"The 997 Zero Turn does a great job of mowing when it works. I have had problems with it not moving when the brake is released. It dies and I can't find the problem. Two years ago, it would stop running every time the fuel tank would reach 1/2. I would not recommend buying a 997Z unless you have a lot of money to waste on repairs. The hood latch which is just a suitcase latch costs $80."

"I added the 997 to the X749 and 5525 that I already had. People had told me about how much faster a zero turn would cut versus my X749...and they are right. This mower is awesome. I have not had any of the overheating problems mentioned in other reviews. The ride is much better than my X749. I went with the 72" deck and it is awesome. What took me 4 hours to cut I can now do in about 1 1/2 hours. I have ordered the same rear tires that came on my X749 for the 997 to give me better traction on a hill. Should improve that experience. I also ordered the front jack for easy access to the deck blades. This is a nice option that I will use often. The front headlights work well and the rear guard has already helped me keep the engine hood from getting damaged when backing into a tree. Overall I am very impressed."

"Pro: - Very GOOD built mower. - Very easy to adjust cut height. - Can't out run blades in normal grass height. - Very fast mowing and a very good job. - Very good at trimming using left side of deck. - Very good on fuel for area covered. Con: - Needs to ride smoother on rough ground. - Needs better drive tires for wet areas. - A little hard to grease all zerks. - Need to take the top part of roll bar off so you can get under trees. - You will love this mower after you get used to it. I have no trouble mowing ditches you run one leaver ahead of the other to hold you straight."

"Great machine. Only negative is the paint has peeled in a couple of areas. "

"For this season, we replaced our worn-out Toro ZTR with a John Deere 997 diesel ZTR with rear discharge. Because we were buying a new mower, we put together our list of requirements: diesel engine; rear discharge; hydraulic deck lift and no foot controls. Only John Deere had a mower that met all of those requirements (Kubota came close, but their diesel rear discharge unit had a foot control for the deck lift). We had to special order it from our dealer because of the rear discharge which isn't popular with groundskeepers, lawn maintenance and other commercial users. We needed the rear discharge because we grow christmas trees and the side discharge mowers load the seedlings up with clippings and stunt their growth. And, as it turned out, only John Deere had a machine that met all of our requirements. Overall, the mower works great and does a nice job around our farm. It is easy to use and operates well -- it has the "feel" of an expensive, well-made and solid piece of equipment. Which is good, because it *is* an expensive piece of equipment! A commercial user would probably not want the rear discharge as it leaves clippings in clumps. Otherwise, it is a powerful cutter that doesn't even notice the thick grass areas that use to slow down the old Toro. As heavy as it is (with the diesel hanging off the back) you'd think it would have better traction. We may switch to more aggressive ag-type tires to get a better grip. The operating controls are well thought out and placed nicely. No foot controls make it possible for a paraplegic to operate it with no modifications (important to us) other than getting on or off the machine unaided. The thumb-operated hydraulic deck hoist is a very nice feature as is the PTO cut-off switch. The diesel is the same Yanmar-built engine JD uses in the diesel Gators and other smaller products and is a well-made, good-running piece of gear. The only problems we've encountered this year are that the seat is not comfortable on rough terrain (forcing us to slow way down), and the machine is fussy about it's cooling -- in hot, dry conditions, you have to really keep the dust and clippings out of the radiators or it overheats a little and automatically cuts off the PTO. Not hard to clean but it does require lifting the engine cover all the way off (again, not hard to do -- JD brilliantly engineered how the engine cover attaches so you don't need to do anything except open it and lift) and thoroughly blow the radiators clean every time you use it. Overall, we are very pleased with the machine and we're glad we spent the big bucks to get exactly what we needed for our operation. We hope to be using it for a very long time. Some 997 operators will say that getting a rear guard to protect the engine cover is necessary. That has not been our experience. Out in the tree rows, we turn around carefully so we have no issues (yet) with the engine cover smacking anything."

"This is a good machine. Good features. Deck underside needs to be sealed so dirt and grime won't rot from underside. Lip around outside of deck rim should be sealed to avoid rot in that area. fuel shutoff solonoid went out at 220 hrs. Mechanic friendly - easy height adjustable on the fly; rops is adjustable for cut around trees. No sun hood on rops. does not come with light kit. installation of light kit is rated about (8)-10 all this should come standard for the price of machine. imho!"

"With it 18,000 rpm 7 Iron mower cutting speed the Z-Trak 997 grinds up clippings leaving a clean looking lawn. This is a big diesel mower with lots of power. Hard to use in steep ditch areas because of size. Easy to operate. It seems to mow faster than anything I own. A tank of fuel goes a long way."