the noise go away. I do understand the perception that to the right person pulling and reinstalling a piston isn't difficult to do but the reality is to do it right is in fact much different. This is a job where a very simple mistake can cause a major engine failure after the attempt. Plus if it's 4WD just getting the oil pan off and back on will take up most of your staurday, and that's if you have a hoist. People have been successful simply replacing a piston(s) in chassis but not always successful at eliminating piston noise or slap. That's because the piston is only half of the equation, cylinder wear or taper could easily be coming into play, and I would leave those checks/measurements up to a qualified machinist. Plus we still have the little issue of pressing the piston pin through the rod. Very few shops have the equipment to do that, let alone DIY's. There are many traps lurking in this repair that can make the whole attempt go south in a hurry. One common trap is as simple as not torquing the intake manifold in the correct order! An incorrect torque sequence distorts the engine block, and that changes the line bore of the engine resulting in main bearing/camshaft bearing wear. The $64,000 question from there is, does the resulting wear end up causing the engine to actually fail? Sometimes it does, and sometimes it does not. Lastly, stroke length plays a role in piston slap issues. The longer the stroke, the more often a piston skirt has to be shortened for clearance issues. Cylinder block deck height and other design issues can also impact piston design. The longer that the skirts can be, the less likely it is that piston slap is likely to occur. Although think about it, the longer the skirts, the greater the piston mass and you start impacting engine efficiency due to inertial, and frictional losses. Plus you can impact RPM and horsepower. It's all an intricate dance that even the manufactures are not going to be perfect at every time. That's why we have tolerances, and some things (noises) are allowable even if they are not completely desireable.