Last summer I bought an MTD push B16 model with a Briggs 675 engine. I have a small yard that takes less than an hour to mow. A year later, the Briggs engine fails. But wait, I have a 2 year MTD warranty. It goes into the shop but MTD won't repair it, claiming owner misuse! What BS!, I have always maintained and babied my mower enginers. I have owned Toro mowers for over 30 years and have never had engine issues. I bought MTD for the price but now regret it. The guys at the repair shop tell me MTD uses cheaper versions of the Briggs 675 engine which are failing for piston ring and valve issues. But they continue to claim owner abuse on these types of warranty issues. Hello Toro, I'm back in your camp again. Sorry I strayed. I won't ever deal with a company again that will not honor their warranty and stand behing their product. Anyone else seeing this type of nonsense?
Walk behind MTD doesn't stand behind their warranty
- Thread starter TomH
- Start date
Hi Tom,
If I were you I would get a new servicing dealer. The reason I say this is because first, Mtd does not cover the warranty for Briggs engines that it puts on their mowers. This engine failure should have been put through Briggs not MTD. Mtd only covers mower parts not engine and if your dealer had contacted Mtd which I doubt they actually did they would have been informed of that fact. Second, what caused the failure, you never said what your dealer found was the actual manufacturers defect in material or workmanship that would qualify this failure as a warranty. Third, if you buy a Toro and it has a Briggs engine or any other brand engine, Toro will not warranty that engine either, only the engine manufacturer does that. I have been a servicing dealer for 35 years and if its mechanical it can fail, I don,t care who makes it. I really feel you were let down by your dealer not MTD or Briggs.
If I were you I would get a new servicing dealer. The reason I say this is because first, Mtd does not cover the warranty for Briggs engines that it puts on their mowers. This engine failure should have been put through Briggs not MTD. Mtd only covers mower parts not engine and if your dealer had contacted Mtd which I doubt they actually did they would have been informed of that fact. Second, what caused the failure, you never said what your dealer found was the actual manufacturers defect in material or workmanship that would qualify this failure as a warranty. Third, if you buy a Toro and it has a Briggs engine or any other brand engine, Toro will not warranty that engine either, only the engine manufacturer does that. I have been a servicing dealer for 35 years and if its mechanical it can fail, I don,t care who makes it. I really feel you were let down by your dealer not MTD or Briggs.
Saving money at purchase time can be costly.
MTD makes the Craftsman line now, probably the lower end.
Owner neglect is hard to prove/disprove..but this should not be....reform...again....
Sue the bastards...
Does your state have any small claims...and how about newspaper publicity ??
MTD = value, but with risk.
This is the correct answer.
Communications is the problem.
But, IMO, the store or dealer should accept the responsibility....but/and this the same with automotive tires....and should be extended to batteries....and the communications must be better !!! for ALL parties...
Your right earthworm communications is the problem, because people today think that a warranty means that if anything goes wrong with my machine in the warranty period it should be paid for by someone else and not them ,even if its their fault. Its called the Big Box store mentality,where no matter what, its covered.
If customers would actually read their warranty they would see that it is not a guarantee, its a warranty against defects. And as far as not being able to tell owner neglect, I bet I can give you more examples on his mower of neglect then actual defects in material or workmanship.
Just the fact that he doesn't post what was actually wrong with the mower is irresponsible. But he sure is quick with the allegations of them not giving him what he wants no matter what. Cause thats what its all about isn't it, getting your way and not being responsible.
If customers would actually read their warranty they would see that it is not a guarantee, its a warranty against defects. And as far as not being able to tell owner neglect, I bet I can give you more examples on his mower of neglect then actual defects in material or workmanship.
Just the fact that he doesn't post what was actually wrong with the mower is irresponsible. But he sure is quick with the allegations of them not giving him what he wants no matter what. Cause thats what its all about isn't it, getting your way and not being responsible.
As a fellow service center people need to start reading there owners manuals especially the section of exclusions or what is not covered. it can be a real eye opener to what is not covered under manufacturer warranties.
examples include bad fuel, water in fuel, batteries after 30 days, seats, blades, belts, air filters, fuel filters, starter pulleys, starter ropes, trimmer heads on certain brands of trimmers. engine damage caused by poor mower oem designs.( mtd muffler too close to kohler courage anti-afterfire solenoid on carb causing heat damage) water damage to mower components. excessive weight towing. (ie hitch ball mounted to tow hitch). bent steering arms on mtd, any dirt, debris, or corrosion inside of carbs. bent crankshafts, bent spindle shafts, damaged blade mounts, mouse nest in engine causing overheating, broken fan blades on hydro transmissions, overheated transmissions due to grass buildup or excessive towing. forcing the shifter into gear on mtd transmission that bends the shift fork causing transmission to sieze.
forgot to add no oil starts when new, low oil failure, dirt contamination due to dirty air filter causing dirt ingestion leading to ring failure. And yes the service centers can tell how the engine failed including if you added oil after the engine siezed.
examples include bad fuel, water in fuel, batteries after 30 days, seats, blades, belts, air filters, fuel filters, starter pulleys, starter ropes, trimmer heads on certain brands of trimmers. engine damage caused by poor mower oem designs.( mtd muffler too close to kohler courage anti-afterfire solenoid on carb causing heat damage) water damage to mower components. excessive weight towing. (ie hitch ball mounted to tow hitch). bent steering arms on mtd, any dirt, debris, or corrosion inside of carbs. bent crankshafts, bent spindle shafts, damaged blade mounts, mouse nest in engine causing overheating, broken fan blades on hydro transmissions, overheated transmissions due to grass buildup or excessive towing. forcing the shifter into gear on mtd transmission that bends the shift fork causing transmission to sieze.
forgot to add no oil starts when new, low oil failure, dirt contamination due to dirty air filter causing dirt ingestion leading to ring failure. And yes the service centers can tell how the engine failed including if you added oil after the engine siezed.
I third those dealer responses, the only time I have seen equipment mfg cover every thing was back in the late 80's when snapper offered a 2 year no fault warranty on thier units and they stopped it after a year, they lost thier shirt on that deal. Replaced a lot of bent cranks under warranty for those units. Plus as a dealer I got screwed due to what they paid me versus what the customer would have paid. That is the problem with Sear units unless they have changed in the last few years, they cover all of the unit under warranty and engine mfg will not cover them, so if sears turns you down that's it no recourse. I also believe that if you were to try to take MTD to court it wouldn't hold up as they are not responsible for any warranty on the engine and would say that Briggs was never consulted regarding warranty on the engine.
Also the dealer for this person should have submitted a disputed warranty for this customer at least if the customer had a complaint. Can't remember how many of those I submitted over the years.
Also the dealer for this person should have submitted a disputed warranty for this customer at least if the customer had a complaint. Can't remember how many of those I submitted over the years.
Dangeroustoys56
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I bot a brand new MTD ( white)12HP briggs tractor back in '92 - i never once needed to do anything with the warranty, because it didnt break on me until after the 3rd/4th year ( and a mandrel wore out) - i constantly maintained it, after its first mowing, i changed the oil ( i call it a break in oil), then changed it before parking it for the winter. 19 years later its still running/mowing - this past summer i did a going thru on it, all new belts ( OEM belts were worn out), checked it all over - deck doesnt even have any rust holes.
You might want to reconsider about toro - their lower grade mowers from Home Depot are built by MTD :
Toro (company) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
You might want to reconsider about toro - their lower grade mowers from Home Depot are built by MTD :
Toro (company) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
lakeviewpe
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I do not sell MTD products, but I am a servicing dealer. As a dealer warranties are often misunderstood, and in my shop we still take a deposit on a machine if it comes in for repairs under warranty. They will get the deposit back if the repair is covered under warranty. People often call the cust service number and the people they call tell them something is covered under warranty, however they can not diagnose over the phone.
Warranties are decided by the TECHNICIAN. There are signs for most failures that the technician can see to determine why the failure happened. Once the why is determined, then they will know if it is a warranty issue.
As far as this issue goes, James is correct, this would be under Briggs and Stratton repair, and if they can not prove abuse or neglect it should be covered under warranty. If the engine failed due to lack of lubrication because the oil was not checked or got too low, that will not be covered and there are signs of that. If the mower cosmetically looks like it has been to Iraq and back, and it looks like it hasn't been taken care of, than it may be the dealer is under the impression it is being used commercially.
I see alot of stuff come in my door and look for the signs so that I can do the right thing. If I know something should not be covered under warranty and you didn't buy the mower from me, I will not go out of my way to do a warranty. If I am not sure if it should be a warranty, I get with the manufacturer and we make a decision. If I know it is a warranty, then I will do the work under warranty. If something should not be covered under warranty, but the manufacturer is willing to work with the customer, we can sometimes get the parts covered under warranty and the customer pays the labor. Warranty is always a touchy subject, because nobody wants to take the blame. All I know is, it isn't my fault. :biggrin:
Warranties are decided by the TECHNICIAN. There are signs for most failures that the technician can see to determine why the failure happened. Once the why is determined, then they will know if it is a warranty issue.
As far as this issue goes, James is correct, this would be under Briggs and Stratton repair, and if they can not prove abuse or neglect it should be covered under warranty. If the engine failed due to lack of lubrication because the oil was not checked or got too low, that will not be covered and there are signs of that. If the mower cosmetically looks like it has been to Iraq and back, and it looks like it hasn't been taken care of, than it may be the dealer is under the impression it is being used commercially.
I see alot of stuff come in my door and look for the signs so that I can do the right thing. If I know something should not be covered under warranty and you didn't buy the mower from me, I will not go out of my way to do a warranty. If I am not sure if it should be a warranty, I get with the manufacturer and we make a decision. If I know it is a warranty, then I will do the work under warranty. If something should not be covered under warranty, but the manufacturer is willing to work with the customer, we can sometimes get the parts covered under warranty and the customer pays the labor. Warranty is always a touchy subject, because nobody wants to take the blame. All I know is, it isn't my fault. :biggrin: