Customer Reviews for Cub Cadet Ultima ZT1 42 in. 56-Volt MAX 60 Ah Battery Lithium-Ion Electric Drive Zero Turn Riding Lawn Mower

So brand new mower and already has 2 error codes. It wont charge because of the error codes. The mower is also very sensitive, their is no in between with this zero turn. Its either your going to turn left or right and its a hard left or right not a smooth transition. It is also impossible to mow a straight line with this thing. It constantly wants to drift left or right. Its got way to bugs for the price. It will definitely be getting returned.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] I bought it in summer and it died with only a little mud kickex up under it. Error codes that i could not get it out of the field. Flimsy blades, i have only 18 hours on it and second set bent without even hitting a rock or object. Not well designed. Also very jerky and will not cut straight line. Very disappointing.

Well, I gave the ZT1 42E three tries at cutting my lawn. The ZT1 42E is extremely hard to control. I went through the calibration process twice and it did not seem to help. Overall the build quality is excellent, the fit and finish is also excellent. The batteries do seem to last as advertised. But I don’t believe anybody can get past how hard it is to control this mower. It is so jerky at times you’re almost scared to get close to any object. It’s hard for me to believe that zero turning mower is meant to be A challenge while cutting your grass but this one is. I wish I can give it four stars or even three but you just can’t get past how out of control this mower can be at time.

Heavy duty mower and uses the same accessories as the gas engine version.

Since my last review, I want to point out a glaring issue with Cub Cadet / MTD. Stanley Black and Decker are in the process of acquiring the remaining 80 percent of Cub Cadet / MTD, as they previously bought 20 percent of the company. What that means for current customers and potential customers is that everything is in limbo. I have worked for a company that was taken over, and everything was screwed up because nobody talks to each other. Now, IF Stanley chooses to keep the Cub Cadet line, will the current parts backlog and warranty issues be resolved? If they choose to get rid of the Cub Cadet line, you know what that means. They already have riding mowers under the Craftsman brand, do they need another brand? If they keep the line, I would wait a few years before purchasing until all the ironing has been done. Either Stanley will treat the mowers as a mid to high quality brand like Dewalt, or they will treat them like a lower quality brand such as Black and Decker. Either way, my mower is being returned because they can't get me a replacement charger until September at the earliest. I'm not letting my lawn go dormant for the fun of it, and I won't keep it plugged in out of a fear it will burn my house down. Remember those lithium battery phones exploding on the airlines? I also cancelled the bagging system, but it has been sitting at a shipping depot for 2 weeks with no delivery scheduled. I can't explain that, but the tracking in the picture shows it.

Since my last review, I want to point out a glaring issue with Cub Cadet / MTD. Stanley Black and Decker are in the process of acquiring the remaining 80 percent of Cub Cadet / MTD, as they previously bought 20 percent of the company. What that means for current customers and potential customers is that everything is in limbo. I have worked for a company that was taken over, and everything was screwed up because nobody talks to each other. Now, IF Stanley chooses to keep the Cub Cadet line, will the current parts backlog and warranty issues be resolved? If they choose to get rid of the Cub Cadet line, you know what that means. They already have riding mowers under the Craftsman brand, do they need another brand? If they keep the line, I would wait a few years before purchasing until all the ironing has been done. Either Stanley will treat the mowers as a mid to high quality brand like Dewalt, or they will treat them like a lower quality brand such as Black and Decker, which should be called Fisher Price. Either way, my mower is being returned because they can't get me a replacement charger until September at the earliest. I'm not letting my lawn go dormant for the fun of it, and I won't keep it plugged in out of a fear it will burn my house down. Remember those lithium battery phones exploding on the airlines? I also cancelled the bagging system, but it has been sitting at a shipping depot for 2 weeks with no delivery scheduled. I can't explain that, but the tracking in the picture shows it. Look in the updated dictionary next year for the definition of "Epic Fail", or just search for Cub Cadet, it will be interchangeable.

Just wanted to give a review of this new battery powered Cub Cadet. First off the quality appears to be great. I just cut my yard for the first time and it did awesome. Before first use and after a full charge, I did watch the Cub Cadet YouTube video that shows the calibration procedure and did that before my first cut. Controls are a little jerky like others have said, but nothing that can’t be adjusted to or learned. These are electric motors and provide instant torque. It was very manageable after a few passes. Turning is not an issue, just be easy on the controls and don’t overreact. Charger while charging does appear to get pretty warm so be careful on placement. Kept mine on the concrete floor as seen in picture. This thing is very quiet while in operation. I was able to talk to my 4 year old son on his tractor riding next to me as I was cutting and we could talk. Amazing!

A great concept, but quality control issues mean I'm sending it back. The mower itself is well built, and feels solid. Lacks a little bit of pace (topping at 6mph), wish it had a faster transport mode like some competitors. It is a pleasure to use towing a garden cart around, so quiet and no fumes to deal with. The downfall of this machine for me is that the mower deck I received had the attachment holes for the discharge chute drilled in the wrong place. After many days of back and forth with Cub Cadet support, they told me I'd need to bring it to a certified dealer in order to fix the deck. They couldn't tell me immediately where the nearest dealer is, since they need to be able to work on these new electric machines. So, brand new machine, manufactured incorrectly, and now my responsibility to cart it to a dealer (that they can't identify yet). I'm cutting my losses and sending it back. Wanted to love this machine, but I didn't sign up for this much hassle just to get it working right off the bat. Other impressions, deck is a bit flimsy, and since you aren't supposed to use water to wash it off I have concerns about long term durability/rust. The motors for drive units are a bit jerky, especially at low speeds, so expect a steep learning curve and use the turtle mode around obstacles. I still think these electric mowers are the future, but be prepared for some growing pains if you pull the trigger as an early adopter.

The mower arrived yesterday, well-crated and in good shape. Final assembly was easy and quick, no more than 5 minutes or so. The hardest part was getting it off of the pallet and craft without hitting the deck. We were able to do it, using 2 guys in the front, lifting up the front section, while one pushed from the rear (make sure to disengage the parking brake!) I did not have any errors as others have described when attempting to use the mower for the first time. The mower arrived in a low state of charge, so I allowed it to fully charge before moving the unit. The drive mechanism is a bit "jerky" when first engaging. Perhaps there will be an update to smooth out the power curve, but it's not that bad and I'm sure we'll adapt to it quickly. Overall, I'm impressed so far. Time will tell how this holds up, but I'll take a few growing pains to not have to deal with small-engine maintenance.

Runs and mows great.

I have 3.9 hours on this mower and have it listed for sale on marketplace for half of what I paid for it. This wont even go in a straight line. I have tried to recalibrate this mower as soon but it doesnt seem to help. I have 1.5 acres and a full charge will not cut the entire property. It is so hard to steer and slow. I good cut the yard with a push mower faster. I tried to charge it for the third time and the charger is not working now.

I have had this mower for just over a year. I have 1.2 acres and it can finish the lawn with about 30% left of the battery. The problem is the controls. It is really jerky regardless of how gentle you are with the arms. I drive a forklift daily and it is jerky if you are not gentle but this mower didn’t not work well in tight spaces. It tracks to the left if you have both arms at full go. Other than being electric it kinda sucks. If your lawn has no tight spaces and isn’t too big it will work.

Purchased this Cub Cadet ZT1-42E last spring so now have a season of use. Not a good product. Battery doesn't last like they say it will (plus the battery does loose power as it discharges) , won't cut tall grass, I can't cut grass below the 3.25" setting without getting an overheat alarm and having it shutdown (have to mow twice if I want the grass shorter) , I've adjusted the steering numerous times and still have a problem going straight. Wrote a review to Cub Cadet as well and they gave me a number to call and a case number to report but you can't get anyone on the phone. Overall it is a bad product that was entered into the market before it was proven. I bought it because of Cub Cadet's reputation but am sadly displeased.

I was exited about an Electric Mower, no annual oil change, no filters, and no gas. Well like a lot of the reviews here mine steering is jerky, wears you out mowing. I am hopping Cub Cadet comes up modification.

This mower is so jerky sometime lurches left or right going from rev to foward. The worst is trying to keep it moving in a straight line.made all the calibrations suggested. Helped a little but not enough. Called customer service for Cub Cadet. They gave me a number that is service for my area. Speaking with the owner he informed me he never worked on one. Also I would need to pay to get it to him. I need someone from Cub Cadet to come and look at my problems or I am thinking of returning it.

Not really an issue with the mower, but home depot and how they handle mower sales, I bought this mower on clearance but was not informed it doesn’t come with the charging cable (which is currently unavailable to purchase and is $500 when available). The blades are completely rusted and I found missing bolts. Wont buy a mower at home depot ever again.

My mower has .2 hours on it. I really want to like this mower but the reviews on this product are correct. I have followed procedures to set steering arms twice. Driving the mower forward will not stay in a straight line. Seems like the right wheel is getting more power. I have used slow speed and regular speed. I am assuming cub cadet does not have a fix yet. It seems like all the issues with steering they would have a simple fix. Very disappointed with product so far.

the equipment was changed for the same with a gasoline engine

After calibrating, it works perfectly, super easy to control (even on high speed to get it out to where i was mulching) and really quiet when not running the blades.

This mower is so jerky it’s undriveable. Will there be a fix for it? Battery is good and machine is well built but you almost cannot steer it close to any yard object. Wondering if they will have a fix for it. Literally cannot mow my yard.

I’m on my second unit - the first one was so hard to control that we though the unit was bad. I really want to like this mower as it appears to have a good build quality. However, it is next to impossible to control. We’ve got several dents in our fence, and it is so difficult to control it ended up swinging into a fire hydrant and the blades caught it… completely ruining the blades - lucky it was only a hydrant! It is only a matter of time before someone gets seriously injured because the controls are so poor! Difficult to steer straight, delayed stopping/starting, etc. The battery performance is great, however. It is great not having to fill up with gas each cut.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] I wrote a review on Sunday. On Monday I went in and talked with several managers and their attitude was completely different than the conversation my wife had on Sunday. They accepted the return of the 42" electric 0-turn in exchange for a gas 50" 0-turn Cub Cadet plus credited us for the difference in the cost. I really liked the electric except for the handling problem. It seemed like the two electric powered gear motors were having a conflict and it kept jerking the mower left and right. this would occur going straight or while trying to maneuver around obstacles. It was very noticeable in turtle mode when trying to edge along the fence and walls.

Steering control is jerky, for the cost they could have smoothed that out. First mower we received via direct shipping didn’t work and there was quite the runaround to return it. The mower does cut well.

Pros: size is good, battery was great (could mow a 3/4 acre lawn 3 times with one charge), charged relatively quickly. Cons: hard to control, skidded down hills, bagger didn’t work, weird response time, error messages right away Returned.

I picked this mower up on clearance for $2,500 (50% off) with .9 hours on the clock. Took it home and came across a slew of problems. Tried to unload it off the trailer and got an error code immediately, I then restarted it and with 98% battery proceeded to mow 1/4 acre. It chewed through half the battery. How is this supposed to get 2 acres? I couldn't drive in a straight line to save my life without turtle mode and the motors feel sluggish and like they are fighting each other. Had another error code before loading it on the trailer and taking it back. I added another .6 hours to its clock and some poor soul is going to find out how bad it is next. Cub cadet really needs to do a revision. We have the Ryobi 42" 75AH zero turn and the Ryobi 38" 75AH riding mower. Both have supposedly inferior battery technology and yet can actually do what they say. The Cub cadet has better cutting power but can only cover 1/4 of the ground before a recharge. They're honestly giving battery mowers a bad name and they're too expensive (even at my discounted price).

Nice to not worry about buying gas. Does a decent job of cutting the yard. Bent a blade pretty early on and hard to find the replacement. Bought a different blade and it really hurts battery life. With the heavier blade I go through a charge in about 3/4 an acre. Not everything I’d hoped for but does the job.

The Kawasaki engine is great. Its quick to mow with but the blades are terrible. I've had this mower 2 years and have had to sharpen the blades 4 or 5 times a season. These blades are very easily dulled by grass. It cant even cut wild onions.

I’ve owned my ZTR42E for approximately three months. When I first got it home I got on it and I nearly drove it off a small rock ledge within the first ten feet of operation. I thought that this was probably due to my inexperience with ZT mowers and I would soon learn how to safely operate it. I took it out to the middle of my yard and practiced for several hours before attempting to use the blades. I also performed the calibration process. I’ve now used it approximately 20 times and this machine is nerve wracking to use. It is twitchy and unpredictable. It does poorly on grades of any type. I really wanted to like this mower, but it is not user friendly at all. I do not feel safe at all. I have to use my trimmer to finish around the perimeter of my yard because I don’t want to get too close to anything and have it jerk and veer off course causing damage. I would not recommend this mower. I cannot speak to the ICE versions that Cub builds, but this electric version is not good.