John Deere LX279
The John Deere LX279 lawnmower is the upgraded version of the John Deere LX277 lawnmower, although, it’s not quite as big as the John Deere LX288. The JD LX279 enjoyed a production run that lasted 4 years from 1999 when it first started rolling off the production line in Horicon, Wisconsin until manufacture of this model ceased in 2003. The machine is built on a 4X2 2WD chassis that houses a Kawasaki FH500V engine that has a displacement of 0.493 liters. This 2 cylinder engine is air cooled and has a total power output to the wheels and blade of 17 hp.
Thanks to it’s Tuff Torq transmission that is found in numerous other JD lawnmowers, the John Deere LX279 is an automatic that requires no gear changing at all. Instead it uses special Twin Touch pedals, that the operator can use to travel forwards or backwards. The capacity of the fuel tank on the JD LX279 lawnmower is 11.4 liters (3 US gallons) which will give the operator many hours of usage before he needs to refill it.
Wet disc brakes are used to control the speed of the John Deere LX279 lawn mower, which offer fantastic stopping abilities. The total weight of this machine comes to 222 kg (490 lbs). Most people are more than happy with the JD LX279 as their lawnmower. It certainly is not the most powerful machine made by John Deere to cut your lawn, but it is fairly flexible thanks to the fact that many different mower decks can be attached to it (it’s compatible with 38, 42, 44 and 48 inch mower decks). This is not forgetting other attachments like front blades and thatchers. If you do own a John Deere LX279 lawnmower, please leave a review below, letting others know what they should expect if they buy one.
Return to John Deere Lawn Mowers from John Deere LX279
Return to John Deere from John Deere LX279 Lawnmower
Have Your Say! Leave A Review Do you love or hate this tractor? You can have your say below by leaving review.
The unit came to me 3rd-hand, though the original buyer was my brother in law; and the second owner is a colleague – so I’ve known this machine since new.
The machine has 540 hours on it, currently – which I don’t consider to be that crazy.
The good:
It starts right up, runs smooth and quiet, and does a fine job cutting grass. It does, however smoke a good bit on startup. I think I’ve read that Kawis are known for this – but the 921V on my Gravely zero-turn doesn’t.
The fundamental mechanicals of the machine are quite solid. The hyro trans is doing right, the steering gear is as tight as new, the levers, pedals, chassis and deck are going great. Really no complaints about the core mechanicals. This machine cost $5k back in the early 2000s – which was big effin money – this was a premium machine and it should be good to go for 2000 hours or better, given some love and care…
The bad:
It’s absolutely unforgivable JD put plastic bodywork on this premium machine. The plastic hood get’s brittle and cracks like crazy. I currently have it all stitched-together with “hot staples”, but bottom line is this machine should have steel bodywork. No excuses. JD has slapped us ALL in the face with this plastic stuff. I get they need to cut corners and cheapen it up for the $1500 Lowes machines – but this thing was $5k new…back in 2001!!!! No excuses, this is JD spitting in our faces.
Additionally – this machine fell victim to the dreaded PTO clutch bolt failure. It happened the first time to the original owner; just out of warranty. The bolt actually broke off in the crankshaft. He “rigged” it by installing a new (but much shorter) bolt that only engaged 4 or 5 threads in the crank – leaving the rest of the original bolt in the crank…
Well, with 525 hours on the machine – that “rigged” solution failed again, resulting in two chunks of broken bolts in the crank and a wallowed-out keyway… Hence the machine came to me.
As found, the machine had a good engine, cracked up bodywork, no PTO clutch, a broken bolt in the crank, rotted-out seat bumpers and a seat cushion that’d popped out/off it’s base.
I added some material to the crank with my TIG, filed the keyway back into shape, fitted a new PTO clutch, made a drilling guide/fixture to drill out the broken bolt from the crank, hot-stapled the hood back together, glued the seat back into its base and installed new seat bumpers…
…this is repair work the JD dealer refused to do. They said it was an obsolete machine and were unwilling/unable to repair it. Their suggestion was to buy a new one. I hate we now live in that world.
So I repaired it myself and put it back into service. It’s a good machine. I can forgive JD for the PTO clutch bolt failure – stuff happens – but the plastic bodywork is 100% unforgivable. I see I can buy an all new upper/lower hood on Amazon for about $300; plus another $50 for decals. I’ll probably do it because the rest of the machine is in really good shape – and it likely has another 1000 hours to give.
Overall – for $2500 I’d say this was a good buy, but $5k is just ludicrous. JD has lost their dang mind. I don’t reckon it’s gotten any better since 2001.
Dreaded PTO bolt issue.
Overall it’s not a bad machine, it definitely has some quirks. Honestly, for the money I think you’re better off buying a exmark mower. The pro models, not the ones that they sell at Lowes’s and Home Depot. It’s going to cost more, but in the long run it’s definitely worth it. You buy these cheap big box lawnmowers eventually your gonna run into all kinds of mechanical problems.
Complete piece of crap. I will never buy John Deere again. Nothing but problems!!!
I’ve tried to give my honest opinion of this product and it seems easier to come up with gripes than praise when critiquing a product. In general, I enjoy my JD LX-279. There are weeks when I look forward to cutting the lawn.
Another ‘pros’ include the smooth running water-cooled Kawasaki V-twin engine. It comes with a sealed pressurized crankcase that assures proper oil distribution throughout the engine regardless of the terrain.
Other pros include the hydro-static transmission, headlights, and cruise control.
Recently I’ve had to replace rotten rubber fuel lines and the engine has begun smoking at initial start-up. I’ll be looking into that problem but it acts other engines I’ve had that burn up their valve seals and allow oil drainage from the heads into the cylinder when turned off. Even so, apart from the embarrassment of a blue cloud of smoke, the problem causes no real harm.
I’m also a bit disappointed in the mower deck. It doesn’t cut as evenly as I’d like, did not disperse the clippings well before I installed the mulching kit. For that matter, the mulching kit doesn’t do a great job with dispersal of the mulched grass.
I get that the plastic trim helps improve the tractor’s appearance, but sooner or later they’re going to bump into something and good-bye plastic fascia! A steel bumper would work better.
Finally, I’ll echo Brian’s sentiment that the machine is too safe. It is just inconvenient to have to set the parking brake every time I get off the tractor to move something or gather debris.
JD 18 cubic foot steel dump cart
Official John Deere ‘Owners’ hat
13 years and approx. 600 hrs with no regrets. 4400.00 was twice the money @ the time however it is Many times more the machine.
How many ways can you say BAD!!!
I had the exact same problems as Don Motz. The pto bolt fell out not long after the warranty expired and the local dealer didn’t help any. That ended up in several trips to two different dealers over the next few years, until they figured it out. The cup holder fell off. The seat came unglued from the base about the same time as all the plastic became brittle and started to fall apart. I would not rule out a John Deere for my next mower but I will be looking at all the other brands. I’m looking for the most reliable mower out there and one that is easy to work on. Yea, I know, good luck with that.
This is a solid piece of equipment made in the USA. I am the second owner of my machine and it has approx. 300 hours. It runs just as smooth if not smoother than my neighbor’s brand new Craftsman. I did a lot of shopping around (as you are doing by reading these reviews) and compared the newer Deeres to the older models. My price range in 2010 was $1,500-2,000 and the new upper end Deeres were out of my range. The mowers in my range were the Home Depot and Lowes models and these are not build the same. The decks feel weak, the pedals and mechanical all do not have the quality of the older Lx279.
In the end I would purchase a used LX279 over any newer mower in the $1,500-2,000 range any day of the week. These mowers are better built and with good care I feel this mower will last a good long time.
2) Quiet running liquid cooled engine.
3) Powers through my 1.5 acre yard (Slopes vary 10degs to 30degs).
4) Cruise control
I am like David above, I have no regrets and want a bigger one. The only issue is this one has to break first and I do not think that will happen anytime in the near future.
I have to get off my mower constantly to move objects my dog places in my path. I guess if I did not have such an annoying dog I would be less annoyed with the safety features of the mower.
Love it. runs great. Tranny is awesome.
I want a bigger one now, must be a guy thing. lol.
No regrets.
david