I live an die by Consumer Reports. I think you should try it for a
year. Small price to pay for good advice.

Bought a Craftsman V-Twin hydrostat and love it.

Careful about Cub Cadet. Consumer Reports likes the line but cautions
on its repair history. It's top 10 worst.

"BRN" wrote in message ...
Hi all,

I have been looking into buying a lawn or garden tractor. I have looked at
most of the major brands (J.D., Simplicity, Toro) as well as some of the off
brands or cheap brands (Sears, Murray, etc). Lowes (no H.D in our area) now
sells Cub Cadet lawn and garden tractors. My understanding is that at least
in the past, this used to be a good, solid brand with decent reliability. I
know that the brand is now manufactured by MTD, but was wondering what the
longevity and reliability of these lawn tractors is now? They seem to be a
price point lower than the premium brands, but a bit more expensive than the
cheapest brands.

Additionally, has anyone bought such a large purchase from Lowes? The say
they "service what they sell". Anyone have experience with Lowes repair
service? Do they just farm out the service to local repair shops?

Thank in advance.

Bart