Briggs??? in the Z645

[RJJR]

Presently I am the proud owner of a 1 year old X320 with 48" deck. I love the mower and have been ignorantly bliss. Yesterday I spent about an hour on my brothers Z445 and couldn't believe the difference. I cut my mowing time down by almost half. The only thing I didn't like was how rough the ride was in some areas that I don't notice on the 320. So I went to the local dealer today with all intentions of moving up to the 645. Thought the bigger tires would help the ride and I really liked the shorter mowing time. But upon talking with the salesman I found out they no longer are offering any kawasaki motors in the residential series. He said they'd been having trouble with the Kawasaki. I hadn't heard or read that anywhere on this forum but I could have missed it. The new 645 came with a Briggs and it was called the Cyclone. Does anyone have any experience with this motor? Funny thing is they still offer the Kawasaki in the Pro series. I'm on hold unitl I hear some reviews on this motor. I've never like buying anything in the first production year.
Thanks

 

[Leroy454]

That is correct. All of the EZtrak series from the Z445 up have a new Briggs engine called the cyclonic. It is 27 horsepower. They are supposed to be designed and tested for use in a rear engine mower application. It has a nice air filtration system and air movement from the engine shroud to keep debris away from the engine and air filtration system. This is supposed to help the engine run cooler and get plenty of clean air. I was told by deere reps that it out performed the version of the older kawasaki they were using. They said it ran much cooler under load, which should improve reliability. The kawasaki that has been used previously was the same style used in the front engine tractors like the X320, so it didn't have the good air shroud and air breather like the Z900 commercial kawasaki's have. I think emission regulations may have had something to do with the change as well. I personally hated to see the kawasaki go, but I hope to see good things out of the new briggs. They more than doubled the warranty on these models (up to 4 years or 500 hours on Z600 series), so its clear JD has faith in it.

 

[fabsroman]

That is correct. All of the EZtrak series from the Z445 up have a new Briggs engine called the cyclonic. It is 27 horsepower. They are supposed to be designed and tested for use in a rear engine mower application. It has a nice air filtration system and air movement from the engine shroud to keep debris away from the engine and air filtration system. This is supposed to help the engine run cooler and get plenty of clean air. I was told by deere reps that it out performed the version of the older kawasaki they were using. They said it ran much cooler under load, which should improve reliability. The kawasaki that has been used previously was the same style used in the front engine tractors like the X320, so it didn't have the good air shroud and air breather like the Z900 commercial kawasaki's have. I think emission regulations may have had something to do with the change as well. I personally hated to see the kawasaki go, but I hope to see good things out of the new briggs. They more than doubled the warranty on these models (up to 4 years or 500 hours on Z600 series), so its clear JD has faith in it.

I just bought a Z445 in March with the 54" high capacity deck, Kawasaki engine, and dual Kanzaki pumps. The JD website still shows the Z445 54" high capacity deck as coming with the Kawasaki engine, but it doesn't show it with the dual Kanzaki pumps like what came with my mower. The salesman that sold me mine said that he is disappointed with JD's use of the Briggs engine and the hydro gears in the majority of its residential lineup. He thinks that since it has captured such a huge portion of the residential market after introducing the zero turn mower, it is cutting back on quality to increase its bottom line. I actually went looking for the Kawasaki engine and Kanzaki pumps upon the advice of a couple of people on this forum. Ended up finding one at a dealer by me (i.e., they had to have it shipped here from their Hanover, PA dealership) and they happen to have great service too. I only have 10 hours on it so far, but I will say that so far I am really happy with it. It takes me just under an hour to mow 2 acres. Not too happy with the amount of rain and the amount of mowing I have had to do recently, but I am pretty sure I would be even more unhappy if I didn't have this mower.

Good luck on the new mower purchase.

Edit to add: I got the 4 years and 500 hours on my mower too.

 

[fixy2273]

Hmmm... talked to a Deere dealer on the phone this morning about a 645 and was told it has a Kawasaki. Possibly old mower still in stock, or just bad info?

 

[ctlguy]

Personally was a bit disapointed to see the Briggs in these units but then again I am not aware of a lot of engine related issues in the other Briggs powered machines, just the machines themselves (there will of course be exceptions). I think Deere kind of did this to themselves by only putting Briggs in entry level machines for so long that there is certainly an impression that they are of poorer quality. I think the Kawi's are great but I don't expect to see any big issues with the briggs now.

 

[CO8000]

According to my local salesman, Kawasaki was pricing themselves out of the market, thus the switch to the Briggs engine. I got the impression that Deere was giving Briggs another chance with the cyclone engine. I've read several reviews saying the 27 hp Briggs was hard starting, especially in cold weather. Wish I could get a Z645 with a Kawasaki engine. Not real confident with buying a Briggs engine. Makes me think Deere is really sticking it's neck out putting a 4 year warranty on a Briggs engine. Like someone else commented, I have a Deere dealer within blocks of my house. That makes it convenient for parts and service. I like the look of the Kanzaki pumps with the Parker wheel motors as opposed to the ZT2800 Hydros on the 400 series mowers. Against my better judgement, I'm leaning toward the Deere with the Briggs engine. Hope I don't live to regret it. Decisions, decisions.

 

[JDTank]

I sure hope they don't lose the Kawi engines in the X530/X540 riding mowers. I'm not a big fan of B&S engines, always found them cheaply made.