V-Belt-Drive

The drive belt literally goes from the back of the tractor to the front. The mower must be removed, helps to have the tractor up on blocks to give adequate room for work on underside. Belt goes easiest on the engine first, then thread to the rear, install on the rear, (driven pulley) then on the idlers. Check to assure that it functions properly before re-installing the mower. If you have the owners manual, there is a diagram, (check your orientation, it is not clear if it is a birdseye or under tractor view) which offered some help. When replacing belt, check the transaxle front mount, mine was broken which is why the belt came off in the first place. Repairing the mount was quite a job in itself, but now works fine.

2015 Husqvarna YT42DXLS. Both transaxle support struts broke causing the transaxle rotated forward and shear transaxle mounting bracket. The transaxle was not damaged. All 3 parts required replacement. There are some good youtube videos to watch to show how to complete the repair.

HINT: I removed the mower deck and placed jack stands under the frame to support the rear end of the mower. I then supported the transaxle with a floor jack. This worked great for positioning/aligning the transaxle up to the frame after the new mounting bracket was installed.

HINT: Due to the shearing of the transaxle mounting bracket, it was difficult to get a socket to seat correctly on the some of the nuts securing the transaxle to the mounting bracket. I highly recommend getting 4 new nuts because you will likely damage/strip the nut while removing it.

HINT: The youtube videos all show removing the rear tires. The rear tires can be difficult to remove; and there are some interesting youtube videos on removing stuck rear tires. If you have a stuck rear tire, you can complete the repair with the tires on; it is just a bit more challenging to squeeze your hands behind the tire to reach the bolts. I was able to only get one tire off.

HINT: If I wasn't able to do the repair with the rear tire on, my idea for getting the rear tire off was to fabricate a bracket that would work with a gear puller. The plan was to utilize the two symmetrical 1/4 inch-ish size holes in the rim to install 12" long bolts. I would then install a C-channel over the bolts, which would place the C-channel directly over the axle. I would then drill a hold in the C-channel for the gear puller bolt to go through. The shoulders of the gear puller bracket would then push against the c-channel. I was planning on using a few large fender washers on the back side of the rim to help prevent the rim from getting damaged when pulling the tire. You will be pulling the rim about 3 inches to get it off the axle.

HINT: It look four hours to repair plus another half hour of watching youtube videos; probably would have taken two hours if I didn't spend two hours trying to take off one of the rear tires that was stuck.

HINT: Since I was working under the mower, I also replaced the drive (motion) belt as preventative maintenance.