Strengths I own a 2005 model bought it new. starts every time,cuts a beautiful even cut every time,great for everyone in my family to use.spindle bearings just got noisey after 8 years and were very simple to replace.tires have never lost air.I cut 3.5 acres and have a great time doing it.in 8 years I've only spent 126.00 on repairs.very nice for the wallet.

Weaknesses cant think of any except it could stand to be a little faster. as with all lawn tractors had to disable the reverse cut safty feature so it will stay running in reverse with blades engaged.

Overall overall one of the nicest lawn tractors I have owned.

Strengths Has a good strong engine this 2004 model has avoided the flaws of the past, has grease zerks on the deck front end and the pivot, and this one cuts evenly I like it.

Weaknesses Plastic hood still melts on hot days, I provided metal reflecting tape at the area near the muffler, seems to work well

Overall I find it dependable, decent traction and comfortable to ride all day. they made the cup holder bigger

Strengths there is no strength, this is the most hiped, cheapest piece of anyrthing I ever owned, the sevice centers are a joke, I had to put up a fight to get a piece of paper that said I had dropped off my mower there, then it took them for ever to fix it, and they did not want to honor the warranty, whith only 15 hours on machine. I have 70 hours on this Home Depo L130 modet, My mowing deck is already broken on very weak spot, the transmission has now quit on me, the cheap tires lose air all the time. What a junk.

Weaknesses Tires lose air all the time, transmission quit after 70 hours of use, deck has a weak spot that broke, the bolts on blades keep breaking off and blades falling off,Tires have very poor traction, engin noise is very loud and ruined my hearing despite wearing protection, the grass accumulates on top of the tech intefeering with movement of the belt, I guess you got the picture, a true American Junk, undeserving of it's reputation.

Overall

Strengths Looks good

Weaknesses Uneven cutting and very hard to start.

Overall I don't have to worry about the poor quality any longer. My JD just went up in flames. Yes, it caught on fire while I was mowing my yard. I don't think I will purchase a JD again.

Strengths Looks good, but it is not really a John Deere. It's a foreign knock off that they pass off as a JD to trap first time lawn tractor buyers. It was pretty. I will admit that I leave this thing outside all year long and it will start in the spring. I have done so since 2005. Plastic doesn't rust.

Weaknesses It now looks like a dune buggy because the hood will no longer stay on. Mower hood is plastic and the design puts it in close to the hot muffler. If you mow on really hot days, watch out. I asked JD about this and they said it was not a problem. My hood fell off. Looked at their new mowers and they have reinforced he design. They knew about this all the time. One of the lights fell off and melted on the muffler. Bad mower deck. Uneven cuts, bad design on the drive. Poor steering. Bad traction. Engine smokes.

Overall Buyer beware. This thing rests on the JD name, which has been sold out. It may run like a deere, but it cuts grass like a goat. Thinking of buying a John Deere? you would probably do better with a bottom of the line Sears Craftsman. I learned the hard lesson. I will never buy anything from John Deere again!

Strengths Kohler

Weaknesses Scott's originally contracted with John Deere Horicon for their Sabre model. To save money they made them with no grease fittings or bushings (bronze) anywhere.

Overall I tore my brand new mower apart and bored the axle and pressed in bushings and drilled and tapped axle and spindles for grease zerks. Drilled into transaxel and installed 1/4" pipe plug to allow addition of hydraulic fluid. Under $25.00 I have a very special L130.

Strengths

Weaknesses Front axle breaks, non-servicable transmission (it will lose it's power)

Overall I bought this new in 2003. In 2008 the front axle broke; I replaced it. In 2009 the front axle broke; John Deere replaced it. In 2010 the front axle broke; I replaced it ($60 & I do all the work myself) and am in the process of trading it off. I have about 460 hrs on the machine. I mow about 2 acres.

Strengths Kohler engine good except it smokes and backfires.Cut is fair but not always even.

Weaknesses Steering is sloppy and poor quality.PTO clutch seized up and tore wiring loose -3 wires-re-attached long blk wire and yellow one.Short blk wire with metal connector i am still dealing with.Schematic is poor and not colored same as machine.Can not get power to pto clutch.Seat sw and R|O sw not per schem.ONE BIG MESS.Help.

Overall Poor quality with no longevity.2 bearings on deck wobbly,will go out next.Expect to have steering failure.Not worth the price,built in obsolence.Same quality as the chinese give us.

Strengths

Weaknesses Replaced pto clutch, and now bearings and pulley need to be replaced in deck. and F

Overall Guess what fellas? I did buy this one from an authorized JD Dealer and they took my money and sold me crap while my husband was overseas. I trusted the name to buy a good no great lawnmower that would be dependable for me to keep the yard cut. Not hardly. I didn't have this much trouble with my Murray Walmart brand that I had for 9 years. Wish I had it back. It cuts uneven too and you already know that the parts "ain't" cheap. Furthermore the cupholder doesn't even hold most 20 oz. drink bottles which was one of the perks for it.:(

Strengths Easy to re-fuel. Easy Access to battery.

Weaknesses Not a John Deere...my bought at Lowe's while I was deployed. She wanted to get a John Deere because they have been around for so long and thought she was getting a quality product. WRONG. Poor traction. Uneven cuts. Hour meter never worked. Very little use.

Overall Piece of $&%#!!!!! I had trouble starting it and was told by Lowes that I had to take it to a JD dealer. Service told me that the carb was bad and it had to be replaced. NO rebuild kit because of plastic needles. 400 dollars for new carb and install new plugs. I asked the service tech what I could to keep this from happening and he said...maybe add some fuel additive with each take...but that these tractors where cheaply made and were not "real John Deere's". Really???? Sure looks like a Deere...and what about "Nothing runs like a Deere"???? Maybe it's time for a lawsuit for "FALSE ADVERTISEMENT"!!!