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

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.

It was a bit of a learning curve getting used to driving it, but handles pretty well. Steering is a bit touchy. Battery definitely does last as long as they claim. On 100% charge, and full eco mode, I still only get 3/4 of my single acre yard. Also, it starts shutting down at 24% until it gets recharged. I would understand if it were 5-10% as a warning, but a quarter of the battery seems pretty ridiculous.

Driving this $$$$ thing is like riding a zebra; it never stays going in a straight line. One little bump, and off it goes. The electric steering is way too sensitive and doesn't respond to small inputs from the driver. Like if you hit a bump, and goes off course a little, the smallest correction that the motors respond to is way too large, and the mower steering goes too far in the selected direction. It's like flying a plane with no rudder. I have to keep the mower in slow mode to maintain a straight line. A normal gas zero turn can go fast and straight. I'm sure Cub Cadet's test center has nice smooth test lawns, and failed to notice this characteristic. But it explains why all the company videos for this product that I've seen are all talk, and I never see anyone actually driving one. I hope there's a software or replacement controller in the works, but for now I regret my purchase. If the bowling ball stability is ignored, it seems to be otherwise a great mower.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] I have had this mower for 3 months and am extremely greatful for it. I believe it is the only residential electric zero turn on the market that uses lithium ion batteries. This was important to me lithium ion battery's life span and performance are much better than their lead acid competitors. For this reason too this machine is quite a feat of engineering. Not a tesla but functional and powerful nonetheless. The main thing I wanted to say is that people really are being dramatic about how jerky it is. My wife hates driving cars, boats etc... but her and I both have been able to adjust to its sensitivity. We dont try to go too fast around sensitive things and it works out and we only seem to get more skilled at it. To be honest though I have never driven a gas zero turn but I would probably have problems driving it just like you would going from a sports car to a compact economy car. Tesla is famous for its acceleration and this mowers electric engine also accelerates like a bat out of hell. I think people driving gas arent used to that and think it is a deficiency rather than a difference that I think is kind of fun and useful. I havent been able to cut as much as advertised on one battery but I do cut my grass when it is really high. This machine is very powerful though and has done outstanding with tall grass and tough jobs. I also really appreciate that it has a back hitch for light towing. It is extremely useful for market gardening. It also is saving us a lot of time over the electric walk behind mower we used to use. I cant wait to install our solar array so the sun can fuel this beast of a mowing machine. The ride is pretty bumpy even on our flat farmland so I wish they sold a more expensive option that had a suspension. This bumpiness though is pretty common across the board on mowers without suspensions. The last thing I will share is that I originally received this mower in the mail damaged and it took forever to return it. Home depot ultimately made up for it with a nice discount but only after A LOT of hair pulling and waiting on hold (12+ hours!). You can imagine why I then decided to rent a trailer to pick up the next mower in person at a home depot an hour and a half away only to find out that the grass chute was not assembled because of a small defect on it. It seemes lazy to me that they sold it to me but this is definitely on Home Depot for not sending it back to Cub Cadet or ordering a new chute. These logistical headaches brought this 4 star review down to 3. I think this was probably bad luck but ill let you be the judge. Overall though I appreciate the engineering that went into a zero turn mower that is first of its kind (for having lithium ion batteries and being in the residential price range). Its also been very functional and I am beyond exciting to not have to buy more gas guzzlers. P.S. I almost forgot to say its also really quiet compared to gas riding mowers and easy to maintain.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] I bought this mower about a month ago. I have mowed my lawn with it 5 times since. On the first few times me and my wife have run over several plants in the yard. This manly happens when the yard angels or slops. We both quickly lost control and were unable to stop it before causing damage. That said we are getting better. The biggest issue is the lag from user control to the mower moving. An example would be when trying to do fine movements like parking or driving close to an obstacle at low speed you cant really give it small adjustments. It lurches instead of smoothly speeding up or down. I love how quite it is. Its battery has lasted per expectation. I have about a 1/4 acer lawn and it drains to 75% by the time I'm done. I believe with more practice and use I will be able to over come the lurching and twitchy response of this unit. I will give another review after I've had this for a full year.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] This is hands down the best zero turn out there, don’t read into the crap reviews. Its a shame that most of these reviews these people don’t even own it like I do. Super easy to use ( first time ever using a zero turn in my life ) and have it down pat on my second try mowing my lawn.!! I’ve Never EVER have someone pull over (twice ) to ask me it that electronic? That thing looks awesome !! It’s crazy good everyone.

I thought bad reviews around, but boy were they right. This product is not ready for prime time. Responsiveness it’s just hard to control. Many times I think it’s unsafe. You try to go straight pulls the right or pulls to left. I did the calibration and that did not help. I really believe that this device should be recalled.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] First of all I’ve only used it twice. Driving this is dangerous. The controls are so twitchy I don’t know how they release this product. I believe this mower should be recalled it’s dangerous I’m almost hit my house twice. My dealer read a bulletin that stated it takes time to get used to driving the mower. No I disagree there needs to be a firmware update or this needs to be recalled. Again it is very difficult to control this mower. Overall the cut is fine, and the battery seems to last. But one thing that everyone needs to be aware of you can’t hose this thing down with water. That’s what the manual states. Wasn’t told us when I bought it. I would like a refund on this device. Or there needs to be a recall. Everyone needs to be aware of this it’s dangerous.

I would give it ZERO starts if I could. It didn’t even start. It’s was more work for us to return. Home Depot wouldn’t come to get it unless it was in its original package. Which is ridiculous! I wouldn’t recommend it. Don’t waste your time and money on the brand.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] My previous mower was a cub cadet commercial and most observations are in comparison to it. First I have no problem with the electric part of the mower. It is great not having gas, belts, oil and filters to fool with and way less parts to worry about. The mower does just barely cut my two acres. My main disappointment with it is the controls. They are way too sensitive even in turtle mode. Going around a bush or tree is very difficult and trying to go in a straight line on a slite hill is impossible. The mower is lighter and it slips down hill much easier. The frame is very stiff and that causes a lot of gouging in my rough yard. Many times I am mowing on two wheels. I have made all the deck adjustments and control calibrations and still not happy with the results. Please let me know if any fix for the jerky controls becomes available.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] i am 79 years old. if i can operate this mower any one can. a great moner.

We have used the product for 6 cuts during 6th cut the cutting motors shut off twice because of high grass? We finished mowing and charged unit and today we turned it on we got an error e115 and e108. Cub cadet tech support says either a fuse is blown or controllet fried. The second error has something to do with deck motor. The product when working is great but buying the first version of a product has risks!!! Buyers beware.

Ordered two, both did not work.

Error code 337 - mower blades won't turn - poor quality control. Had warranty service open for it after struggling through 15 calls to different people. After 4 days the error code disappeared for no reason after finally getting warranty service scheduled. I was able to mow half the lawn, and now 2 days later the error code is back again. Re-opening warranty, and my lawn looks horrible.

I'm afraid I agree with the negative reviews of this tractor. It looks like it's very well constructed which is why I gave it two stars but that's where the quality ends in my opinion. To start off with the controls are the worst I've ever seen in a zero turn tractor. As some others have said they are way too "twitchy". There needs to be a smoother transition from stop to start. The motors pop on too fast and you wind up over compensating to keep it moving in a straight line. After some time you are able to anticipate the problem so it gets a little better, but that's not acceptable. The worst thing about it is the fact that after only five uses it died in the middle of my yard! I received error codes 108 and 116 that could not be reset. That meant pushing my $5,000 mower 200 ft. back to my garage and calling my dealer for help. They had no idea what the problem was and would have to come pick it up to analyze the problem. So now they think the problem is with a motor controller which is not in stock nor available from the factory right now. They are going to send one from the west coast which will take at least a week or two. Since I traded in my old tractor for this one I'm left with nothing to cut my grass for who knows how long. No company should put a product like this out for sale until they have built up a good supply of parts, that's just common sense! I was so excited to purchase this tractor because I believe electric is the way to go when it comes to lawn care but I think I made a huge mistake with this purchase. Please learn from my experience... give this one another year to work out the bugs.

I used this mower extensively, getting over 50 hours in, before it gave up on me. Did everything I wanted it to, mowed well, pulled a cart, nice and quiet. The frame is incredibly robust, but the battery and motors seem to be under engineered. Mine threw a handful of error codes related to the battery, making the mower a paper weight. While an authorized service center was nearby, the wait for service would have been 6 weeks just to get in the door. Not acceptable to have a mower that can’t make it two months before failing. Hopefully Cub Cadet works on sorting out the engineering issues and comes back with a better design, as I loved the concept.

I have been using this mower for about 10 weeks now and overall I am very happy. I love not having to worry about getting gas or doing engine maintenance. It took some getting used to because I have never owned a zero turn mower before. I have a 1 acre yard and I finish with 58% battery every time. This is not using the eco mode. I think it could easily do more than 2 acres on a single charge. One issue I had is the mower was delivered with the tires way over inflated. I brought the tire pressure down from about 25psi to about 10psi and this made a huge difference. The ride was much smoother and it was much easier to control. I had issues with the tires slipping and bringing the tire pressure down solved about 90% of the issue. The rest is probably operator error. I also cut some wet grass a couple times and the clippings built up under the deck. Make sure you keep it clean because it does not cut well if clippings have built up under the deck. One other thing is even though the Home Depot website says the mulching kit is commonly bought with this item the 6 point star blades do not fit this mower. These have a different style blade with an S shaped mounting hole that must be exclusive to the electric mowers. The blades that came with this machine were much lighter than the mulching blades in the kit that do not fit. The parts that do not fit are under the following part numbers. Internet #205926227 Model #19A70041100 UPC Code #043033565061 Store SKU #1001487707

The mower works really well. The steering arms however and super sensitive and it is almost impossible to mow a straight line unless you are in "turtle mode". It is very frustrating because you need full power to mow on inclines. I call the customer service line about it and was told, "If it doesn't work for you, bring it back to Home Depot". No help, just a flat take it or leave it kind of answer. I have stewed about this every time I have mowed since. Who ever is the customer service guy that I spoke to should take a lesson in customer service before getting back on the phone.

Works great easy to operate once used to the controls batter log solid and quiet

Today I purchased a new Cub Cadet ZT1 lithium ion. when I got the unit home the battery level was at 28%. I read the manual, Followed the instructions and attached the charger. The display showed that the unit was charging. I checked back about 30 min later to find that it was yo to 30%. So I left and ran some errands and was gone for about 4 hours. When I returned the display on the tractor was blank. I figured, ok it's reached 100%. NOPE! ! ! when I sat down and put the key in and looked it had stopped at 65%. Since my lawn needed to be cut I went ahead and started cutting. The lawn is just short of 1/2 acre. By the time I was finished cutting, the battery level was at 8. So I put the tractor back on the charger.(I don't think that the batteries should have died that fast.) The yellow lightning bolt on the charger started flashing. After an hour the tractor display still showed only 8%. Taking this piece of CXXP back tomorrow. This was my first purchase of an all electric unit and I will never purchase all electric again. While the concept is good, this unit is pure garbage. and for $5,000 they really need to have better quality control.

Good mower so far but does not have good traction in rear due to less weight as opposed to a gas mower. Could not charge recently with charger and then found connection under seat area to charge port on mower loose. No quality control apparently. Overall pretty good mower. Mower is very hard to drive and takes some time to learn how to drive it. If u are looking for a mower u can just jump on and go this is not the mower for u. But if u want a maintenance free mower this is a awesome one. My advice buy a warranty with this mower the parts are pricy and it can be a complicated mower to work on. Electric vehicles are dangerous when u are working on them so I recommend a trained person to service the mower.

After 4 hours of run time, it won’t turn on. Giving me E108 & E116 error codes. Working with Cub Cadet customer service to get it to a service center that works on their electric mowers (very few of them do), but it has been very difficult.

This is my second one of these. The first had the left drive motor die with only 3 hours of total use. This one has not been able to drive at all since arrival. Cub cadet support has been unable to get me assistance in 4 days now. Returning and getting another brand.