today I went to one of the local Deere dealers. I looked at the 540m as well as the 535m. Both seem like very solid machines. The salesman I spoke to seemed like he knew more about the Ag side of the business and less about the lawnmowers, but he was incredibly helpful. Turns out, I was actually wrong, the Deere's have Tuff Torque hydros whereas the Cubs I've been looking at have the HydroGear 2800's. I've tried researching Tuff Torque and haven't seen much. Are they any good?
I also tried to see a Cub dealer but they were completely sold out of the ZT2's in every size. (much smaller dealer). They did have a ZT1 and I liked it a lot. However I'm liking the beefier zt2 much more. the bigger tires & hydro's are what's doing it for me, whether I really need them or not.
The salesman at the Deere dealer said both the 535 & 540 came with the Kawasaki engine. However when I researched it myself the 535m says it comes with a "M44 Cyclonic" which to me sounds like a Briggs. I know Kawasaki is definitely preferred over everything, BUT, would it be worth the $500 jump in price? 535m is listed for $3899 & the 540m is listed for $4399. He also stated that I could expect the same longevity out of a 3 series Z as I could a 5 series with the beefier hydros. Am I right to think that mowing about one acre once a week, I would get plenty of life out of either one if maintained well?