WARNING
Gasolineisharmfulorfatalifswallowed.Long-term
exposuretovaporscancauseseriousinjuryand
illness.
•Avoidprolongedbreathingofvapors.
•Keepfaceawayfromnozzleandgastankor
conditionerbottleopening.
•Avoidcontactwithskin;washoffspillswith
soapandwater.
UsingStabilizer/Conditioner
Useafuelstabilizer/conditionerinthemachinetoprovide
thefollowingbenets:
•Keepsgasolinefreshduringstorageof90daysorless.
Forlongerstorage,drainthefueltank.
•Cleanstheenginewhileitruns
•Eliminatesgum-likevarnishbuildupinthefuelsystem,
whichcauseshardstarting
Important:Donotusefueladditivescontaining
methanolorethanol.
Addthecorrectamountofgasstabilizer/conditionerto
thegas.
Note:Afuelstabilizer/conditionerismosteffective
whenmixedwithfreshgasoline.Tominimizethechance
ofvarnishdepositsinthefuelsystem,usefuelstabilizer
atalltimes.
FillingtheFuelTank
1.Shuttheengineoffandsettheparkingbrake.
2.Cleanaroundthefuel-tankcapandremovethecap.
3.Addunleadedregulargasolinetothefueltank,until
thelevelis6to13mm(1/4to1/2inch)belowthe
bottomofthellerneck.
Note:Thisspaceinthetankallowsthegasolineto
expand.Donotllthefueltankcompletelyfull.
4.Installthefuel-tankcapsecurely.Wipeupanygasoline
thatmayhavespilled.
CheckingtheEngine-OilLevel
Beforeyoustarttheengineandusethemachine,check
theoillevelintheenginecrankcase;refertoCheckingthe
Engine-OilLevel(page31).
BreakinginaNewMachine
Newenginestaketimetodevelopfullpower.Mowerdecks
anddrivesystemshavehigherfrictionwhennew,placing
additionalloadontheengine.Allow40to50hoursof
break-intimefornewmachinestodevelopfullpowerand
bestperformance.
OperatingtheParkingBrake
Alwayssettheparkingbrakewhenyoustopthemachineor
leaveitunattended.Beforeeachuse,checktheparkingbrake
forproperoperation.
Iftheparkingbrakedoesnotholdsecurely,adjustit;referto
AdjustingtheBrakes(page43).
CAUTION
Childrenorbystandersmaybeinjuredifthey
moveorattempttooperatethemachinewhileitis
unattended.
Alwaysremovetheignitionkeyandsettheparking
brakewhenleavingthemachineunattended.
SettingtheParkingBrake
Pulltheparking-brakeleverrearwardintotheENGAGED
position(Figure7).
Figure7
1.Parkingbrake—engaged2.Parkingbrake—released
ReleasingtheParkingBrake
Pushtheparking-brakeleverforward(Figure7).
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