Ryobi 80v Zero Turn Mower 54 inch | Diagnosing BATTERY ISSUES + Ryobi Customer Service Experience

Ryobi 80v Zero Turn Mower 54 inch | Diagnosing BATTERY ISSUES + Ryobi Customer Service Experience
After my 2nd mow with the mower, I knew something must be wrong. I started to see battery discharge fluctuations and gave Ryobi a call after a few self-tests. After doing a couple of things Ryobi suggested we now have the results. See what was happening and how we handled it!

[@sherryhatchell7834]

❤❤❤❤ Ramon is awesome i know him personally. He goes above and beyond. Thank you for the shout out!¡!!

[@zacharyrogers2957]

This EXACT problem is what happened with my 54in Ryobi mower. One of the batteries was not being drained, and the battery % was flipping back and forth between two different percentages. Glad to see I am not the only one.

[@LifeAsDane]

Is Ryobi working with you to resolve?

[@PaulCapps]

Great to hear you were able to get a full cut with some battery left.

[@BradMosch_engineer]

I have this same mower (bought it used, so have *no* warranty - which came as a shock!). Anyway... a few months ago 2 of the newer 40v batteries went bad at exactly the same time in exactly the same way. Neither would charge, so Ryobi actually replaced them since I had bought them new within the prior year. Now, a month ago the blades would stop running while mowing. All batteries still showed good (no errors and fully charged). Then the mower wouldn't charge even though the batteries still individually tested OK and no error codes on the suitcase batteries. Went on vacation for 3 weeks, then looked at it again after getting back. *Now* 2 of the suitcase batteries show E5. Removed them, and now the mower charges and the blade-stopping problem is gone. So... now I have to figure out what the heck is apparently causing the batteries to suddenly go bad in pairs. I think there's something wrong with the mower. If my only option is to buy 2 new suitcase batteries, I don't know if I'm going to do it. Might just sell it as-is. Being a software engineer, I can see multiple things that Ryobi screwed up on, and these battery and charging problems only add to my negative view about how Ryobi designed this thing. It's not good. I think the engineers were forced to push it out the door before they were truly done designing and testing it.

[@hillcsi]

Thank you for your information!! I am about to get a 42 inch 80v from Ryobi. This video has been very helpful.

[@LifeAsDane]

That's awesome keep us posted how you like it.

[@coke1135]

Good Luck, Ryobi customer service will just drag this all to tell you nothing they can do. I myself have a $5k paper weight That has less than one week on the hour meter and it won't run any longer than 20 minutes before it shuts down. Your an exception. feel very lucky.

[@LifeAsDane]

Got any updates on how your issue was handled?

[@coke1135]

@@LifeAsDane they gave me the run around, telling me to call the battery manufacturer and take it up with them, the battery manufacturer, after many emails asking for this number and that number then when getting all the information then told me they don’t deal with consumers to go through Ryobi…I then replied Ryobi told me to go through you to which the reply was again, we don’t deal on the consumer level. So, my $5k mower with my brand new $1400. Trash batteries are sitting in my shop holding down my concrete floor.

[@richardstanizzo4740]

I had issues with the mower only lasting about 20 minutes. I had 2 80 volt batteries that were not discharging (just like in the video). Ryobi sent me replacements, and the mower lasted a little longer. Then I noticed the 40 volt batteries were not charging (just like in the video). Ryobi sent me a new charger because my charger was not switching from an 80 volt charge to the 40 volt charge. That worked. My disappointment is Ryobi advertised this mower will cut 4 acres. I cut 3 acres, and it takes 2.5 charges to cut the 3 acres.

[@otislopez33]

Now I'm ready to get me a lawn mower like yours get to the next level

[@DelrayGolfCart]

Totally agree with this guy. It doesn’t cover the yard acreage they say. It is definitely overstating it’s battery usability.

[@domt7925]

I own 2 54" models. I am using them to cut customers yards. They are working as intended for me. There definitely is a glitch though with the chargers, if you mistakenly plug it in with the key still on it glitches and says it is 100% charged which I know it's not. My solution is to u plug charger, drive the mower in a circle for a bit then turn it off and re plug it in. It starts charging normally then.

[@LifeAsDane]

Hard for me to forget that key is still on. I guess that horribly loud beep is a good thing as I've left it on a few times. Wish it just had a simple autoshut down after 15min of idle.

[@otislopez33]

Yep I wait for you guys to not learn how to do it then I get it on the cheap😊 and I don't actually know how to fix it but I will learn it live it love it

[@PaulCapps]

Cool Video,great information.

[@gooberminther3tik25]

I'm with you Doubting Thomas. 1st Ryobi 80V 42" cut went back from whence it came. As it was indicating 75% battery supply available 80V batts still holding at 100%. It sez right there on page 28 of 33 page pdf Owner's Manual that the 40V batteries "help extend" mowing time and that the 80V Briefcase Batteries are the primary power source. I'm paraphrasing. My replacement 2nd unit is not showing much difference. LCD showing 75% while 40V batteries confirm and 80V batteries showing hardly being touched at all, indicating 97%. Original MSRP $6000 marked down by $2000. If I can live with the dolt in the White House I'll suffer no less with this Ryobi 80V ZTR.

[@garymtalarico1]

Picked up used RYOBI 42" ZT with bagger $2,500. Put Two BigBattery 24v 170Ah Hawk $3000. So compared to the new 80v 4,320Wh this has 8,700Wh. But it is totally DIY to make them fit. Oh and It was also a 70lb weight drop.

[@LifeAsDane]

Impressive. You have videos showing? I love watching what people can do to modify electric bikes and such. First time hearing on mower.

[@atlantasailor1]

How would you get blades sharpened? Or routine maintenance done? I doubt anyone would touch an electric mower. I had two robomowers and threw them away because they kept getting stuck and the batteries only lasted two seasons.

[@antikommunistischaktion]

Uhh they should sharpen them like literally any other riding mower blade? As for maintenance it's electric there is no maintenance.

[@danielclark5170]

Customer service is what matters, I've had good customer service at home depot, not at Lowe's. Lowe's customer service has been horrible when i had to use their warranty service.

[@AppleFanX2]

Very informative video. I so glad you received excellent customer service. Thanks for sharing your story. Lindsay

[@electriccowboy]

I got the 42" 2 80v and 2 40v. and it does not but 1/2 acre on a single charge.

[@tonylook3290]

Having the EXACT same problem.

[@gsbrooks6]

Back at u. I have had nothing but ups and downs with batteries. Shows different charge numbers as I drive. Jumps from 17 percent to 54 percent. They sent me a new 80v, but it still won't charge past 86 percent. Yes the new battery shows 100 percent while the others show partial charge. Also mine is the middle large battery that shows 100 percent. That's the new battery. Yes customer service has been great but, I really don't want to go back and forth. Also on the blade adapter. I just drilled holes, and put small bolts and nuts to join the two blades.

[@LifeAsDane]

Interesting. Seems you have other bad batteries if that's still happening. I think the best way to diagnose is 1 batteries used at a time. Like all 40v in and just 1 80v. To see if you can get a consistent charge level indicator with no flip flopping. Mine went away when the bad battery was replaced

[@davonwelch2532]

Thanks for making this video.

[@ironborg6405]

Glad they fixed it

[@6258489]

Wow, that is some crazy customer service.

[@rockythao5394]

Wow, Ryobi customer service is exceptional! So, after that one 80v battery was replaced, were you finally able to mow your entire lawn in one charge?

[@LifeAsDane]

Yes sir! I was averaging about 15-20% battery left by the end and now im closer to 25-30% now that ive gotten comfortable on the higher drive speed.

[@PCHUANG-yk9pw]

those are for early adopters, paying the top dollar, getting the least developed model. The competition shall see the price drop to half of the current price and the batteries are larger with improved software.

[@LifeAsDane]

I can't agree about the least developed being applied to this product. Don't forget in 2017 Ryobis very first "Lead-Acid" battery riding mower was released. So even tho it wasn't Lithium ion they have spent plenty of years in the battery tool space and had 5yrs leading up to this mower. Also there is no reason to believe the price of these large lithium battery products ever drop much. If anything they'll continue to rise until a cheaper battery tech is made useful. Look at EV cars. Tesla is only price dropping because of sales this time of year. Just my opinion. Thank you for commenting

[@caseypage5314]

Hav you tried optimal settings to see how long you can cut? Really interested in this mower, but I have three acres to cut.

[@domt7925]

I own 2 55" models, I can cut 3 acres easy. You can't do that though if it's super long and wet.

[@caseypage5314]

@@domt7925 mine wouldn’t do our 3 acres, but the whole property is a hill. So I’m sure that’s the difference. I was super disappointed

[@kharrell2501]

I have had the 54" ZTR for three days and have been disappointed. I have 3.5 mowable acres. Running from a full charge and mostly on a combination of low wheel speed and low blade speed, or medium wheel speed and low blade speed I was only able to cut a little over half acre that has 8 trees. My blade hieght was 3.5". Outside temperature was about 68°F. The mower ran for about 1 hour before full depletion. My second mow was in the early morning, starting at 7 am, 58°F. Battery performance was better. Charge lasted 1.5 hrs, medium wheel speed and low blade speed, deck height 4.5", flat land, three trees, cut a full acre. So, this is disappointing for $7K. Not to mention charging issues, one 40V battery overheated twice and wouldn't charge until after sitting it in the fridge. Yes, the fridge. I too get the charge complete display, although none of the four 40V are charging or even registering on the display. This happened twice. I have only owned it for three days. Returning it.

[@twosawyers]

These companies need to have this stuff be software upgradable! I don’t think the problem is with the hardware I think it’s more software related.

[@roberthoudek7105]

What about tall and thick grass.

[@LifeAsDane]

If really thick/wet itll crush your total runtime and sqft you cover. I got one patch of about 20x40 thats always super thick over my septic drainfield and Its noticeably working harder, but always gets it done on the first pass. Maybe about 4-5% batter in that one area

[@sekritskworl-sekrit_studios]

How many acres do you have?

[@LifeAsDane]

About 2.2 but with house etc. I call it 2 Acres.

[@markharding6582]

Would like to have one of these but the price and the problems associated with these batteries put me off.

[@BradMosch_engineer]

Yep. Based on all the problems I've read about on multiple forums, these joystick mowers and batteries have some major design flaws and are unreasonably unreliable. Have also had battery and charging problems of my own. Wish I would have never bought mine (got it used from another person, so no warranty!).

[@MatthewSerta1]

Can you put a meter on the charger and see how many amps it draws when charging?

[@LifeAsDane]

How would I do this with a multimeter?

[@jfrye6057]

The charger is rated for a maximum draw of 14 amps., hence the spec. for having a 15 amp. circuit to plug it into.

[@MatthewSerta1]

@@jfrye6057 Typically when charging a battery or Electric Vehicle, You are only allowed 80% of the Circuit for risk of heat and overload. 80% of a 15 amp circuit would be 12 Amp. So if it's drawing 14 I wouldn't feel safe putting it on a 15 circuit, Id rather use a 20. My concern, and reason for asking is because I only have about 7 "safe" Amps available in my garage, due to other load on the circuit.

[@jfrye6057]

@@MatthewSerta1 No argument from me, but my RM480 charger is also rated at 14 amps. max, and it shares the circuit with the garage door opener. No issues in five years. The chargers only draw wall power when the batteries need charging and maintenance chargers (like during winter storage). Maintenance charges draw little amperage and the peak amp. draw during a charge after use is fairly short lived. Since the chargers monitor battery temps, they modulate the charging rate continuously. I agree a 20 amp. circuit would be more desirable, but then you would likely have to upgrade the wire in the circuit. Might be worth adding a new circuit for the mower just to be safe.

[@Wowzersdude-k5c]

If you are going to charge a big battery, I would have an electrician install a dedicated circuit. He just fishes a wire through your wall to your garage, then hooks it to its own breaker. And, yeah, I would make it a 20A circuit for more headroom.

[@DarrylCABBELL]

I have a 80v battery want charge use my new Lawmore once 😢

[@LifeAsDane]

Hopefully Ryobi gets you back up in running quickly

[@benjaminleslie3155]

It's good to know that the new lithium ion 80v zts are still just as bad as the old lead acid 48v zts 👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍

[@LifeAsDane]

But at least its an easy swap. And combo of 80v/40v. 100x better than original

[@runroemer7741]

Any updates since this video? Still love it? Still working? How's the battery life going lately?

[@LifeAsDane]

Love it. It’s been used more for pulling the kids around on their wagon then cutting 😂 this time of year, but it seriously is a nice piece of equipment that hasn’t had battery issues since the 80v replacement. I believe Ryobi went back to release day pricing also.

[@otislopez33]

I do almost a whole acre on my 48 boat lawn mower Ryobi

[@M.TTT.]

yea electric mowers are barely at the point where they're useable versus gas, plus the dangers of those batteries. One reading overtemp would scare me that it could blow up randomly.

[@LifeAsDane]

I think exploding batteries is not that common in the power tool world. Id also argue that electric is at the point of disrupting mowers. Walk behinds have become very popular and for a homeowner You can easily get by with electric. For a business owner id say make sure you got a gas mower to go alongside this beast. More to come. So far its meeting my needs.

[@M.TTT.]

@Dane Peterson true, not a huge occurrence, but the chances are increasing as production quality control is lower as well as demand for lithium increasing. The smaller 21's are good for small homeowners, the rest when a better battery tech comes out then it'll be a competition, but the initial prices may be high for a while. Plus there will be a lot of e-waste after 5-10 years when the batteries die or are obsolete. I've got a lot of equipment out of the trash and got it running, electric stuff is just gonna be trash.

[@luispatino3180]

As long as they are allowed to use the disclaimer UP TO... they are technically not lying if it mows anywhere from 1inch to 5 Acres. They never claimed 5 acres. They only claim Up To 5 acres... damn marketing strikes again. 😂

[@LifeAsDane]

Your so right 🤣

[@biffhenderson1144]

If I stood in one place and let the mower run for an hour while I watched a squirrel, the battery would run out with less than 2 feet mowed. So, pace is also a factor when determining coverage capability.

[@danjones4002]

Just fyi. Batteries have memory. Every year after winter, it take a good 4 to 5 charge cycles before they get going

[@LifeAsDane]

Yes sir. Luckily down here in South Florida we don't have to worry too much about that. I put some good use on the mower during our winter though just for towing the kids behind in their wagon and doing other hauling jobs around the yard. Gotta put the batteries to work.

[@bluefrog12345]

I just found this out this year. My 30" version has been doing better since I started mowing again this year.

[@antikommunistischaktion]

Lithium ions don't have the memory effect nicad batteries do

[@otislopez33]

But I'm running 3. 48 volt lithium batteries

[@CanneryMan]

I just got my 42" with 3 - 80v pack two days ago. After charging all three to 100%, I tested each one and here is the results as to what the voltage is: 13.2, 13.1, 13.3. So I will be making a call to Ryobi about this, all my other 18v and a Sthil 35v battery all read the proper voltage.. So I was wondering anyone else ever checked their battery's after the first charge??

[@majestic.feminine]

Nice shed 👍✨

[@Patrick-vu1pn]

Your blad speed is going to reduce your mowing greatly. The most efficient would be fast ground speed and slow blade speed

[@LifeAsDane]

Interesting combo. Maybe I'll give that a try tomorrow. Just waiting on another set of blade brackets to get back rolling. Funny thing was the Ryobi product engineer told me that high on both would yield me the best results. Which I've done and managed to finish with about 20% battery on just about 1.6acres, I'll add this. The fast speed is truly fast and will be interesting to see how well a cut the mower can do on slow blade speed.

[@robertheinkel6225]

The slower the blade speed, the slower your ground speed has to be. Even on a gas powered unit, you keep the throttle wide open, and adjust your ground speed based on how thick the grass is.

[@Patrick-vu1pn]

@robertheinkel6225 your wrong. The fast blade speed will give you a better cut, but nobody was talking about a better cut. What we were talking about is more efficiency and slower blade speed is going to give you better efficiency. On this mower blade and ground speed is controlled independently. It sounds like you don't know what you're talking about.

[@CDNDave6407]

If you lived a little closer, I would drop over with my 20 year old Exmark z turn to help you out.

[@LifeAsDane]

🤣😎 nice one. Everything was built better 20+ years ago

[@shawncell1247]

concept is cool but until this thing runs for at least 4 years without breaking down ,going to pass on electric

[@LifeAsDane]

Approaching 1yr. I'll have to do a 1yr review

[@tylermorgan3433]

My 80V batteries gave me a E-5 error code and they periodically went out. All three.

[@LifeAsDane]

What ended up being the solution or problem?

[@dc11truckfd]

It's seems only people with flat yards have made videos. I wish someone would come cut my 1.5 acres and see how this big Ryobi 54-inch handles my inclines. I would naturally figure that those Electric engines should have plenty of power, but I don't have $7000 for a test drive.🤨

[@LifeAsDane]

Yes, sorry most incline ive had was my culvert/ditch. Experienced some slight back end slipping probably due to incline but the power is no problem at all. Worse case you may need some more all terrain back tires

[@M.TTT.]

could probably do it, but not in one charge.

[@jonathanallenwdg]

You shouldn't be running that mower on its highest blade speed setting to cut straw grass; You're the one causing damage to the batteries by doing so. The motor was not engineered to be run on its highest setting for long periods of time. Running your mower on its lowest setting is more than sufficient probably pushing more than 20HP on its lower settings(from what I understand the blades are capable of 30HP+ on its highest setting). I've been using lithium batteries for more than 15 years. The amount of diminishing return your receiving by having the blades at this speed is probably close to 60% not to mention destroying the life of the batteries. I hope this information helps some people out there I'm considering purchasing a 42-inch myself I currently have a ego 42in and love it.

[@gooberminther3tik25]

While I'm enthused about going green I'm not appreciating Ryobi regarding customers as pigs, guinea pigs. The "primary 80V 10AH volt batteries" (paraphrased) and 40V 12AH employed as supplemental (again paraphrased) is irking me to madness. Liars, cheats, targets of opportunity, are all triggers words of a lack of integrity. I'm going to stress test the 80V batteries after removing the 40V batts.

[@LifeAsDane]

Did you ever perform the stress test? Is your concern that Ryobi isn't providing the power/storage spec'ed on these batteries?

[@bigwon5883]

Exactly why battery mowers blow. Great in theory, terrible in terms of practicality. In a few years, when all the batteries need to be replaced, you're better off buying a new mower.

[@LifeAsDane]

Time will tell. I'm pretty heavy Electric (truck. Mower. Bike. Tools.) And I'm all for being a guinea pig as long as companies offer a good warranty. So far I'm happy. Also had this been there very first mower I might have held off but I think they gained some knowledge from their lead acid battery previous model

[@jfrye6057]

My RM480e saved $685 in 54 mos. and I replaced the original 75 ahr. batteries with 100 ahr. batteries at 58 mos. for $660. Didn't have to buy a new mower. Of course these batteries aren't lithium. It would take over 6 yrs. to save enough to pay for one Ryobi 80 volt lithium battery. The big question is how long will the lithium batteries last to be cost effective?

[@Agent77X]

Return it while you can! Save $7K and tons of headaches!😂

[@isaacsustar8228]

I have a 80v battery not discharging 😭

[@LifeAsDane]

Thumbs up for the comment not the situation! Keep us posted how Ryobi handles for you.

[@nathandingman6846]

Just buy an ego z6 mower! HAD MINE 3 YEARS! NO PROBLEMS

[@LifeAsDane]

No problems since the new 80v! Couldn't pass on the joystick operation. Just seems so much easier

[@dallas69]

Tesla is now a EvMower company

[@dallas69]

Remove the upper blade and Run Ryobi with only 1 blade per moter. My 5 Ryobi I removed the 2 blade system and use only 1 blade per moter. 200% iincrese in Run time.

[@LifeAsDane]

🤔 can't tell if this is humor or truth.. you have me intrigued though. I feel like I don't even need the crossblade with my straw grass. Or maybe I just leave 1/3 (center) crossblade

[@antikommunistischaktion]

​@@LifeAsDaneThe crosscut blades do use more juice than the single blade setup. I actually bought a crosscut blade for my Ryobi 21" push mower and my batteries have a bit lower charge when I finish.

[@greenmachine6146]

Ryobi needs to step back from the riding mower game. My 480ex has been a compete wastes of $3000. I love their trimmer, but the riders suck.

[@jfrye6057]

And yet my five year old RM480 has been nearly flawless after 170 hours of runtime and $0.22/hr. operational cost. The only thing that broke was the charging door spring, which was replaced under warranty. Original batteries lasted 58 months and the mower saved $715 in gas and maintenance, which paid for new batteries ($660).

[@jfrye6057]

Forgot to mention that there are five of these on my street of 16 homes. They are anywhere from 3-5 years old, none have broken down, and one five year old RM480 is used all year round to plow snow in the winter. It has over 600 hours on the meter.

[@greenmachine6146]

@@jfrye6057 Where did you buy new batteries for $660?

[@jfrye6057]

When I changed out the original 75 ahr. Leoch batteries for new 100 ahr. Mighty Max batteries at 58 months, only one of the four failed a load test, but I replaced all four due to age. The original batteries had 2,082 charge cycles on them and I figured the others would be going pretty soon. The larger batteries are driving the DOD down, so the new batteries should last longer than the original ones.

[@coldbrewreview]

i had them come get my original one after only one half acre cut. the parking brake WONT turn off.. WTF?... I got a new one.. and guess what.. just assembled it.. and same problem is happening.. WTF???? stupid ryobi

[@anonymousiswatching]

What did you expect. I mean seriously. Use your common sense. A gas riding lawn mower is the only way to go and they are much tougher. People still have theirs from like 25 years ago.

[@LifeAsDane]

Time will tell. As of right now my kids get pulled every single day behind this mower in a wagon, i use it to pull my yard cart around and the fact that its basically an electric cart/mower has been quite versatile for my property use. Also not smelling like a gas can is quite nice.

[@chevyspeed6368]

I mean seriously, how about some people just want to not do oil changes and run to the gas station to fill up their gas tanks. Some people have not had issues with the electric mowers just like some people have had issues with gas mowers with carbs going bad, engine breaking down etc. Gas mowers aren't perfect either. I mean use your common sense lol

[@andybecker2693]

@@chevyspeed6368 Gas mowers can be fixed by people with basic mechanical skills and I myself have a garden tractor from 2001. When the batteries are junk the mower is junk because no one is going to pay thousands of dollars to replace these batteries. How many batteries of any kind (cell phone,drills,etc.) have you had that lasted more than five years. For $7000 dollars you can have a really well built gas machine with commercial grade components that will last 15-20 years. That’s common sense.

[@antikommunistischaktion]

​​@@andybecker2693y electric push mower is going strong after 3 years, and my electric string trimmer is going strong after..... 10 years.