Curtis Lotter
Stunt Coordinator
- Joined
- Jun 21, 1999
- Messages
- 75
I just wanted to put this out there where others may find it with a google search. It saved me a lot of money and hopefully someone else can benefit if the information is on the web to be found.
Note that many of the brands listed, and more, use a Peerless transaxle. In my case it's a Peerless # 205-024. New replacements are in the $600 range.
I have a 13 year old Lawn King (Murray) riding lawn mower with hydrostatic drive. Over the past few years, the drive would start slipping. I put on a new belt and searched for areas of adjustment, but there really isn't any. I started searching through google to find a fix, but for the most part, the answer was "the Peerless transaxle is not repairable, no replaceable parts are made." Well, if I would have settled for this answer, I would now be the proud owner of a new $3000 plus lawn mower. Am I glad I didn't settle for that answer! With a little more searching, I found that there is actually a kit made that contains two quarts of fluid, a new bellows, cover plate, bolts, and instructions. This kit costs less than $40 and is available at several places including Sears. The kit is called the VST Oil Kit. Basically the kit is to replace the transaxle fluid and provide a couple replacement parts.
What I learned is that grass and debris will build up on top of the transaxle, causing it to get hotter than it should. This breaks down the fluid and that's all it takes to start giving you problems. If you have some basic mechanical skills, you can remove the transaxle, (in my case, six bolts and three clips) drain the old fluid, and replace with new. It took me a few hours to do this, if I did it again, I could do it in an hour. My hydrostatic operates like it's new again! Absolutely no slipping. Hopefully I can get another decade out of my mower again.
Note that many of the brands listed, and more, use a Peerless transaxle. In my case it's a Peerless # 205-024. New replacements are in the $600 range.
I have a 13 year old Lawn King (Murray) riding lawn mower with hydrostatic drive. Over the past few years, the drive would start slipping. I put on a new belt and searched for areas of adjustment, but there really isn't any. I started searching through google to find a fix, but for the most part, the answer was "the Peerless transaxle is not repairable, no replaceable parts are made." Well, if I would have settled for this answer, I would now be the proud owner of a new $3000 plus lawn mower. Am I glad I didn't settle for that answer! With a little more searching, I found that there is actually a kit made that contains two quarts of fluid, a new bellows, cover plate, bolts, and instructions. This kit costs less than $40 and is available at several places including Sears. The kit is called the VST Oil Kit. Basically the kit is to replace the transaxle fluid and provide a couple replacement parts.
What I learned is that grass and debris will build up on top of the transaxle, causing it to get hotter than it should. This breaks down the fluid and that's all it takes to start giving you problems. If you have some basic mechanical skills, you can remove the transaxle, (in my case, six bolts and three clips) drain the old fluid, and replace with new. It took me a few hours to do this, if I did it again, I could do it in an hour. My hydrostatic operates like it's new again! Absolutely no slipping. Hopefully I can get another decade out of my mower again.
