Husqvarna Z254 54″ 26 HP Kohler Zero Turn Riding Mower Review
Superior, cost-effective hydrostatic mower
As an international power tool and equipment industry leader, Husqvarna has spent decades cultivating its reputation for quality products of every kind. You see this shining through in the Husqvarna Z254’s material build quality and superior engineering principles. This truly is one of the industry’s best zero-turn riding lawn mowers.
It has a robust 26 horsepower gasoline engine made by Kohler. It produces enough power to commandingly drive the cutting blades under the large 54-inch diameter cutting deck as well as powering the responsive hydrostatic transmission.
The Husqvarna Z254 comes set up as a side discharge zero-turning radius riding lawn mower. Though they do also offer a mulching or bagging conversion as an additional upgrade cost.
It’s also worth noting that the Husqvarna Z254 has a “Patent Pending” brake system. It’s innovative and maximizes the safe operation whenever the operator loses accidentally control. It’s a major bonus for commercial lawn care companies where liability concerns and liability insurance costs matter.
Key Features
- 26 horsepower Kohler gasoline engine
- Zero turning radius handling
- Responsive hydrostatic transmission
- A Patent-pending safety braking system
- A maximum speed of 6.5 miles per hour
- Side discharge with an optional mulcher or bagging accessories extra
Performance
The 26 horsepower Kohler gasoline engine in the Husqvarna Z254 is very powerful. It gives this zero-turn lawn mower a top end speed of up to 6.5 miles per hour. This is nice for professional lawn care services that need to maintain large grounds like a golf course, where they need to travel from Point A to Point B without wasting a lot of time.
The Kohler engine also does a great job of helping to power the very responsive hydrostatic transmission. You won’t have to worry about this mower being underpowered when traveling up hills or cutting through these swaths of grass.
As needed you can easily adjust the height of the cutting deck. This is nice for times in the summer when a lot of sunshine and seasonal rain promotes vigorous growth. You can just set the deck on its lowest setting and keep the grass neatly trimmed. Then later in the summer, you can adjust the cutting deck height higher to leave the turf less exposed to the hot, baking sun. This is a great strategy for helping to preserve essential soil moisture.
The cutting deck height adjustments also make it easy for lawn care professionals to quickly make changes in the length of the blades of grass. It’s certainly something you will appreciate if you need to take care of a golf course or other recreational area where the rough and the fairways need to have different lengths of grass to meet the course’s high standards.
Ease Of Use
As a zero-turning radius riding lawn mower, the Husqvarna Z254 is very easy to operate. Just sitting in the seat, and grasping the padded controls, you get the sense that the engineers took their time to think about comfort. While this might not be the biggest of deals for a residential lawn, it’s a major factor for professional lawn care companies where the operator needs to sit and maneuver the Husqvarna Z254 for hours on end during long summer days.
The Husqvarna Z254 truly is a zero-turning radius riding lawn mower that can literally turn on a dime. You won’t have to worry about tufts of grass being left behind when you start a new row or fuzzy green halos of uncut blades ringing trees and landscaping features.
Special Features
The special “Patent Pending” braking system makes the Husqvarna Z254 one of the safest zero-turning radius riding lawn mowers on the market. It should be at the top of the list for a professional lawn care company.
The hydrostatic transmission in the Husqvarna Z254 is very responsive and lets you turn on a dime.
Cut Quality & Options
The Husqvarna Z254 has a special air induction mowing system that was engineered into the dynamic relationship between the blades, the cutting deck, and the side discharge. It essentially draws air from the top and bottom of the deck, improving grass and delivering a superior cut.
It’s also worth noting that the harvested grass clippings can be bagged or mulched. However, the Husqvarna Z254 only comes set up for side discharge. The high-quality mulching kit and bagger attachment are sold separately, and not included in the initial purchase.
Maintenance
As you can imagine, the Husqvarna Z254 will need a lot of the same maintenance you need to give any gasoline-powered lawn mower. This includes routine oil changes as well as making sure that belts and all other moving parts are properly lubricated. You will also need to replace or carefully sharpen the cutting blades.
Both of these measures require the use of a proper lifting jack that is designed especially for riding lawn mowers. Attempting to improvise something for changing the oil or sharpening the blades could be a major safety issue for a zero-turning radius riding lawn mower of this size. So, if you don’t already have a proper, rated riding lawn mower jack, you need to include one as part of your purchase budget.
Safety Features
The Husqvarna Z254 has a special patent-pending park brake system automatically activates or deactivates as the steering levers are moved outward or inward. This is a great safety feature to have onboard. Especially if you are a lawn care professional who needs to be concerned with liability issues, training, and liability insurance costs.
Cost-Effectiveness
The Husqvarna Z254 was designed to be a very cost-effective and comfortable zero-turning radius riding lawn mower. The fuel consumption from the 26 horsepower Kohler engine is very efficient compared to some of the competitor models.
If there’s a complaint to be made with the Husqvarna Z254, it’s that it comes set up only to run as a side discharge riding lawn mower. If you want the bagger attachment or the mulching conversion kit, you have to purchase them separately at an additional cost.
