I started this page because I felt I was ripped off! I purchased a John Deere from Home Depot many years ago for a small flat lawn. After a year or so, the tractor started running out of power. Long story short, it turns out the k46 transaxle was junk and when I asked a dealer about it, I was told there was no upgrade option, no way to change the fluid and that if I wanted a real mower, I should buy the model that was a few thousand more than what I paid!
Frustrated, I spend days searching for a fix and found an upgrade kit (not offered by John Deere!) that solved all my problem, but the fact I had to do perform an upgrade at all was just wrong! By the way, if you want to read about the k66 transaxle upgrade kit, check out my John Deere transmission fix – it’s still running strong in 2015!
Not willing to accept the lame excuse I’ve received by the dealer, I’ve started collecting names for a class action lawsuit against John Deere in an attempt to get all of our money back or at least a free new mower that will do what they promised it will do!
John Deere Transmission Recall
Interested in starting a class action lawsuit against John Deere for the faulty L-Series lawnmowers? Please sign below.
Hi Andrew,
I have 2,600 signatures of people that have expressed there interest in starting a class action lawsuit against John Deere for the faulty lawnmowers.
I believe there needs to be about 50 individuals verified, so I think of those 2,600 would produce far more than 50 :)
When I have time, I’ll look for an attorney to move forward and until then, I’ll just keep collecting complaints.
I am also thinking of approaching John Deere to see if they would like to make it right with those that complained before moving forward with an attorney.
I need to research the best option and am open to ideas.
Thanks!
How many signatures do you need and how close are we to that number?
Bought a 155C from a retired mechanic who had a whole file folder on what he did and when he did it. Looked like brand new. Figured I had the cream of the crop mower. Same issue as everyone. No power going up hills and almost no reverse except on “flat” ground. Sadly disappointed. JD dealer i brought it to says they can’t even service the Hydro, when they quit you just have to replace them. Can’t do maintenance on them if you wanted to.
Yeah, out a bunch of money.
John Deere x-300 less than 400 hours on the machine – bought from and regularly maintained through John Deere, and the K46 Transmission loses power when mowing up hill and after about 15 minutes wont even run. Found a couple of videos online that alleged J Deere doesn’t put the manufacturers recommended transmission oil in them when assembled but instead had 10w30 in them when the manufacturer (tufftorque) recommends 5w50 – so I’m guessing they will wear out faster than they normally would. My opinion is that J deere is just trying to get people to buy new mowers instead of fixing it!
Have a 100 series jd and with about 100 hours on it, needs a pulley which jd has already declared an obsolete replacement part. Such a sad joke. $4500.00 heap of trash for the landfill.
John Deere says I should have bought from dealer instead of Home depot. 54 hours flat lawn and transmission gone! I will never buy another JD. So disappointed! I can fix for 750 but just do not trust JD. Now I am hearing spindles are going and that is another 800$.
I have had the same problem slowly losing power to the point it will not even move, did the repair thing but still have the same problem.. John Deere needs to own up to the problem and give their customers a replacement… Lets sue the crap out of them..
I also have a John Deere 4044, and had to take it back to them 4 times over an exhaust valve malfunction… mad as hell! will not buy JD again…
5/5/18 – My JD L125 transmission died at 220 hours. No other problems on a very well maintained machine.
Looking to sue the crap out of John Deere. Anyone with me?
Your message was received Michael.
I saw a couple thinking about buying a John Deere from Menards, they were look at John Deere vs Kabota. Needless to say that I let them know what problems I had with mine, encouraged them to look at multiple reviews on the internet and then make a decision – they did not buy the John Deere.
That sucks spent a lot of money on this machine. Thought John Deere was top of the line equipment. My machine dont have that many hours either. Thanks for doing this. Keep me posted please how things are going . Hope something comes up and soon.
Thank You for taking this up. It is very frustrating, I buy the top name equipment, I thought, I expected this mower to last 20 years.
nice work guys and gals I think we have all made a very good point about john deere mowers .thanks to man who started this page he deserves a very big pat on the back ,hopefully this will get taken care of
Wow, wow, wow, This is sad to know that many bad units and no recalls issued. Probably made in CHINA. There were so many I didn’t keep reading. ML110 has the tran’s problem plus it steers so hard as well. The L120 like all the rest is junk with hardly any hours on it, still LOOKS NEW… but looks won’t mow grass. The price to repair not worth the TIME and the $$$$. No more JD units here. Haaaa and I have a Small eng. Repair shop too man am I going to spread the word too to all those asking what to buy.. I’ll start with what not to buy…
John Deere is NOT farm tractor manufacturer. They buy tractors from other manufacturers and have them painted green and yellow. Our Zetor 7745 is made in Czech Republic and called 2000 series by J Deere…check it out. My local J Deere dealer has parts for my tractor but says he can’t sell them for installation in my 7745…Just Wrong!
150 hours la 100 trans piece of s–t want climb small hill after about 10 min of running steering shaft worn out front wheel spindles didnt line up front wheels, tires worn out in no time tires dry rotted,john deere quality realy went to china. john deere had great quality at one time no more.
I have a John deer D170 that if I put a smaller belt on it will work for a little while but then will not go up a hill. I filled out your class action lawsuit. I am going to call a dealer to see what they say and I’m going to call John deer to
The real problem may be John Deere. I own a 9560 combine with an 8.1L motor that’s junk! preparing to put the third engine in a machine with only 2600 hours. John Deere offers no help! I wouldn’t recommend buying even a manure spreader from this company!
I have the same issues as the rest of the people that own a La 130
I have a 28 hour old D-170, the power thing started at 26 hours. I was cutting the grass when the mower got stuck.I attached a tow rope to the bumper & pulled it free, only for the bumper to pull off! This sent this tractor 10 feet & over the roadway embankment which trashed the transmission. Nothing on the bumper ,nor in the manual about the bumper use. I reached out to J.D. headquarters and there not concerned. John Deer wants nothing to do with the repair,no fault of theirs. They are arrogant, I guess my tiny tractor is not a $100,000 machine and I dont matter. Whats messed up is that day my neighbor’s son asked if he could steer it as I pulled it and i said no and felt like an ass. So grateful I SAID NO!!
Thank you for pulling the class together. This is unacceptable to have a product with a component that does not allow maintenance and is almost certainly designed to fail or degrade in performance over time.
Please confirm you have submission… didn’t get confirmation that the signature went through.
Sorry to hear all you folks are having trouble with your L series lawn tractors, but it is no secret that JD sold out to the devil when Home Depot started carrying their products. A simple look at the construction of the units HD was carrying screams “CHEAP”, and from what you are all saying, they are cheap indeed! I have seen several friends’ tractors fail in ways you wouldn’t think a JD would fail: mower decks rusting out because of cheap steel being used, transmission and transaxle failures, body steel (what the seat is mounted to) rusting out, bolts snapping in normal use, pulleys bending under normal load, and the list goes on. I don’t know of an alternative to recommend as I use a 28 year old JD walk-behind (14SB) that still starts on the first pull EVERY time, but if I were in your shoes, I’d be dialing up the John Deere phones in Illinois several times per week and sending them letters a few times per month.
I have added my name to this lawsuit. It doesn’t seem to actually submit.
I am very disappointed with the L170 I paid good money for. It only lasted three years before the tranny failed! WTF! Replacement if I change it is 3/4 the full purchase price. JD products suck!
John Deere is a complete failure for lawn tractors….will never buy another JD product, ever. All my friends will know about this as well.
RIP John Deere!
John Deere D105
transmission locked and engine failed at 66 hours!
three years old – so totally out of luck
Total loss!!!
I am also having all the same probables and am mad at JD they should have done a recall on them and fixed them right. i will not buy another JD again and my letter will not submit.
I own a Husqvarna YTL 24v48 with a Tuff torq K57r. Total ours on the machine is 51.5. Transaxle is slow, chatters on engagement and no reverse.
Little to no reverse after 100 hrs, now at 300 hrs it hardly moves. I mow a flat yard and and a stickler about maintaining my machinery. This mower runs, steers and performs like it were still new other than the failing transmission. I will NEVER own another John Deere ANYTHING! You would think a company this large would save face and take care of us die hard JD fans. I will not pay to fix this thing I will park it in front of my farm next to the highway with a huge sign telling people what a ripoff JD has become…Your form above will not let me submit
I cannot believe that John Deere would jeopardize their name like they did. The tractor is built well…..except for one critical part! As I told the dealer, I have a 30 year old Murray that will pull the John Deere up a hill faster than it will go on its own power. The worst part is that the salesman at Richie Tractor laughed about it. A hill is too steep when the tires spin…..not then the transmission quits! TuffTorq is no better. They know that they sell a piece of crap too. The lady there told me that a $1,000 replacement transmission will fail in 100 hours too, if used on a hill. These people are in Morristown, TN……you live on a “hill”. Move to Florida!
D130 – Same issue. Only 60 hours of use!
I truly hope this will cause john deere to have to take action, I really want to go and tell every consumer at this stores to not by a JD mower with out reading on what P.O.S.’s that they are now.
My D170 did good at first then it got to where it wouldn’t pull up a hill so after raising cane they finally put another transmission in did good for a while but now the same old thing just plain junk won’t buy nothing John Deere again
I hope you’re able to get results with this, I’ve been dealing with this problem for years now. Changing the fluid seems to help for a short time but it is a pain to drop the transaxle to change the fluid. Good Luck!
I worked for our local water agency for 33 years before retiring. We bought nothing but John Deere equipment all those years.
When I bought my John Deere L130 lawn tractor I believed I was paying a lot of money for the best I could get.
I’ll never spend my money on another pos JD equipment ever again.
Hi Paul.
Yes it did and thank you for the notice – I’ll check to see why that happened.
Filled out and signed class action form, but no comfirmation it went through.
Did it get to you?
We bought our JD LA125 from a JD dealer, not a big box store.
After a week, one of the rear axles bent. Big struggle with the dealer who insisted we bent it on our relatively flat 3/4 acre lawn.
Botom line, price for replacement split between us and dealer.
After replacement, transmission problems started -tough time climbing small hill in back yard and almost no motion in reverse.
After 150hrs, head gasket blew on Briggs & Stratton engine.
I am having the exact same issue on my LT 160. What do we have to do other than add info above to get on lawsuit. Has anyone reached out to Their local dealers and what did they say?
Why would you say that? If John Deere sells a tractor, is it not their job to fix problems? Are you trying to say that if a big company sells you system, that it’s not their problem if one of the components they use are defective? Are you suggesting that it’s the customers responsibility to take apart the system, find the defective part and contact the manufacturer? Really? Come on!
How many more people so we need to get action?
The kit is now $2095 and this is 3 time the value of the tractor so I’m not sure what to do. I can’t afford to drop another 2 grand on a mower when I can buy a new one for that.
$2000 for a John Deere ‘D’ series, I think (I just found this link and mower went to John Deere heaven) from Lowes in 2011. We have about 2-3 mowable acres. Did an OK job but we have some hills that it would bog down in and almost tip over. Thought about getting chains. Since it’s dormant in the winter, it only gets used about 7 months out of the year and with both of us on SSD from line-of-duty injuries (FD) the lawn didn’t get mowed as much as it should have, so we didn’t beat it up. Performed Annual maintenance and have had tires deflate, despite having fixed, and deck adjusted/belts replaced more than I would think.
End of Spring, it was making loud noises. Checked the blade for foreign objects…baling twine is usually the culprit. Noise continued. Finally, a loud BANG and no more power to blade. Borrowed a trailer, drove it to MAJOR tractor sales/service place here in Kingsport, TN (Cox Tractor) and the news was bad: the deck had broken off from the mower!!! Bolts snapped! Parts alone would be $500 so to us, it wasn’t worth fixing. The owner of company also advised that this mower (or all of them?) is Chinese made!!! We plan to contact John Deere directly, but if we can get involved in a class action lawsuit or other litigation to get SOME money back, we are IN!!!
It is a case of a subpar part placed in a poorly engineered machine. It is a lot of money to shell out for a piece of junk that both Tuff Torq and John Deere are well aware of the limitations of this unit however they still to this day install them in these lawn mowers. If this occur in only one years model it could be over looked but when it continues on today with no attempt to beef up these transaxles it is a clear case of taking the consumer for a ride. They should be forced to at least replace the transaxles with the K66 upgrade or give full refunds for selling a poor product!!!!! Note: the K46 transaxle comes under different variants (K51, K57, K40,…etc.) and is found in most makes of ride ons.
Several years ago my LT155 mower began losing power going up hills and I took it in to get repaired. Can’t remember how much it cost, just that it wasn’t cheap. Its run fine since then, until the other day when I heard some clanging sound and then the hydrostat just completely quit. Like everyone else here, I’m caught between a rock and a hard place. The Engine still runs great, but at $1000 plus to fix it, I’m forced into buying something else. What a shame.
I will never buy another John Deere product. My 125 with 200 hours is experiencing transmission failure. I had a JD Stx38 before this one, and it lost the transmission too. I never overworked or abused either tractor. John Deere has totally lost all credibility in this market. I feel so betrayed by this JUNK product.
John Deered – Automatic 135, with 270 hrs cant climb hill, slow in reverse.
Dissappointed with John Deere as like everybody else.
Man I am glad for one thing. And that is that I found this site. I am hard headed and thought that I can fix anything. Yeah I dumped money in to this piece of you know what but to hear about everyone else has the same problem I now feel a heck of a lot better. I also had a flat yard about an acre an this mower was the best thing that ever happened to my yard. now that I have bigger yard and it steps down in the back yard this mower is one big ass paper weight. It will not even go up the slightest hill. and reverse what reverse, I was going forward up a hill and it growled all the way till it gave out and I flew down the hill backwards, luckily I can drive mower in reverse. Thank you to everyone for sharing your experiences on this forum. You guys are awesome. and maybe next time I will not be so hard headed, and check out everyones post first.
Thought I was getting a quality product, it is apparent I paid a premium price only for the name. This thing bogs down after 15 minutes. had to buy a $400.00 junker to do the hills on my property, use the Deere for flat surfaces. Never thought I’d consider buying an MTD product over a Deere but that day has come. Thank you for bringing light to this issue.
I have the john deere x304, this is not the cheaper ones that home depot or lowes sell this one was bought at a john deere dealer for a little over $3,000, I have had it for 5 years around 4 years old I noticed a loss in power going up hill and this year it’s getting worse. It runs fine on flat ground but mowing up hill I’m afraid it won’t make it.
My LA130 is beginning to show signs of having transmission issues (having issues climbing small hills or pulling a small load). I was hoping it would just be a belt, but it appears to be much larger issue. John Deere you let me down!
John Deere L 130 has poor quality transmission and I will never buy another John Deere tractor. My tractor will not go up a small hill and I am stuck with a piece of junk.
Is this still happening, I’m have trans trouble and am thinking about the K66
I Own (2) L120’s and a 155C and all Three have Low Hours and no power to go up hills,… they roll a little on flat ground . One the Mower Clutch doesn’t work. You look behind the dealer and there are piles of these that people have traded in that they just auction off in the junk pile ,… Tractors that are just 2-4 years old and 250-450 hrs,… I have a 1988 B7200 Kubota and it never stops running and I LOVE IT ,.!!! Drives up Hills with no problem ,….. I think JOHN DEERE sucks ………………
Used LX277 bought at an Estate auction cuts great but now scalping the lawn found I have to replace the spindles and blade now the transmission whine wolnt go fwn or back was using roller while cutting grass now have to push mower and drag roller back to house from front yard
got john dud and trans mission went out its a ztrack 425 only 112 hours 2 and a half years old warnty was 24 months or 120 hours so im stuck looks like alot of people have got a bad deal from john deere
Im in the same fix. Go a 145. John deere. Wont pull up a hill. Shame in john deere. Wanted one all my life. First and last one let me down. Wont buy another one.
Please add me to the John Deere hydrostatic transmission lawsuit. I have a L130 that will not drive in reverse up a slight slope/rise. In forward, it loses power to where about 20 mins it will not drive forward up a slight slope. I bought it for I was told that it was what I needed and would go up relatively steep slopes. Mine I bought with a 48 inch cutting deck, I did not buy and seed spreader or other attachments that were being presented for sale as a labor savior.
In my last comment,the Craftsman mower I had lasted 20 years,now my brother in law has it,still going strong,,no transmission problems at all. Thank you…..
Hello,thought I was purchasing a reliable and trusting product,but having a transmission problem on the L series tractor is a shame. All it is used for is mowing,I cannot understand why the transmission would go out just cutting the grass? And the so called kit to fix the issue,the price is totally ridiculous,to fix something for that price,go out and buy a new, ( NOT JOHN DEERE ) lawn tractor.Not happy at all,being a car mechanic for 17 years,never thought I would have a transmission problem on a trusting name,and a very expensive investment for your household.John Deere needs to step up and take care of the customers who rely and trust their product.
Never again will I buy a John Deere,going back to Craftsman lawn tractors,they look like Craftsman have improved their product tremendously and may try them out.Craftsman was my first lawn tractor many many years ago,and lasted me 0 years,and my brother in law has it now,still going.kick my self in the butt for giving it to him and buying a John Deere,shame on me……FIX IT JOHN DEERE,STAND BY YOUR PRODUCT,,,,BAD BAD BAD BUSINESS….
I have 2 John Deere lawn tractors the oldest one is 155c AND it has been very good just a problem with keeping
the PTO hooked up.
Not sure I would buy another Deere…!!!!!!!!
It seems to be the same thing over &over. They got our money, and then it’s SCREW YOU. A person can’t justify putting a 1800 dollar transmission in a used mower. How’s this, John Deere , YOU SUCK
It’s ridiculous that a brand name like John Deere has built this defective product with a sealed transmission
I also spent the extra money for the John Deere name. I remember looking at a Craftsman right before I went to buy the John Deere lx 277. I looked my fiance and said let’s go with the John Deere, though it’s more money it will pay off in the long run. I can still go forward but its definitely not as strong is when it was new and it barely reverses. It would be wonderful if John Deere fixed this problem!
I bought mine used thinking I got the best mower ever but made about 5 rounds in my small lawn and had to push up a very small grade onto a flat yard and a pis sant past me up, just think that if the word gets out on Internet JOHN DEERE will lose big on sales
Sad… JD has always been the Cadillac of riding tractors. The L130 missed the mark, by a mile…
Seems to me a factory recall would be in order.
I purchased a John Deere LA175, 26 HP with a snow blower attachment from Home Depot in Moncton N.B. Canada. It worked quite well for a few years but began to loose power like the other comments I see here. I have tried to get it fixed but no success. The last JD tractor I had was a smaller 12 HP with a standard transmission. I had it 22 + years and thought I was trading up, but I was wrong. I am very dissapointed with this tractor and the John Deere name. To replace the hydrostatic transmission is from $1,500.00 to $2,000.00. This is half and more of the cost of the whole tractor and I am told probably won’t last. Come on John Deere, what are you going to do for all these people?
Is anything actually getting done on this? or is to big for any firm to actually touch? Been in the works for years and not the slightest bit of ground has been gained, actually the prices of K66 have been going up. Does JD have shares in tuff torq cause if so thell be loving selling a tractor for 3500$+ knowing the people gotta spend $3000 more on a tranny withen 400hrs.
Hi, I have a John Deere that was purchased by a close friend… I live in Massachusetts, he now lives in Florida, so asking if I can join this lawsuit although I myself did not buy the ride on mower.. It is a series L110 . Bought 6/ 03.
My issues are NOT the transmission , thusfar….. but the gas tank.. It sucked in on itself and now is split , from the videos I saw , it looks almost impossible to change out.. I also had the right front headlight catch fire! So my TWO issues are not the same, but think worthy of joining the lawsuit… can I join it and would I need to have my friend fill out the info, as I am not the one who bought it,, it was my early B. gift that year.
I bought this LA120 in 2007. I bought a 2-stage snow blower with it . Paid good money for it , now it sounds like I have to pay $1,800 for a replacement transmission. I am having the same problems these other people are having. I like my tractor and I keep it looking good.. It ticks me off that I got ripped off by a big company like John Deere!
Instead of jumping onto “bad John Deere ” transmission.
Why not address the fact that this same transmission is used in many other brands of tractor, not just John Deere. Those companies are also having challenges with this transmission.
That Tuff Tork K66 transmission is the problem.
That’s the company that you should be chasing.
I have replaced the transmission once and replaced the fluid in the new one and it still is losing power and will not pull the hills so I can mow my lawn. I just don’t know what else to do. I hope jd will have to make a serve replacement for this at a reasonable price.
I bought a new John Deere LA 150 with 26 HP engine and 54″ deck. At 101 hours it won’t pull a slick hog out of the mud! What a waste of money. My last mower was a Scott’s by John Deere. Small and would cut circles around this “bigger and better ” tractor. Has this lawsuit been pursued?
John Deere L118 purchased from a local Deere dealer. Will barely pull my 135 pounds around in forward, and in reverse forget it! Will never purchase another John Deere product unless they step up and make this right. It’s amazing that a company who has had such a good reputation for high quality in the past would EVER let their name become synonymous with the word “junk” in the name of profit, but sadly it’s gone the way of so many other brands who were once considered one of the best. Come on John Deere….you have too much money to rip hardworking Americans off with substandard products!
I really hope this works as I need my L120 to work in order to clear the snow off my driveway and to finish my lawn. I had to resort to a push mower to finish my yard and pay for snow removal
I bought a LA175 54 inch cut from Lowes and noticed mine losing power by the third year but did not really see it until I moved to larger place the next year that a large hill in the back. I made it the first year doing the hill but on the fourth is when it quit. Considering the cost of another transmission I have learned to start mowing from the highest point and then mow back and forth working my way down the yard. Unfortunately, a job that used to take an hour and a half takes me a day and a half.
Hopefully they recognize this problem and do something to fix it. Other wise, they will lose my business.
John Deere LA135
Same thing. Mine slowly looses power as I continue to mow. After 10 minutes it will not go up the slightest incline. I did not purchase mine at Lowes or Home Depot, I got it from the John Deere dealer.
I just replaced the drive belt and pulleys. Did not help!
Disappointed to know this many problems with the K 46 tufftorq transaxle. My LA 145 John Deere failed with 130 hours andTuff torq recommended to change oil and check filter when I found pitted drive gears. No more Deere for me…….
I have a John Deere L 130 and have the same problem it will not move in reverse on flat land , forget about trying to go up a hill . No more John Deere for me these are expensive mowers . I have had numerous problems with mine Electreic PTO went 2 times to the tune of $ 160. each installed myself . I think it’s time to look for a better brand . I wonder how Cub Cadet ‘s are ? if anyone knows please post .
my L130 has been doing the same thing , I thought it might ne the drive belt ? Transmission wow !!!
My John Deere 145 has 186 hours, last week i started to lose power. Checked and replaced drive belt. That did not help. Now I look on line and find all these other consumers having the same problem as myself. You would think John Deere would be ashamed of them selves for doing this to their loyal consumers. John Deere should stand up and fix this issue. Now I am stuck with a mower that does not run. What am I suppose to do with it.?
My LA145 has only 60 hours on it and will stop moving up a small hill after about 15 minutes of run time. I did the same troubleshooting– replaced the belt, etc. and it did not help. They want $1800 for the K66 transmission upgrade. Really a sad state of affairs. I am back to a push mower until I can afford a new tractor. I had broke my ankle and needed the tractor on the hills and using the push mower is unbearable at times.
I’ll just buy a cheaper MTD I can replace the hole mower every 4 to 5 Years for less than keeping this JD LA140 running. NO MORE JOHN DEERE”s !
My LA175 with k46 transmission failed at 221 hours. Tuff Torque sold me parts: Pump 31, Motor 38, Final pinion gear, bearing, reduction gear, brake disc/motor gear etc. etc. etc. and I did the repair. The K46 Transmission has failed again (400 hours). I’m not a happy camper. It’s a damned shame that a once trusted Brand “JOHN DEERE” has become just another rip off. They have let down the home do-it-yourselfer. I own and operate Boulder Fork Farm MO. and I bought a Kubota when I needed a new field tractor, rather than a DEERE, because of this lousy lawn tractor experience. I am spreading my opinion to other farmers when ever I get the chance.
I think the ones who sell the John Deere’s should stand up for guys and ladies who buy from them and help the working people get service needed from JD to fix the mowers, my hats off to this guy who is reaching out to help others like myself with a mower that cost big bucks and no longer pulls itself.
remove k46 transaxle ( took me 30 minutes ) remove cooling fan blade / pop open the black cap that is situated under it ( about the size of quarter) drain oil preferably overnight/ do not lose the magnet assembly/ refill with Lucas non slip oil ( i paid 13 bucks a bottle for 3 bottles) should spin the shaft with an enectric drill for a few minutes, top off the oil till its 3/4″ under the cap, made my tractor usuable !!
I thought I was buying a quality mower not just a quality name. Big motor, big machine, 48″ deck and crappy little transmission. I bought a rear bagger for mine and right away noticed the loss in power. The bagger sits in the garage now, unable to use it and the mower crawls along. I have a new transmission to put in it but that is a short term solution. Will be buying a Craftsman or Husqvarna next time. There is more to a mower than green and yellow paint.
Just spent over 660.? On my x300 about 7 mouths ago with just over 200 hrs now transaxle junk. Thought I was buying quality, nothing but junk, not putting any more money in a piece of junk. John Deere needs to step up and face the problem. Spindles worn out was also replace on mower deck, no place to service.
I’ve been fighting with this for several years and I had to go out and buy a 2nd hand Craftsman for $300.00 to do the job of my John Deere L120…The Craftsman is a more dependable mower even though it’s 9 years old…
My l120 is so under powered any hill is a challenge with only 140 hours
Same here with a LA150 with 54″ mower deck. Worked for a couple of years, but I always said to my wife, “this seems a bit underpowered for the size of engine” Now I know why? It gradually got worse and worse, and now I can use it at all because I am too heavy. Even slows right down now on level ground for my wife after about half hour. I have had it in several times for servicing and have had clutch and belts replaced and adjusted. They just shrug their shoulders. Problem is also that it works OK when cool, need to drive for half hour, which they won’t do. Will see what I can get for a trade in.
Very disappointing as I bought the John Deere and paid “deerely” for it for the reliability. I could have gotten a bigger, better Husquvarna for less money!! JD should do a recall on these!
I am so pissed at JD, I once was a firm believer in their product. My brother has had one for 20+ years and its beat to hell, but runs like a Deere should.. My dad has on, a mini tractor, and again 27 years, beat to hell, hardly an issue. However, my tractor is a different story.. all kinds of issues. and I have hardly used it. 3800.00 bucks for what? I could have had 2.5 other brands and less headache. Ok rant done, hopefully this law suit will go thru and get some resolution so at least I can use it sometime in the near future
My lt180 was bought from a John Deere dealer, 154 hrs and am having same problems as everyone else…Had many John Deeres over the years with no problems, the quality is really bad now….SAD!!!!!
Hello,
In 2003 I Purchased New An L-130 John Deere for $2499.00 , At 100 Hours I Removed and changed to Mobil 1 20W50 in the TransAxle , No One would Step -Up to Help . Not John Deere nor Tuff- Torq . My Machine Has always been Garaged, Serviced,and kept Clean . At 240 Hours the K-46 is Dying, Loss of Power both Foward and Reverse, and is getting louder . Now I either have to Up-Grade to K-66 for $1800.00 or Purchase a New Machine . Both Tuff-Torq and John Deere Knew they put out a Very Bad Product, They need to Help Us Customers out by Supplying a Low Cost Replacement TransAxle for there Mistake .
I bought a John Deere L130 from Home Depot, almost immediately it would stop climbing hills when its hot typically for me about 20 minutes into a yard cutting job. If I let it cool down I can climb hills and pull a cart loaded with heavy items up the same hill as long as its transmission is cold. After it heats up then I get pulsating grinding noise and no forward movement on the hill. Like others im not satisfied with the performance even the fix is very hard for the average person to do without hauling it into a service dealer which is very hard if you dont have a pickup truck. I think this mower was designed to be a money maker for the service department. Dont buy another John Deere product again!
i would like to upgrade, but 800 to 1100 is too much for me.. when it probably a simple fix and john Deere can do it.. even when my john Deere l120 was new
i had problem backing up … i am not happy with this l120
I also have a scags and the transmission still works ok it and its 25 years old
yes john Deere should make this right
155C. 186 hours. Transaxle shot. Unit always fully and carefully serviced. My yard has some modest/moderate hills. Have never seen any caution re: hill work. You won’t find anything in JD’s literature, either. Of course it won’t take ground engaging equipment which I know. But a couple of hills, come on! I wore out an MTD with a hydrostatic transmission mowing the same lawn (engine/transmission in good shape) mower deck and steering wore out. I am most disappointed. A perfectly good tractor with 25hp motor in excellent condition that is now worthless. It certainly isn’t worth putting $1,000 into to get fixed!
Have an LT155 with the same issues. I can barely back it up a small grade. Landed on this page because I lost all motion yesterday and had to push it up the hill to the garage. Used to have a 1969 110 that was solid as a rock (and probably still is). Would love to have that 69 back and drag the LT to the dump with it.
My k46 failed in my LA175 after 142 hours. I’m not a happy camper.
I’m sure that with the lower priced retail John Deere mower is that John Deere does not make them. MTD makes the non commercial lower priced mowers, or they did a few years ago. A John Deere dealer will tell you that is not correct, but they will not produce documented confirmation where your mower was built based on model and serial number.
Purchased new JD LA140 with 48″ deck. Forced to replace with new toff torq transaxle from Tuff torq directly.
(following this page)
Just found this Forum after opening my service manual and learned transmission is sealed. Same issue. Runs great at first, I have 1/3 acre, slightly sloped, now I thought it was a belt, wrong. Paid a lot for this unit for the John Deere “Quality”. Go figure. L118 – 42in cut- 22 H.P. Engine runs great, just had major tune up last year. A throw away mower like the “YUGO” was years ago. (a Korean car).
My John Deere L120 will not go up small hills after 15 minutes of operation.
I bought my LA 145 and thought it was the greatest thing since sliced bread. At first it ran good but after about 160 hrs I have had to replace two pulley spindles three deck belts. This week I changed the blades, oil filters new fresh gas thinking it would be a great mowing season. When I started to mow it started getting sluggish and eventually I had to push it back into the garage because it couldn’t pull itself across the yard. So I went to the JD dealer and bought a new drive belt hoping this would cute my problems. But guess what it helped for about 10 minutes and again I had to push this thing back into the garage. I got on Google to find out if anyone else has this problem and how to fix it. And wow! I guess I was not the only one that bought a lemon.
Oh and I almost forgot the engine runs great! Not so on the rest. : (
I bought a john deere mower thinking it was a high quality reliable product. What an awakening disappointment, shame on you John Deere
sounds like a broken record doesn’t it!, thought the same thing John Deere means quality, how could you go wrong I thought, we bought ours used and that my friends is probably way the seller was getting rid of it!!!! NO MORE JOHN DEERE’S for us, and they’re not cheap, I could see if I bought some ole cheap rider, You get what you pay for, but I payed 2 times the price for this used as I did for my new HUSKIE… Ours was a John Deere L130 Automatic 23 Hp V-Twin… what a piece of work.
John Deere LA 115 purchased from Home Depot, Raleigh, NC 2010…190 Hrs. This mower has no power unless you rock back and forth it will move just little. Any incline forget about it. The local John Deere 14 location dealer, Quality Equipment (yes that is there real name) has no response other then “bring it in…”I Don’t Think So!!!! I can not be convinced to deal with John Deere ever again. The John Deere Brand no longer means quality. My son’s (having heard the tractor story) recent purchase of a toy that broke quickly and in his disappointment, proclaimed ” It runs like a John Deere”. I’ve already talked two new neighbors out of the John Deere…offered mine for free and they could replace the transmission…no takers!
Its a shame that a once trusted american company Brand that has let itself be sooooooo cheapened. They have let down the home do-it-yourselfer…I just hope they are not doing the same to the farmers.
EJ Shearer
I also forgot mention my hours. 110! When this problem started on my la145. This is pathetic Replaced drive belt and fluid over winter and went out for first mow with my fingers crossed. Well im typing this as I wait for it to cool down so I can finish. No change Thanks for an inferior product John Deere
very disappointed with this L120 john deere, you think you are buying a great american product, and it turns out to be a total lemon, john deere make this right .
John deere droped off of a loading ramp into the back of my truck. the trans has never worked like it should ever since. they said it was from weare and tear. it never had a problem before this happend. they even broke my hood. it hit so hard.
I chose a Deere due to it’s reputation. I even bought from a dealer vs. a box store. This mower has been a huge disappointment. I have a 25 year old Craftsman rider that I use in a hilly area and it is a beast. John Deere should be ashamed to have put this product out.
My LX176 will no longer go up any incline at all which makes it impossible to mow the ditch banks at my home. I’m retired and can not afford a new lawn tractor. Guess i’ll have to use a push mower!!!!
I too bought the upgraded transmission and couldn’t be happier. It’s just too bad I had to do it.
NO longer going to throw money at this unit, will be switching to Kubota zero steer. Dis-appointed with John Deere as like everybody else thought that spending the extra to purchase would pay off, but it hasn’t.
Cheers
I went out and got a new craftsman tractor from sears when this started to do this. But now i have a good running john deere sitting in the shed. I still start it and even drive it a bit to keep it running. It is still a nice machine and I really wish and would like it to be fixed so i could use it however i dont have the funds really to go and get the kit but it sounds like if i did then it be one beast of a moweer. It has a twin cylinder 17hp kawasaki engine in it that is way quieter running engine and it will turn over right now without hesitation it is sad that an american company would knowingly make a faulty product that fails even the replacement
i forgot to put in my submission that this problem started after 160 hours of use; thats right 160!
i get a lot of exercise push-mowing the hills,
cheers
ron
I feel the same way you all do. JD is a trusted name and should be quality built. I can’t spend more money on something that will need major repairs in a few years from just mowing my yard.