Recent content by volvofan94

Last I checked, Home Depot, near my location, still had some Honda lawn mowers available for sale. You can check Honda Authorized small engine retailer shops around your city, but with Honda no longer making gas push mowers, new ones from stores may be getting a bit harder to find. Facebook...

I had a similar problem on my HR215. I replaced the governor assembly inside the engine with a known good unit then replaced the governor control rod seals and the control rod itself while the engine was apart. You may not need to replace the seals and control rod, but I did because the engine...

I've been contemplating the thought of replacing or converting my HR215HXA with a HR215HMA because the HMA is a cooler mower to me with the electric start. lol. Depending on your location and interest in moving forward, maybe we could work something out. PM if interested.

eBay is a good place to start your search for hard-to-find lawn mower items. I've had good luck there. Also, local mower shops that have been in business for years is another good option to explore. I found a rare part for my HR215 HXA at a local mower shop that was sitting on their shelf I'm...

To close out this thread, I was able to get the mower’s self propel system working again. I purchased a new transmission then the shop manual from Honda. Even though the transmission is OEM new, it had to go through a short bench bleeding procedure before installation in the mower. Needless...

Quick update to the thread... I ended up purchasing a new OEM Honda transmission (part number above) and installed it today. There’s improvement with how the rear wheels spin, but on the grass or going uphill, the mower continues to act like a push mower, there‘s no effort given by the self...

I would consider doing a compression test or cylinder leak down test before pulling the engine apart to confirm the loss of compression. Personally, I haven't read or heard of a timing belt breaking on a Honda OHC engine yet, but I suppose it could happen. With the valve cover off, and...

Last evening I looked at the mower, but no luck. In a final attempt effort I will remove the transmission then open it up to see if I can find anything wrong. I know there’s no user serviceable parts inside. If the transmission is toast at least I can learn how it works. lol. Then I’ll buy a...

Thanks Mechanic Mark! Will give that procedure a try tomorrow then report back. Since the mower doesn’t have reverse, I’ll try each gear with the engine speed on rabbit or full speed then observe the result on the wheels. Is there a drain or breather opening which needs to be open to fully...

Yup, the engine is at full throttle. I don’t know the RPMs it’s running at off hand because the PO took the governor arm off. I reinstalled it according to a Honda guide I found online during the rebuild. The blades engage with minimal RPM drop. Both rear wheels were disassembled, greased then...

Hi All, I’m troubleshooting a problem with my project Honda HRX217HZAA lawn mower’s hydrostatic transmission. After completing the engine rebuild and getting it running, I tested all systems: blade clutch and transmission. The blade clutch works well, but when I engage the self propel the...

To close out the thread, I got the engine running last week and ended up replacing the entire cylinder assembly as suggested, but went further to replace the piston and rings too. The crankshaft was within spec as was the connecting rod and wrist pin. Started the engine and no smoke!

Quick update: Did the leak down test during the week, and the engine passed. Also, I took the piston out, placed carb cleaner in top of the cylinder to check for leaks on the valves and cylinder head casting, no leaks were found. Lastly, I got ahold of an abbreviated shop manual for the...

Sorry for the confusion on the model number, I corrected my mistake. Tonight I'll do a leak down test on it to see if there's an issue with the cylinder block. If there is, then it's time for a replacement.

Hi All, I'm trying to restore a Honda HRX217K5HZAA (the electric start model) I recently purchased used for a great price. However, is the engine is torn apart, in a tote, and previous owner said it smoked while running. "Some assembly required" is the theme for this project, but it's great...