S. M. Henning wrote:

(Roy) wrote:



There is absolutely no
advantage a gear drive in a L & G tractor has over a hydro
drive.........hands down its the better , no, BEST way to go.....



In the manual for the John Deere OMM149664, Issue L3 Lawn Tractors
LX280, LX280AWS, and LX289 PIN, automatic transmission tractors it
specifically says:

"Do not use cruise control when going down hills. Machine speed will
increase."


Wrong. My Murray hydrostatic drive will go into a braking mode when I
lift my foot off the pedal going downhill.

That means you have to keep your foot on the "forward pedal" like a
throttle when going down hills.

With a gear-shift transmission you go up and down hill without touching
any levers or pedals. Their speed doesn't increase going down hills.
They are much safer.