Recall Alert

U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission

Office of Information and Public Affairs

Washington, DC 20207

January 4, 2002
Alert #02-517

CPSC, Deere & Co. Announce Recall of Lawn Tractors

PRODUCT: Lawn Tractors - Deere & Company of Moline, Ill., is voluntarily recalling about 8,000 LT lawn tractors. The tractors have a 38", 42" or 48" mower deck, a 13 to 16 horsepower engine, and are green with yellow trim. "John Deere" and the model number are printed on the hood of the tractor. This recall involves the following John Deere LT series lawn tractors:

Model	Serial Numbers
LT 133A	MOL133A133732-137051
LT 155B	MOL155B132012-135678
LT 155C	MOL155C125907-126632
LT 166E	MOL166E126422-127231
LT 166F	MOL166F125307-125410
LT 166G	MOL166G125444-125606
LT 166J	MOL166J125870-127202

Serial numbers are located on a plate in front of the seat. The recalled lawn tractors were manufactured from December 2000 through January 2001 and sold by authorized John Deere dealers for about $2,700.

PROBLEM: The fuel tank can crack and leak fuel, posing a fire hazard and risk of burn injuries to consumers.

INCIDENTS/INJURIES: Deere has received 91 reports of fuel tanks cracking. No fires or injuries have been reported.

WHAT TO DO: Consumers should stop using the recalled lawn tractors immediately and contact their nearest John Deere dealer to arrange for a free replacement fuel tank to be installed. For additional information, contact Deere at (800) 537-8233 (Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., Saturday 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Eastern Time) or go the firm's web site at www.deere.com (note added 01/18/2005 - recall information is no longer on the firm's web site).