John Deere Z655

The John Deere Z655 zero turn lawn mower is the biggest of the 2 mowers in the Z600 range from JD, the other mower being the John Deere Z645. The JD Z 655 is actually powered by the same 27 hp engine as it’s little brother. This is an air cooled,twin cylinder engine that has a full pressure lubrication system that has a 1.7 liter oil capacity. The top speed of this machines is also the same as it’s little brother, the JD Z645,  coming in at 14.5 kph (9 mph). Having many of the same attributes, both of these machines may be easily confused. However there is one major difference between the 2.

The John Deere Z655 has a bigger mower deck. The cutting width of the mower deck on the JD Z655 comes in at 54 inches. This mower deck is constructed from very strong 9 gauge steel and is belt driven. The total weight of the machine, with mower deck attached comes to 340 kg (750 lbs). It has a wheelbase of 1.25 m (49 inches) and a length of 1.93 m (76 inches).

The wheels on the John Deere Z655 are fairly large, which makes for a smooth ride as well as it being very unlikely that you will leave thread marks, even if the ground happens to be very soft. The rear wheels each measure 23×10.5-12 (23 inch diameter, 10.5 inch width, 12 inch rim diameter), while the front wheels each measure 13×6.5-6 (13 inch diameter, 6.5 inch width, 6 inch rim diameter). Even if you happen to hit a large obstacle while operating the JD Z655, it’s very unlikely to buckle or break due to the fact that the frame is constructed from heavy duty welded steel. If you own a Z 655, then please feel free to leave a review of it below to let others know what they should expect if they buy one.

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13 Reviews of the “John Deere Z655”

  1. Steven says:

    got hold over, 2 hrs on it used it 4 years now has 172 hrs only thing went bad was right steering axel went out at 4 hr dealer came and got it fixed it no problem since then steve

    Year of Manufacture: 2017
    Pros: i will buy another one no complants

  2. Dave says:

    Good until a belt comes off.

    Year of Manufacture: 2014
    Pros: Good cutting deck. Handles nice. Comfortable and gets over the ground quickly.
    Cons: Servicing and repairing it. A deal buster at this point.
    I would advise AGAINST purchasing this machine if you plan to service it yourself. For example: the drive belt to the wheel drive pumps came off while mowing (without any forwarning) and there is NO WAY that I can tell to get the thing back on without removing the entire deck (which is another hassle). There is also no way to jack the mower up to place on blocks so I can see and get my hands underneath to fix the thing. WHEN this happens to one while mowing, the repair may need to happen where the mower stops. Perhaps John Deere wanted to sell a machine that looks, mows and drives nice but, hey, wants your money to work on them for you too.

    I will talk to their service dept but they will give me a JD-biased answer so likely will then end up selling the thing and look for a more accessible machine. Ridiculous! ALWAYS LOOK AT COMPONENT ACCESSIBILITY WHEN CONSIDERING ANY MOWER.

    Attachments: Bagging system.
    Modifications: None

    • Rocknral says:

      If you can’t change the drive belt in 5 min you aint holding your mouth right. Ive done it on my z655 a couple of times and you dont even need tools.
      The mower can be jacke via Muffler guard, and supported on the wheel motors with stands if you need to.
      The main deck belt is more difficult and you will need tools.
      My briggs 27hp got 1500hrs and still going great. Uses a cup of oil between changes at 50hrs.
      The frame though has rust underneath box section on curved section just begore it meets the left hand castor housing. So look out for that. This is definitely a weak point as the steel is stretched in manufacture.
      Anything near 1000 hrs will need new spindle bearings, and probable oil leaks on pto shaft and governor shaft but eazy fix.

      Year of Manufacture: 2013

  3. Mark Dye says:

    Engine no good !!!

    Year of Manufacture: 0
    Pros: Z655 2013 model bought at Scruggs lawn & garden Tupelo Ms. The mower sits good with the high back seat. From the first day the 27hp Briggs & Stratton would not start without spinning the engine over and over. So much so that I was afraid I was going to burn the starter out of it. Then on season three I was mowing and the engine backfired and smoked for about a min. Then it would hardly mow so I checked everything oil,plugs,gas and finally compression. The right side had 150psi and left side had 50psi. I was afraid of the Briggs when I bought mower but decided that if John Deere was willing to put their name on it that it must be good. Wrong !!! What a piece of crap 2 1/2 mowing seasons on a motor that never was good to start with. Let this be a warning to anyone that is thinking just because it says Deere on it that all is good !! Never again !! By the way I spent $1980.00 on it. Got a Honda GXV630 and I could not be more pleased. It’s a crying shame John Deere would ever put their name on a Briggs & Stratton !!!
    Cons: Good mower except the engine !!! Briggs & Stratton what a piece of
    S##T !!!!!!!!

  4. cliff pigg says:

    glad i purchased machine

    Year of Manufacture: 2011
    Pros: great looks,easy to clean,great ride,deck drive belt has easy access,plenty of power,easy to adj. seat and control handles to fit rider,leaves grass looking great(with sharp blades),i mow around 3 acres(only at home)-when i start to mow,in no time it seems like i have finished-takes me longer to use weedeater than to mow-use to be other way around
    Cons: fuel tank not large enough,slight issue with deck drive belt (aliegment issue)
    Attachments: trailer hitch
    Modifications: none

  5. Lee says:

    We use this machine to trim on our golf course. It is very quick and does a nice job but it can be dangerous in downhill mowing especially around ponds.

    Year of Manufacture: 2011
    Pros: Very quick and it does a nice job of mowing
    Cons: On hills it runs away out of control and is very dangerous
    Attachments: none
    Modifications: none

  6. Leon Moore says:

    I thought that I would upgrade and cut down on my mowing time.the 265 that I had was a much better machine. made the mistake that this was an upgrade.so far no resolution on this lawn mower.

    Year of Manufacture: 2012
    Pros: easy to handle,fast,nice cut
    Cons: hydrolic leaks from cap-dealer replaced cap,pump but it still leaks.they along with dealer rep are stumped. leaves burn marks on spots of grass-dealer replaced muffler and the three guards, it is still burning the grass.dealer still has the machine.they have had the machine longer than I have had it.very disappointed.thought that I would upgrade from the 1990 265 JD that I had with no problems with what a mistake.
    Attachments: trailer hitch, motor bumper guard,grass stripper-which is a waste of money not as good as a roller stripper

    • Leon moore says:

      Dealer had it for 17 months and couldn’t fix.No customer service cause I paid cash ( they already had my money)

      Year of Manufacture: 2011
      Cons: Update stuck with a r&d p.o.s. Couldn’t find a service dealer who could fix the issues now I am stuck with a $6000 piece of equipment that won’t turn or steer properly,still burning the grass now I have to pull motor cause there’s a major oil leak please please please don’t pay for a name

  7. L. AD says:

    Limited to this point, 5/24/2012, but can say so far, AWESOME. Now if it would only rain. Have a great day.

    Year of Manufacture: 2012
    Pros: 5/24/2012 Fast….. I bought my JD Z655 from Larson JD in Spfld, MO. three months ago. This is my 6th major purchase from them in the last 9 years. All personal use for me or my children, no commerical use. Super satisfaction. This mower is doing me a terrify job. It was a little difficult for me to adjust to the steering but now enjoy the benefits of zero turn and the pleasure of using this machine, it is a mowers dream. It has cut my mowing time from about 3 hours to 2 hours or less. At my age I have a small problem of getting on and off the machine. I had my neighbor, a welder, make me a support to use. It is make of a piece of pipe, 24 in long x 1 1/2 inch. He welded a base on the pipe and we mounted / bolted it to the left front of the mower, near the front tire but on the foot rest platform. This has proven to be valuable addition for me, giving me stabilization as I mount or exit the machine, of course we painted it JD green and it looks like a factory item. I do have a slight problem as I mow a portion of my yard which has a steep bank to it, the mower tends to want to pull away, understandably. I still have my JD 277 – 48 inch cut and I have better success using it in this area of my lawn. Great mower so far. However, as someone mentioned, hard to view the gas gauge and it seems to be a little gas hog or at least to me. I also think the arm rest could be a little longer. Yes, at this point I am pleased. I went to the dealership to buy a smaller unit but was encouraged by the salesman to consider the Z655. I think he gave me good advice. Thank you. Lad

    Cons: See remarks in PRO section. I marked the safety rating a 3.5 because I found it difficult for me to mount and exit until I added my support post. With that now in place, I would give the safety rating a 5. Overall, very pleased at this point.
    Attachments: 54 inch deck plus my personal made attachment, see remarks in PRO section.
    Modifications: Yes, the creation and installation of a pipe to make entering and exiting the machine easier and safer, very pleased with this. See remarks in the PRO section.

  8. William "Charlie" Carpenter says:

    I’ve only had this machine for a few months but have found it to be an exceptional piece of equipment. I traded in an 11 year old LX277 and received half of what I paid for it new, plus there was a $300.00 incentive. Having never driven a zero-turn before it is quite a new experience but you’d be suprised how quickly you pick it up. I’ve got 1 1/2 acres to mow of relatively flat property, there are some small hills and it cruises around great. I did get the mulching kit and I’m amazed at how well it does, the clippings just disappear into the lawn. I would highly recommend this machine for anyone with a large lawn, and they want to do it quickly, and have some fun while their at it. Love it, A +++ and +

    Year of Manufacture: 2012
    Pros: Lots of Power
    Great Seating
    Smooth Cut
    Nice Mulching kit
    Fast
    Cons: Gas Gauge is not too easily visable
    Modifications: Mulch Kit

  9. Brian says:

    Excellent. It did have a slight leak at the fitting on the pump as delivered. Dealership picked up and returned within 24 hrs. That is why you don’t buy stuff at big box stores!!
    I didn’t get my lawn rolled before it dried out. However, I was still able to shave about 1hr. off my mow time. I expect after I regrade my yard, it will take even less time as faster speeds will be allowed.
    Multiple safety redundancies built in. Almost too many, but I am sure there is one for every lawsuit they have been through (or would expect).
    Don’t use the wash port!! I have heard this from John Deere and Cub dealers. Think about it for a minute. You’re gonna put cold water on/in a hot bearing. The then moisture will sit there till it cooks out the next time you use it. Stop being lazy and scrap the deck after a mow or two with a wooden spatula. Not to mention, its gonna leave a helluva mess.

    Year of Manufacture: 2011
    Pros: Fast, Quiet, Efficient. Clean and even cut despite slightly bumpy terrain/lawn. Large tires definitely help distribute the weight of the machine and smooth the ride if the lawn has not been rolled. Separate pump and wheel motors operate smoother than the integrated units. Sean is right. Steer clear of the Hydro-Gear EZT units. They are sealed for life but have been prone to leaks. Once they drip dry, they are toast. Supposedly fixed, there have been too many write ups on them. I would have gone with the Z465 but I am even leery of the ZT-2800 (serviceable with one filter per unit). From 2010 to 2011 J.D. switched from the Kanzaki-Dup and Parker Wheel motors to the ZT-2800 in the Z400 series zero turns.
    Cons: Understandably, since this is a new model, not a lot of attachments are available yet. Cannot see fuel level through sight window when operating. J.D. should have either installed a cap with a gauge or located the sight window in a location visible while operating the equipment.
    Attachments: None
    Modifications: None Yet. I run a Purolator Pure One oil filter. The larger filter increases the oil capacity closer to about two quarts. I use 10w-40 Mobil One synthetic high mileage oil. It has higher levels of zinc and should protect the flat tappet cam shaft better. Any high mileage oil or oil for older cars should help in this department.

  10. Sean says:

    was delivered with bad carberator and ran poorly but dealer pick right back up and delivered it 3 days later and it runs great. Needs seat belt as it is fast enough to bounce you off of seat enough to causes mower to start shuting down. Just an FYI skip any mower that has Hydro-Gear EZT drive train as they are junk and will go out aroun 130 hours. ZT2800 or above is ok. to be simple if it doesn’t have an external hydraulic reserve skip it.

    Year of Manufacture: 2011
    Pros: Very fast, Nice cut, Lots of power, 4 year warrenty,Solid machine. Old mower was Cub Cadet what a POS it would take me 2-2.25 hours to cut grass, Now JD Z655 takes 62 minutes and they both had 54″ deck. Hope to get 15+ years off of Z655.
    Cons: needs seat belt
    Attachments: Limited Edition version wich has bumpper,foot ext, and hitch.

  11. Tyler Fullerton says:

    I traded a 2009 Z445 48″ deck for this Z655 w/54HC deck and I think it is a great product. I like the engine being more powerful and more quiet at the same time. And am pretty happy with the size of the machine being 6’4″ it feels like it fits me better than the Z445

    Year of Manufacture: 2011
    Pros: Larger more comfortable seat
    Larger overall body size- not so cramped for larger operator
    Plenty of power
    54HC deck seems to be very well build/heavy gauge steel and plenty of reinforcements
    Hydraulic pumps for motion seem to operate smoother than my old model
    Engine is quieter than old model
    Cons: No bagger option for this model
    Modifications: Headlight kit
    Special edition kit

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