March 2025 by Robert Shaw
I purchased a new mower last summer. They delivered it, test started and said it was ready to go. But they forgot to fill the engine with oil. Toro pours the oil back out for shipping, and only a tiny amount is left in the engine. I always check the oil, but considering it was test started in front of me, this is the only time I haven't. The first time I went to use it, the engine seized and shook violently. I called them and they came and picked it up. They then tried to make me take the mower, though it was not my fault oil wasn't put in the engine. Then began a long, very unprofessional bunch of nonsense I won't go through. You would not believe it...telling me it was normal for an engine to seize up if the engine was run at full throttle for 1 minute, which is ridiculous considering Toro mowers are meant to run at full throttle...when in reality, they had not put oil in the engine.
The whole saga was a giant waste of time and no one from the company ever apologized, but I finally got refunded after a long headache. I realize someone could make a mistake and forget to put oil in the engine, but own up to it, don't lie and try to force someone to take an engine potenially damaged when it wasn't their fault—Very unprofessional management.
