Ariens Lawn Tractor Quality or Lack of...?

Ric said:

Lets face facts, Ariens isn't the only one making the garbage for Joe Public, Most all the big manufacturers are doing the same thing. The problem with Joe Public is he doesn't know one mower from another and there isn't the first sales Rep or salesman that's going to tell them or explain the differences.

Click to expand...

So would any one at HF , Wallys, HD or Lowes actually know what the difference was apart from the price ?

Can anyone tell me who makes a good lawn tractor for under $3000 today? By good I mean one that will not rust out or need a major repair in the first seven years. I would like to say ten years, but not in today's market.

Rivets said:

Can anyone tell me who makes a good lawn tractor for under $3000 today? By good I mean one that will not rust out or need a major repair in the first seven years. I would like to say ten years, but not in today's market.

Click to expand...

Lol a 20 year old cub with a new motor... honestly no clue.

Yes, your Cub, my Wheel Horse, a Bolens, Simplicity Broadmoore, but most of their chassises are a bit rusty. They were mules, just give them a couple of sugar cubes and they'll. Work for you all day long.

There isn't one & Rivets knows this quite well, but we do get asked it at least once a week.
I bought a Rover Rancher II 8/32 with up front slasher & spray pump for $ 400 in 2010.
It came with the 1964 original receipt for £ 320.
The owner has 10 acres which he worked as a market garden and there was 4 acres of bush behind which he also mowed with the 24" slasher to keep a fire break between the bush & his plot.
He was retiring into a self care resort and had sold out to a developer ( now 40 McMansions)
This mower used continiously, needed new bearings all round and a belt.
No one would buy it because it was a pull start mower.
53 years later we are mowing thick tussock grass with it and I weed spray the boundry fences.
Original hammertone paint still in good condition & the mower will most likley still be in working condition when they ban sales of petrol.

When new £ 320 was around 4 to 6 months wages,
So down here that equates to $ 20,000 to $ 35,000 which oddly enough is what it costs for a good robust commercial grade mower that will last 20 or more years.

I purchased a Husqvarna RZ5424 in 2007. I mowed my lawn and a couple of other yards for the first 3 years. I maintained it my way. I greased it more often the the manual said and changed the oil, filters and kept it clean. I then started using it to mow to make money. 18 to 20 hours a week. I still maintain it with grease after every mow. Oil, oil filter, and air filter changes before it is needed. My mower has around 1000 hours and besides the deck needing a $45.00 weld I have had no problems with it. I guess I just got lucky with my $2995.00 purchase. Or maybe not, because I see lots of them still working and being sold on craigslist. Could be that at the $3000.00 price range Husqvarna makes a decent rig. Or maybe not.

Well work backwards.
Dealer makes 1/3 profit so that mower was $ 2000 at the factory gate.
Rear tyres wholesale at $ 50 fronts at $ 25
Transmission wholesales at $ 400
Engine at $ 750
Battery $ 25
Belts $ 25 & 32
So that leaves AYP $ 643 to cover the cost of pressing out the body , frame panels & deck , then painting them all.
They also have to buy in the front pulley, tensioning pulleys x 2, for drive + 2 more for the deck. wiring loom, safety switches steering wheel , seat & about 40 bolts
And most likely a dozen more I can not think of right now, assuming things like springs are all made in house.
Then there are the costs of employment, wages , healthcare, gloves overalls, toilets , lunchrooms ,showers, first aid posts, heating , supervision & management staff.
When the mowers come off the line there is inspection , testing, mechanical rectification then crating storage and inventory control.

SO how much actual profit do you think there is left over ?

Then out of that profit there is credit to the dealers , down here 120 days, so AYP will have paid for all the inputs then not get paid for the product for 3 months after it leaves the factory which might be a full year after it was made & paid for.
So while interest rates are low at the moment, even low interest on $ 10,000,000 to $ 100,000,000 adds up and because mowers are seasonal, even the cost of having 1000 of them ( more like 50,000 ) sitting in undercover temperature controlled space is not exactly cheap. And of course there is R & D designing next years models, purchasing department chasing up suppliers for next season and finally warranty department.

The sad reality of it , AYP would be running at a real profit in the order $ 10 to $ 30 on a machine you paid $ 3000 for.

People who have never been involved in manufacturing just do not seem to be able to understand that factories are very expensive things to run.
I always believe the christmas myth is to blame because in the back of everyone's minds there is a space that no one pays for , staffed by elves who work for free , making stuff from nothing, which gets warehoused & delivered by santa.

For me, the tragedy is the actual cost of making a junk product is almost same as making top quality ones.
So the same plant that makes a mower that will just outlive warranty can also make a mower that will last for 50 years and the difference in manufacturing cost is in the order of 5% to 20% which is only in the order of 5% of the final retail price.
The real tragedy is if you bought the top shelf $ 6000 machine they would be looking at $ 2000 profit which would keep the factory running Americans employed and you would have a mower that will last 30 years even if you left it out in the weather so every one wins.
No one wins neither the manufacturer nor the consummer by driving prices down to unprofitable levels.
This is a bold faced lie that we have had shoved down our throats for 50 years to the benefit of nobody but the 1% of super wealthy who are in a position to manipulate situations to their own advantage,

Mac60 said:

The bolts are still tight on the frame metal that ripped off the frame you can see them on the picture, just crap metal and no backer plate to give it strength, not made well and also very dangerous.
Just garbage product and company

Mike

Click to expand...

Wow, thats pretty flimsey fiberglass then.

Makes me appreciate my 80's push Ariens even more now. How far they have fallen...