I owned this mower for 12 years recently needed a new one and of course purchased a new Honda. I would recommend this line to anyone I'm very pleased. It always started on the first pull of the recoil.

I purchased this mower to have a high-quality non-self propelled mower.  I have many trees and lawn features to mow around, while most of my main mowing is done using a riding mower.  I wanted a Honda with a high capacity bag.  This was a special order and arrived about a week after ordering it at my Honda dealer.  To good side:  very sturdy, it is heavy and you can tell the handles are made to last.  The bagging and cutting are fantastic, very large capacity and it fills to the top without getting clogged.  The negative side:  when you first try to start it it takes 6 to 10 pulls before it will engage.  Even at the dealership, they had to pull several times to get it started (they promised this would get better---we'll see).  The resistance on the pull requires a very strong pull, much more than any other mower that I've ever had.  After you first get it started, it does usually start on the first or second pull.  Another issue, it is VERY heavy--this is both good and bad.  Because of the large capacity of the bag, due to the weight of the mower you do not have to worry about it "popping a wheely" as you're mowing prior to emptying.  With that said, it is a chore to push.  I've settled on the routine of using the Honda when I want to have clippings for mulching around plants, but, I use a lighter push lawn mower that starts easier when I'm just mowing around trees and around obstacles.  One last thing, the wheel height adjustment is difficult---I eventually discovered that the wheels were adjusted wrong when I received it from the dealer.  There are no numbers on the pegs on the wheels and you have to count the notches on each wheel to make sure they are even.  The front wheels and the back wheels also go in different directions (so, if you want to be on notch 4 height, you will count 4 from the front and on the back you'll need to count 4 in the opposite direction).  On my mower, which is a week old, one of the wheels also is VERY difficult to adjust and requires two hands of strong force.  Summary: overall, the biggest disappointment is the difficulty in getting the thing started when you first roll it out to mow---also be prepared to push a VERY heavy mower around.  Between starting and pushing, it's quite a workout! I'm sure it is high quality, just know what you're getting into. 

1. The brackets on the engine shut off bale hit your leg when turning.

2. The fuel tank is too little capacity for commercial use.

3.The handles are very uncomfortable.

4. The height adjustment system is not operator friendly. There are no cut height indicators and there should be and single handle adjustment. 

5. A commercial mower should have a guard for the valve cover.

6. When mowing under bushes, the throttle/choke lever is not in a good location and gets pushed back to low rpm.

I kick myself every time I use this machine for not buying a HRX series. I have always been a huge fan of Honda and have owned many different products. I feel like many different design features on this mower need to be updated and have been overlooked. The cut quality is inferior to my 10 year Honda mower. In conclusion, there is nothing I like about this mower and would not recommend it to anyone.

This is a bare-bones no-frills good old-fashioned rotary engine mower.  Construction is very robust and is definitely built for the professional user in mind.  Despite its weight (100 lbs) the HRC216 pushes very easily; even on hills and slopes.  The blades give a high-quality cut on all types of grass. This is the best-cutting mower I have ever used and I am a 3rd generation landscaper with 30 years experience.  Definitely the last push mower I will ever buy from now on. 

My only gripe is that the engine is not a true commercail-grade engine.  Honda gave me the GSV160 (GS series) which is a step above their consumer-grade GC series engines, but inferior to their GX series.  The GSV engines are listed for "light commercial" use which I suppose is OK, but would still prefer the GX motor. 

I have about a quarter of an acre to cut and wanted a rugged, reliable, and easy to maintain lawn mower.  I did some on-line research of different makes, models and features. My lawn is flat, but does have some landscaping to mow around.  I realized that a standard push model would be best, instead of a self propelled model.  Extra features like a self propel drive, and electric start can potentially need attention down the line.  A simple, heavy duty reliable mower is what I needed.

This narrowed my search down to about 3 mowers.  What swayed me to decide on the Honda HRC216PDA was the fact that many professional lawn care companies use Honda commercial mowers.  It's of course a bit heavier than comparable, lesser grade mowers, but it rolls surprisingly easy and smooth with it's 9" ball bearing wheels.  It's easy to start, has plenty of power, and does an excellent job of putting the grass clippings in the catch bag.  I've cut my lawn 5 or six times this season, and this Honda mower cuts great.   

 

 

This is my second Honda Mower that I have purchased new in the last 16 years.  The first one still runs perfectly and starts on the first pull if I have the cable in the choke position.  I bought this because I have the first mower at a rental property that I have to mow and was tired of transporting between the properties.  This mower was extremely easy to unpack and there was very little assembly in fact I would say that other than setting the handle bar to the height that I wanted and adjusting the wheels to the height that I wanted to mow there was no assembly.  You do have to assemble the grass catcher but that is pretty easy and can be done without looking at the directions.  Mower comes with 12 oz bottle of oil, pour it in add gas and pull the cord and the mower starts.  I bought the push type mower because I like to get as much exercise as I can when mowing and I figured by not having the auto drive there is one less thing that can go wrong.  I was surprised to see that there is no longer a cable to control the choke and engine speed it is all now automatic.  I had no problem mowing my lawn with this mower and the new sharp twin blade system did a perfect job.  Buy a Honda you will not regret it.

This is the best small mower I have ever purchased [my fourth], nothing else comes close.

This is the best small mower I have ever purchased [my fourth], nothing else comes close.

I recently bought this mower and love to use it. Me and my wife decided to buy it after reading a review at thise website http://lawn-mower-reviews.com/ and all I can say is we are glad we did buy it and hope we enjoy it for many years. We love Honda products and are loyal customers. Thanks again guys

I searched for a long time (and read countless reviews) before finally coming to the conclusion that this was the mower for me.  No, this mower doesn't have all the bells and whistles that others do, but that's exactly what makes it perfect.  This thing is built like a tank, but still weighs about as much as any generic, self-propelled mower you could get at any of the big-box stores... only it's nothing like any of those mowers.  You really have to see one to appreciate it.  I drove 300 miles round trip just to check this mower out, (and, obviously, snatched it up). 

That it is not self-propelled, and has a manual choke and throttle control, are bonuses to me.  The wide, 9"-tall, sealed ball-bearing wheels (all the way around) make it really easy to push, and to pull.  The quality of this machine is simply outstanding, and I completely expect this to be the last mower I ever purchase... and that's really why I purchased it.  From the GSV160, to the design of the deck and bag, this thing effing rocks.  A mediocre, generic mower might have cost half as much, but if one just looks at the vast differences in quality, they'll realize this mower will easily outlast any other mower, by a LONG shot. 

So, option 1:  buy a blah mower, get pissed off that it is such crappy quality, use it for several seasons until you can't tolerate it anymore, and then, buy another blah mower, and another... Or, option 2:  buy a Honda, and have a blast every single time you use it.  Seriously.  It's made mowing fun for me again.  I'm glad Honda is still making this model... and if they ever decide to discontinue it, well, I already have mine!