Z225 Transmission

modenatr said:

Hi all,
I am new to this forum. I have a problem with the Z225 left side transmission. It has 160hrs. Last couple months, it was weak and recently stopped working. Lawn mower repair places didnt want to check it and said I have to take it to JD place. After taking the mower to JD, they said transmission needs to be replaced and quoted me $1300 including labor. This is half price of the new mower. On the maintenance manual, it is saying it is a sealed component and no maintenance required. So my questions are;

1. Once the transmission broke, does everybody replace the mower?
2. If i find another Z225, can i replace the transmission with mine? I have never done it before, but I believe I can if there is no special tool required?
3. If I end up having to buy new mower, what would you recommend for $2500-$3000 budget?

Thank you very much for your help.

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Boobala said:

I don't know if these work on YOUR machine , but just to give you an idea of whats out there ... I know
exactly how you feel because I have 2 machines down right now that I'm rebuilding ..these links are for items
on (surpluscenter.com) or E-bay ...as I said just giving you an idea and letting you know there is no way you need a new machine !!

https://www.surpluscenter.com/shop.axd/Search?keywords=transaxles

I bought my transaxle from Surplus Center 3 years ago for my 46 inch MURRAY still works like new

http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/272247203222?lpid=82&chn=ps&ul_noapp=true

http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/291875677467?lpid=82&chn=ps&ul_noapp=true

I would assume you can find units for your machine at similar prices if you wanted to buy and just replace them yourself... Best of luck ...Boobala

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bertsmobile1 said:

The Z 225 is a well built ZTR but it is the verey bottom end of the JD line up.
I love them, they are a breeze to repair & service but being the bottom end, the parts fitted are bottom end ( for JD which could be top end for others ).
The drives are repairable but they are a PIA to do and take a lot of time.
Time = money to a dealer or repairer so expensive to get done but economical to do yourself.

JD does not encourage their dealers to repair them and rather to point you to a bigger more robust mower.
A lot of part time mowing contractors down here run Z 225 because they are small and well suited to smaller blocks and fit on small trailers towed behind small vehicles.

If it is not it up to what you are using it fore another bottom end mower will not serve you any better and you really need to go up the lines a bit.

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mjb8fj said:

Bert is 100% right on that, the dealerships will try and steer you to a new model, and "parts aren't available for the transmission" or they also just want to swap parts and not fix the transmissions. (coming from inside info)

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bertsmobile1 said:

Deer do not make the trannys and do not carry parts for them, but Hydrogear will sell direct to the public and they are really helpful ( well they were to me anyway ).
Now these are made in clean rooms, no dust so if you want to work on yours find some where clean & dust free.
I have an old house above my workshop and I do gearboxes in the bathroom, in the bath tub after spraying down all the walls with water.
A little extreme but I have to give warranty on my work so saving the customer $ 300 on a new box then having to spent that out of my own pocket won't pay the bills.
Ignore the you tube videos where they pull then down on a dusty floor in a dusty shop, yes they did work just after being "fixed" but what they don't show is they crap out 18 months latter because of dirt & dust.
The housings have to be clean enough to feed a new born baby off before you split them.

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Boobala said:

AWWW C'mon Bert you're " pullin our chains " we know you don't have water " Down-Under " ( LOL ) ..:laughing:

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