New Wheel Horse (ish) still being made

[Wheel Horse Kid 104]

Wheel Horse was one lawn and garden equipment company that Toro had a lot of respect for when they took the company over. They even continued to produce the "Classic" GT model(s) until 2007 without butchering it in to something flimsy for some 20+ years after they bought Wheel Horse. It was in 2007 that they began farming out homeowner grade lawn tractor production to MTD, so business wise we can see where it would make no sense for them to continue producing a one off model garden tractor with a high price tag and limited sales. But that being the case, I think at that time out of respect Toro should have permanently stopped using and associating the Wheel Horse name and logo with their products, regardless if this new LT is only sold overseas. When younger generations unfamiliar with the Wheel Horse name see that little LT, instead of rightfully associating the name with tough garden tractors of the past, it will be just another tough sounding name on a cheap lawn tractor.

-Mark-

:greetings-clappingyellow: I agree 100% Mark!!!!

[KATO 115]

I agree... hats off to toro for hanging on as long as they did .Unfortunately todays reality is not what

we would like , but i guess thats supposed to be progress. (really??????)

KEN

[wheelhorse656 20]

Seeing that thing with the WH logo made me sick...... I honestly thought that Toro had more respect for wheelhorse than that!! I am truly ashamed. I used to be proud that Toro was the company that took over wheelhorse and that they didn’t take advantage of the name... Now I am really disappointed.....

[WH252-H 4]

Unfortunately MTD has raped the good names of many Quality manufactures. Even their own. The originals were some damn sturdy tractors. Like Doc wheel horse said, even the good companies will produce some crap occasionally. It does make me sick when the quality names get bought up then bastardized to make a buck.

I have a 1988, 252-H because it was given to me. Compare it to the WH garden tractors of that time and it's a heap but compare it to the lawn tractor of today and they shine. I have used at least 25 different tractors and believe this 252-H cuts the best.

["D"- Man 827]

Maybe a full fledged 953 or 1054 reproduction would be an admirable gesture for Toro to show it's appreciation for the Wheel Horse "Badge." The decal could even read Wheel Horse / Toro 953 50 year anniversary. I am not going to be holding my breath though. Mark.

[wh500special 2,055]

At the end of the day Toro has been pretty good to us by having quite a bit of parts still available to us...

I agree completely. They licensed rights to reproduce decals. They send a rep or two to the WH show each year. They donated a $5000 tractor to the WHCC club in 2006. The provide the parts viewer on the website. The sell copy/reprint manuals. It goes on...

I think Toro kept the WH name alive far beyond what really was necessary. The fact they they were still building the Classic GT tractor in 2007 shows real committment, especially when demand was so low that a few can still be found unsold 5 years later. Deere didn't do that. Neither did Cadet. Or Simplicity. Or...Shoot, the only one I can think of that built a legacy machine in recent times was Ingersoll, but even they may be dead now.

I don't lament the new equipment at all. If it is at all similar to other current Toro products it is a well-designed piece of equipent that performs its intended purpose effectively. The fact that it's a lightweight LT and not a lumbering, cast iron GT has only to do with people like all of us who don't buy new equipment. Geez, how many of us even have a Toro push mower? And they're probably some of the best in the market. Why Toro even stays in the consumer market is a mystery to me.

Gotta build what sells.

Thanks for posting Jason!

Steve

[Wheel Horse Kid 104]

We do need to give Toro credit for helping us Wheel Horse collectors be able to get parts, being able to make decals, and producing the Wheel Horse Classic GT up till 2007.

["D"- Man 827]

If Toro really wanted to show a gesture of appreciation for the Wheel Horse "Badge" maybe they should do a full fledged reproduction of the 953 or 1054 they could even put a "Toro / Wheel Horse 1054 Fiftieth Anniversary Special Edition" decal on the side of the hood !!! I

am not going to hold my breath though. But, maybe this would be a good way to use up all those new Wheel Horse emblems they have setting around on the new parts shelves in the dealerships. Mark.

[bowtieguy 334]

Last week I sent an email to the Toro customer service dept asking about a manual (C-145)...I got a very professional reply within 24 hours thanking me for the contact. I also inquired if the CS lady knew how many WH collectors were out here....I got another very professional reply advising me that they were very aware of the large number of WH family and that they refer many customer to serveral WH forums for information......betcha John Deere doesn't do that?

BTW...they placed an order for the manuals to be printed and sent me a copy at not cost.....So....how's that for "customer service"!

[Wheel-N-It 2,967]

Geez, how many of us even have a Toro push mower? And they're probably some of the best in the market.

 

I have a 1957 TORO "Whirlwind" 20 inch blade pushmower. And YES its RED!

Just saying cause I figured this is about the only time I could post about my TORO pushmower here on RS

[eibbed 63]

Jason,

Thanks for posting! Very interesting as well as the comments that followed.

Dave

[JC 1965 1,528]

When MTD first started making the newer TORO tractors my local TORO dealer had several of them in his show room. Several weeks later i went there to buy parts and i noticed there were none of the tractors on display in the show room. I ask him if he had stopped selling them, he said if someone wants one i will order it for them but i don't keep them in stock because i have sold 4 of them and they all came back because the transmission went out. :eusa-whistle:

[meadowfield 2,545]

I've sent two mails in the last year to Toro asking for proof of age and manufacture of tractors from the 70's and each time I've had a polite reply. On on occasion I had a headed word doc from the service department proving date of manufacture and origin.

those guys are really good - I can't think of any 'bought out' UK companies in the auto industry I could get that level of help from.

[dennist 139]

The rear wheels(not tires) look smaller then the front ones? :scratchead:

[muz123 1,191]

i would buy this just to keep toro going.

[js5020 111]

I had to buy a green and yellow one setup pretty much the same because nearly every manufacturer builds em but only JD sells a rear powered discharge machine in the US. 

[JERSEYHAWG / Glenn 4,487]

Thank you for posting, very interesting information.

The look of the tractor, Frankly I dont care for it at all. looks like one of the big box store el cheapos they sell. Imho.

 

Glenn

[CountryRock 198]

Any chance the pics from the original post can be reuploaded?  I'd like to see them.

[CasualObserver 3,406]

8 hours ago, CountryRock said:

Any chance the pics from the original post can be reuploaded?  I'd like to see them.

 

Found and uploaded them to the original post.Thanks for asking.