Greenworks 25302 Twin Force G-MAX 40-volt Lithium-Ion Cordless Lawn Mower Review
It isn’t every day that a mower comes along and challenges my perceived limitations of its class, but the phenomenally feature-rich Greenworks 25302 Twin Force G-MAX does just that. Is this the cordless electric mower that finally stacks up to the pure performance of a gas-powered machine? Of course not. I don’t believe the consumer market will see such an innovation in my lifetime, but this battery-powered model exhibits a daring take on just what it takes to build unprecedented durability and deceptive cutting prowess into such an efficient, ultralight mower.
Key Features
- Dual-battery design
- Twin aerodynamically refined 10-inch blades
- Composite 20-inch deck
- Two motors
- Battery life maximized by Smart Cut technology
- Hard-top clipping bag with capacity indicator
- Five height settings
Performance
Greenworks breaks so much innovative ground with the 25302 Twin Force G-MAX, it’s hard to know where to begin laying it all out plainly. Dual high-capacity (4 Ah) and low-capacity (2 Ah) lithium-ion batteries feed the 40V system powering its twin motors to the tune of an admirable 70 minutes of mowing time. To break that down a bit further, the 4 Ah battery alone will power the featherweight 42.5-pound mower through a quarter-acre of moderate clipping with a full charge – a mostly unheard-of degree of endurance among battery-powered electric mowers. The 2 Ah battery will power through about one-tenth of an acre on around three-fourths’ charge all by its lonesome. Whereas combining the two fully charged power sources offers enough juice for just over an hour of work, popping in two fresh 4 Ah batteries extends your mowing window to an uncommon 90 minutes of maximum cutting power. Just as impressively, charging each high-capacity battery takes only two hours. You won’t need more than 60 minutes to fully energize its smaller counterpart.
Don’t be fooled by the 25302 Twin Force G-MAX’s modest size, either. By ordinary motorized walk-behind mower standards, a 20-inch deck isn’t huge. I admittedly underestimated its maneuverability when trimming close to obstacles and squeezing through tight confines, but the 10-inch rear wheels achieve outstanding surefooted traction. As disappointingly flimsy as poly decks can often be, the composite construction is clearly made to take a beating without breaking. Do yourself a favor and forget your misconceptions about a lack of heft translating to a weak constitution. Greenworks built this baby to last.
Ease Of Use
Once you piece together the 25302 Twin Force G-MAX’s handle and insert the batteries, your assembly is done. The handle, unfortunately, does not adjust to accommodate the user’s height but does fold down to save storage space. The rubber grips are a nice thought toward going easy on the hands while maintaining solid control, but I found them disappointingly cheap and flimsy enough to convince me that donning a pair of gloves wouldn’t be a bad idea after all.
Like many electric mowers, the 25302 Twin Force G-MAX starts as simply as connecting the safety plug and pressing a button while giving its speed handle a tug to kick up the motor. Mowing really becomes a whole new world the first time you hit a particularly dense or deep patch of lawn and the phenomenal Smart Cut system kicks the power up a notch upon sensing the change in thickness. Suddenly, sections that might have called for an extra pass or two look measured and even after a single effort.
Cut Quality & Options
The 25302 Twin Force G-MAX meets its match when faced with thick, tall grass. It doesn’t muster nearly the combined horsepower from its two engines to excel at mowing up and across hills, either. Of course, being powered by electricity, I can’t advise strongly enough against getting it anywhere near wet turf.
Aside from those limitations – all of which apply, in varying degrees, to electric mowers in general – the precision of its twin 10-inch blades could be described as nothing short of surgical when applied to dry grass of a moderate height. The smooth slices of multiple cutting surfaces ensure that your yard is thoroughly groomed to an evenly textured, healthy finish every time. The deck’s six height settings range from a close, carpet-like 1.15 inches to a more lush 3.5 inches. When trimming grass allowed to grow taller than around six inches, I would suggest making an initial pass at the highest setting before shifting all four wheels simultaneously to the lower level of your choosing with the deck’s single adjustment lever.
As with most motorized mowers nowadays, you have a trio of options for disposing of your clippings. The 25302 Twin Force G-MAX ejects clippings to the side effectively enough with little-to-no clumping and dices them finely enough that it takes a good while to fill up its included hard-top bag to its 2.2-bushel capacity. Mulching can be a bit of a problem, as the gap between the two blades doesn’t reduce clippings to quite the fine particulates I normally prefer to fertilize my lawn, but a second pass will often remedy that.
Maintenance
There isn’t much necessary maintenance worth noting, with the exception of avoiding heavily soaked grass and keeping the batteries charged. That’s something always loved about electric mowers like the 25302 Twin Force G-MAX: once you eliminate having to change oil, top off the fuel and replace spark plugs, your mower’s upkeep boils down to keeping the blades sharpened, the inner workings dry and the energy supply fresh. Everything else is covered by a fairly comprehensive four-year warranty.
Safety Features
In the event releasing the bailing lever doesn’t kill the engine in an emergency, pulling the safety plug should shut everything down. A blade brake would have been a nice addition just to cover every contingency, but the 25302 Twin Force G-MAX is still a perfectly safe machine from top to bottom. The rear rubber flap intended to prevents one’s feet slipping under the deck has a habit of curling up beneath the mower. I would hope Greenworks addresses this small-but-dangerous shortcoming in the near future before the want of an inexpensive manufacturer fix costs someone a foot.
Cost Effectiveness
Everything I just reviewed comes in a single package under $400. The 25302 Twin Force G-MAX isn’t exactly worthless against thick, tall and unruly grass, but I wouldn’t call it an “ideal” choice unless you don’t mind going over your lawn twice to achieve the uniform cut you want and intend to buy an extra high-capacity battery for the purpose of shoring up enough cutting strength and power supply for a long day. Now, will it absolutely impress you on a reasonably flat lawn without incurring a gas mower’s inevitable costs of fuel, oil and spark plugs? More than likely. It delivers vastly longer battery life and more power than about 95 percent of the electric mowers I’ve tested and pays for itself after about a year or so. Kudos, Greenworks.
