I have a 520xi with 280 hours that I bought new in 2004. My 520xi has a 60" mowing deck to cut about 3 acres of grass. I also have and use the following attachments with it: 48" front blade, sleeve hitch, 10" moldboard plow, 36" disc, 40" row crop cultivator, 40" dethatcher and an areator/drop spreader.

I've never had an ounce of trouble or mechanical breakdowns with my 520xi. I would like to have seen Toro make the 5xi series tractors with a differential lock for better traction. I use ag tires with chains and wheel weights when plowing snow and using the ground engaging equipment.

Sounds like a good deal to me. Congrats. Think about it - you paid about the same as a mid-level LA series JD would cost, but you got a lot more tractor. The Kohler Command is a fine engine and should last a long, long time.

To the best of my knowledge, all the head gasket problems on
Kohler Command engines occured with the vertical crankshaft twins. Your Kohler Command is a horizontal crankshaft engine,
a completely different design.

You got the Toro equivalent of the JD 425, for much less than the 425 commands in the marketplace. I would say you done good :)

Thanks for the info. I purchased it on ebay last week and picked it up a few days ago. Its crazy how many features it has!

I am considering purchasing a 520xi as well. It's a 1998 model with 200 hours, asking price $2500. Does this seem reasonable? It has a slight whine when the attachment lift is used. Is this a red flag? Any info would be greatly appreciated.

What size mower deck comes with it? Any other attachments? $2000.00 - $2500.00 should be a good price range. 200 hours is pretty good for a 1998 model. I have 300 hours on my 2004 520xi.