thanks for the ideas! i'll check the parking brake, return line thing. as far as rpm's, the dealer told me to keep it on that "mark" on the rpm display. obviously, when you start it, it seems way to much--and smoke billows out the exhaust. my old tractor had a stack so i never much noticed if smoked too much. i get the feeling that i don't have the hang of the hydro yet because i lug down the rev up, etc. i've used a tractor on my 10 acres for 12yrs but i don't know much about them(i ruined my kubota l2950) don't know if i should admit that or not. and it may not be using too much fuel, but i bought it new last fall, didn't use it hardly at all for the first 6mo's