mower dies after engaging parking brake

[kricky]

Hey all,

Not sure if i'm in the right section but i have a dixon ztr 36". Put the mower in a shop and have had it there for 3 months. I've tried to call many times, but they never answer the phone and they have on mechanic that works maybe tuesday. My problem orriginally was i could run my mower for 15 minutes or so and it would be fine. Then the left handle would stop working and basically had to walk the mower back onto the trailer. So i go to the shop today and they haven't even started working on it so i decided to just pick it up and work on it myself. I can get the mower started fine, but as soon as but as soon as i disengage the parking brake, the engine dies. I didn't have this problem before i put it in the shop. Could anyone give me some ideas as to why this is happening? Any help is appreciated!

[Steve]

Is there a kill switch connected to the brake?

[wandfsmall]

sounds to me like a safety switch they can be a pain in the butt if you do not know what your doing. I would check the seat switch first though.

[kricky]

It does have a safety switch, but i'm not sure where its located and there isn't anything in the manual about it. It will die if i'm cutting and get up to pick up a stick or something in the way if the parking brake is not engaged. I checked the wiring connected to the seat and everything seemed to be connected ok, but i'm definately not as mechanically enclined as i should be in this business especially. But i guess this is the best way to learn. Tried calling the place i took it to, but they never answer the phone.

[wandfsmall]

well first off I recommend finding a new shop that is more professional 3 months behind before the end of march is not good. You will likely need help finding out your original problem so it is most likely best to find a shop with a trained mechanic.

[Fisher]

My mower sometime dies when engaging the parking brake..... It always turns out that I didn't set either the right or left control bar back into the neutral/park position. I would start there especially if it was the control that they were supposed to be working on in the first place

[kricky]

Thanks guys. I'll tinker with it some just in case its something obvious, but i have a feeling i'm going to be putting it in a shop again. Def staying away from the last guys though. What kind of business doesn't answer the phone and has one mechanic working. My mistake. Will keep you guys informed if/when i get it fixed.