Toro 520lxi....I have a chance to buy one and need advice!

[Spencer Bell 2]

I have a chance to buy a Toro 520lxi in good condition with 264 hours on it. It has a Kohler side shaft motor, and the asking price was $1600, but after I beat him down a little bit, he said he would take $1100. He got it from the original owner, who traded it to this gentlemen in payment for some work that was done. The original owner did most of the servicing, and has listed all of the part numbers for purchasing new parts. It comes with a box blade, an aerator, and a disc harrow attachment, and it has a 48 inch deck. Some things I noticed: the electric parking brake doesn't work, but the manual one does. I was told one of the hydraulic hoses had a slight leak, but the fluid was topped up. Had a bit of a grinding noise when lifted and lowered, so I'm not sure if that is normal. The oil pressure gauge (left gauge) may work, but I couldn't really tell. Is this mower worth it for $1100? Could I possibly hook a front loader (if I can locate one under a ridiculous price) to it? What advice can be given? Thanks in advance!

[ZXT 2,401]

Hey Spencer, and welcome to !

 

I was going to comment last night but I figured someone else would chime in - but since nobody has (which is odd) I'll try to give what advice I can.

 

The LXI series tractors are good machines, and very capable. Yes, you can put a loader on it. Finding one will be the issue.

 

I can't speak for the issue with the electric parking brake, but it could be something as simple as a solenoid. I've not owned this model, so I could be off base. Hydraulic hoses can be made and replaced, generally pretty cheaply. Was it lifting an attachment when you heard the "grinding" noise? Probably some linkage that is dry and needs lubrication. 

 

Do you have any pictures? A 520LXI should have a Kawasaki engine, not a Kohler. If it has had an engine swap, I would seriously doubt that it only has 264 hours on it. The oil pressure gauge could be bad, or it may have never been hooked back up if the engine were changed. 

 

For a nice tractor with all of those attachments, $1100 doesn't seem off base. That said, definitely provide us with some pictures of the tractor and the engine too so that we can see what exactly is up with it. 

[Pullstart 65,710]

 

i don’t know anything specific about the model, but found this in the search.

 

520LXI

 

in that thread, it seems like that machine is well worth $1100!  One member claimed that in the xi series, the 520LXI was second only to the diesel DXI option.

 

keep us posted on whether you get it or not!

[WVHillbilly520H 10,376]

As far as I know there is NO electronic parking brake but it should have cruise control, and as noted above if it truly is a 520Lxi is would be a water cooled Kawasaki twin with power steering the 520xi was Kohler powered and manual steering... @shallowwatersailor is kinda our resident 5xi guru.

[shallowwatersailor 3,214]

Sounds as if it is actually a 520xi with the Kohler. If the sound you hear is a grinding sound it would be the attachment or linkage. The actual lift is done hydraulically. That sound would also occur at times while driving the tractor. Usually when going from forward to reverse or vise versa using a slight/mild command with the foot pedal. Anything beyond that would be a problem.

 

The gauges are a temperature gauges and fuel level gauge. Make sure that the hour meter is working as those are low hours. There is only a mechanical brake activated by the brake pedal. Are you confusing the neutral position on the Hi-N-Lo gear lever for an electric brake? There really isn't any electric controls on this model tractor.

 

Let us know what you decide.

[doc724 925]

If it is an 520Lxi, as I recall there was a problem with the camshafts on those engines.  As John Matthews said it6 is a water cooled Kawasaki engine.  The 520xi is an air cooled Kohler engine and no camshaft problems.  As John said, there is no electric brake, only a mechanical brake. $1100 seems very reasonable to me.  A FEL can be easily installed but not too easy to find.  It took me 2 years to score one, expect to pay around $1500 for it.

[Dennys502 245]

I'm guessing what you are referring to is the cruise control switch by the shifter as electric parking. I don't know how you get a grinding noise. Perhaps a video with sound would help.

[ZXT 2,401]

I think we've lost him. He hasn't been on since he posted the question.. Must not have been too interested in what we had to say!