[Rob MacRuger]

I’m new to this forum and just purchsed my first Honda mower. Growing up we always had Craftsman mowers, and I had always wanted a honda with the hydrostatic drive. Well I finally pulled the trigger and could not be happier! I’m excited to meet some folks on here and contribute from time to time.

Aside from non-ethonal gas and an oil change after the first 5 hours of use, is there anything else that is recommended for longevity? View attachment 62796

Congradulations,
Don't be shy about changing the oil. There is no oil filter so IMO changing the oil more often will prolong the engine life. I have only used 10W-30 synthetic after the initial Honda break-in oil change.
Also keep a couple extra genuine Honda air filters on hand. Thats another thing that I highly suggest replacing more often than the manual indicates.
Since this can be a 40+ year lawn mower (depending how you take care of it) I would recommend purchasing the shop manual if you are mechanically inclined, $45 from Honda. I am amazed how affordable and available the replacement parts are for my 2003 HXA.
Also using Honda Spray Cleaner & Polish will keep the plastic deck looking new.
My 2 cents.
Enjoy!

 

[Rob MacRuger]

Thanks for the follow up. Sorry you’ve had this experience. So far, the rear wheels on my HRR haven’t locked up but I’m pretty much expecting them to do so next season. I think that when you pay top dollar for a lawnmower, it shouldn’t come with these problems. When it comes time to replace the HRR, I won’t be buying a Honda product.

That could be at least 20 years from now if you keep up with maintenance.

 

[Rob MacRuger]

After watching this

This is a design defect which Honda should have done a recall on. It’s not about keeping up with maintenance. I got 30 years out of my last mower. My cars are 15 years old and my motorcycle is 45 years old. I can handle maintenance just fine. It’s this sort of thing that pisses me off:

After watching the video I agree with you. I'd be pissed too!

And I have to revise my statement from 20 years to 30 years.

 

[Rob MacRuger]

Update:

After a 20 minute mow of the front yard, I shut the mower down. When I restarted, it snapped back again and the decompression mechanism had failed. I ended up just keeping it running for the rest of the time. Interestingly enough, this morning the cord pulled fine.

I am working with the dealer and Honda to discuss repair or replacement options. The dealer has been very understanding and easy to work with. The experience with this mower has been disappointing, but I am really glad I purchased from a local dealer and not a big box.

I have wanted one of these mowers since I was a kid cutting grass for $10 a yard. I was finally in a place where I could afford one, and very excited. Oh well, guess that is life sometimes…

I commend you on having really good attitude about this.

This should be a lesson for not buying from a big box store. I recently purchased a new HRX217VKAA from a local Honda dealer and it was actually $100 less than at HD.

Being an old 2 stroke dirt bike rider I'm still trying to wrap my head around a compression release in a 4 stroke engine. I thought that was the exhaust valve function? Always learning something new.
Honda went from an overhead cam engine to a pushrod design since I bought one in 2003. Seems like they went backwards.

 

[Rob MacRuger]

The older design Honda engines (GX) are overhead valve (OHV) with pushrods. The newer design engines (GC & GS) are overhead cam (OHC) with a timing belt. I have both, but my GX engines have a LOT of hours on them with no issues, other than a ring job on the 1983 GXV120.

It basically short-strokes the exhaust valve.
...

Thank you sir, I actually looked that up last night. A spring return device to slightly open the exhaust valve when starting.
The shop manual I have has a section on it, page 10-15.

Looks like the new GCV200 in my K6 VKAA is OHV pushrod. Maybe older is better?

The first few times I started my new mower I was thinking it was way to hard to pull start. Thankfully it now takes much less effort. I just brushed this off.

 

[Rob MacRuger]

Update: A brand new mower is sitting in my garage. Fingers crossed, I’ll probably mow later this week.

I'm glad Honda stepped up to the plate for you!