How To Bypass Your Riding Mower Seat Switch 

4 years later, this video is still helping people out. Thanks for helping me dude!

I literally was about to return this mower. Then I saw your video! Thank God! I have a bumpy country yard and every 5 feet (no exaggeration!) I would have to turn the blades back on! Stupid! It was truly MORE DANGEROUS than having the safely switches functional. I LOVE my mower now... thanks to you!!

This is great!! Literally took me 2 minutes only because I had to go back to the toolbox for a smaller screwdriver. One tip: tape the metal contact that comes out TO the plastic switch. That way if you want the safety switch activated in the future (after you are done troubleshooting) then you don’t have to go searching for it.

What these companies need to understand is that not everybody’s yard is perfectly level and perfect like the yards in the lame Lowe’s or Home Depot commercials my yard is hilly and I have to lean and it tries to shut off while I’m side ways on it🤣

Thanks so much. Thanks to you, today I learned that I can set the parking break to override the seat sensor - I sure didn't see it in the manual. This is all I need to hop off and open or close a gate or pick up debris. Very grateful.

Wow. Thank you so much for posting this. I've been frustrated with my mower for the last week fixing safety switches that didn't need fixed. This is the only thing that worked in the last dozen RU-vid videos I've watched. Cheers.

Just did this to mine, worked perfectly. I have a Craftsman T240. Thanks for straight forward, to the point information!

This was really convenient cause i couldn't jump-start my mower without knowing this quick fix. Thank you!

Wow only four comments on the most informative and useful video regarding this issue on RU-vid. You sir are a scholar

Thanks, I was unable to cut my grass because my safety switch had gone bad. Because of this video I was finally able to cut my 6” deep grass today LOL

I just did this to my mower as this block of instruction demonstrated and it worked perfectly. Labor for my area in Michigan would have ran between 60.00 and 129.00 for a general once over not including parts. This switch cost 10.00 - 19.00 to replace and it simply isn’t worth it. It’s already costed me a new battery this season. Well worth the few minutes of my time. Thanks for passing this tip on.

10 million thumbs up my friend.I have a Craftsman and a small bank to mow.I would try to lean my weight up hill for traction and the dang thing would die.These "safety" devices are more dangerous than they know.Thanks again.

This saved me from throwing a wrench through my glass door, it saved me from pushing the mower 100 feet... not sure why, but with only 5 hours, the seat switch failed. This saved me a call to the dealer.. thanks

A little clumsy but this is the clearest video I have seen on this topic. Thank you.

The most helpful video by far for me on YT. My Husqvarna kept running real rough, and I could even get off the seat and it would still run. Replaced the seat switch on it, thinking that was the problem. Nope same issue of the tractor running rough. Came across your video and it fixed the issue thanks

Thank you for the video. My Craftsman riding mower has the exact seat clip as yours. None of the Craftsman videos had that clip, only yours. LOL. So thank you again

Thanks for the tip. Was hoping I had a bad seat switch and as a result the mower wouldn't start. But it still won't start. Thanks for helping me eliminate one possible issue.

Thank you sooo much, me niece doesn’t weigh enough to engage those picks it would start but as soon as she started moving she’d bounce and off it went super helpful🕊🙏

I wish I’d found this information ten years ago! Suffice to say you totally made my day today. THANK YOU! 🙏

Thank you. I just bought the exact rider and was mowing my ditch and my rear wheel was slipping...so I shifted my weight to engage the tire and it shuts off lol. I will try this tomorrow.

Excellent and simple--my problem I didnt watch the entire video and plugged it back in and it shut the engine off. I finished the video and found out I didnt need to plug it back in----2 lessons learned !!!

Excellent. Thanks very much. There are a number of circumstances where the safety switch makes you less safe (for example if you have to jump the mower to start it), and it is great to be able to disable it.

Thanks mate from australia my seat has broken and kept disengaging the blades replacement 300 bucks.2 minutes your video i fixed the problem and finished days work.cheers

Thank you! 👍🏼 you helped me out a lot. I was finally able to finish my 2 acre lawn : ) but..., right at the end, my front wheel fell off. Just the C clip. I already got one from my other wheel falling off so no worries. Just gotta wait till it cools off. Have a great day!

Nice! I removed the switch from the seat and put a zip tie around it to keep it pressed.

I got lucky, this video was the first for my search. Just bought a new Husqvarna TS248XD and there is a loud whirring sound when it’s running with the clutch all the way out. I can apply just a small amount of pressure on the pedal and it stops. I think it may be a drive belt pulley bearing. Thank you so much!

Outstanding share thanks one of the most informative videos I've seen in a while also the clarity is right on time. I'm trying to figure out why my country clipper isn't starting. I've put in a new battery a new solenoid a start switch and a pto switch and still nothing. Thats why I thought I'd try disengaging the safety switch for the seat. The search will continue.

Great fix! My Husqvarna zero turn kept dying and it was a faulty seat switch. Just did this and back to cutting.!

Wow! It took longer to watch the video than it do to disable the switch! Thank you!

that works so perfect. thank you. been struggling for so long with jump starting my mower. you solved a lot of angst and i thank you.

worked great on my 2018 Craftsman Pro garden tractor/mower. Thanks for posting this fix.

This is a very sturdy and well built mower. I thought I wouldn't like the foot operated speed control but after one use ru-vid.comUgkxTZSPVwJFBv2hORqhQamtxi-tAe5K2EtC , I can't believe I ever had one without it. It drives like a car with an automatic transmission. Easy to adjust mowing speed according to grass depth/thickness. I have yet to get used to the long throw of the blade engagement lever but kind of get why it is that way. It allows you to hold mowing for short moments if you need. The engine seems very substantial and the frame has very little flex, both adding up to an impressive package. All my previous tractors were 18 to21 hp with 42in decks. This one is 23/46. I mow about 1.5 acres about every 5 days here in Alaska and that mowing time has been reduced by about 20%, partly due to the very tight turning radius. No loop arounds lol. Hour meter, cruise control, reverse mowing capability,deck cleanout and easy assembly all add up to a very well thought out tractor.

Thank you brother. You are a life saver. Much appreciated. 🙏

Absolutely brilliant video! Literally took me less than a minute! I feel like I owe you a cold one at the very least!

Thanks that is a different style and now I know how to do newer models

I got a cheap Poulan pro and gonna buy a Husqvarna next. Because even though the Poulan is not great, it was still very good and better then expected for the last ten years. But with this seat disabled i can keep on going with it : ) thanks my problem is fixed now.

That's one of the best mods for my new mower. Infact I have all the stupid safety switches diabled. My old tractor didn't have any so why the hell would I want them on my new one?!

Spot on what was wrong with mine! Thanks for the info!!

This reallllllly helped out a lot. Exactly my problem. Thanks a lot. Subbed.

Thank you so much. The seat switch checks out perfect, yet the engine dies, I have been on yt searching, and some guys said something about shorting feature in the plug in. Big puzzle until your vid! I pushed out that demonic feature from the factory and presto- let the clutch out and IT RUNS. God bless you. Mike

Nice work I just bought a used Husqvarna 22V46 and yes that is very aggravating I have a hilly yard so I’m going to do your trick aw much better great helpful video thank you

Very good........info. and demonstration. Thank you.

Thanks for sharing. Much easier solution than the others I found. Worked like a champ!

Thank you Thank you.... I have been working on mine forever and couldn't find the problem. You Sir showed me the solution. The plug on the wire harness was the problem, that metal prong thing was making bad connections. I removed it, problem solved.

Well that took care of my problem, Thank You !

Switch went bad...this fixed that. Thanks.

So can that plate be slid back into place and function properly when you are done troubleshooting?

Excellent video!!! Thanks

Thanks, that really helpful. I always stall out cutting the edges of my property.

Thanks for the video! This has helped me troubleshoot my machine.

"...just disable it for troubleshooting purposes" 😉

Been nice if at the end you would have started it to show us how this hack actually worked. I’m sure it does but still would have been good. Good video, have the same video btw. Thanks bud. 👍👍

Worked like a charm…. Thank you… next is the reverse thing and having to turn off the blades

Thank you! Now I don't have to use my zero-turn Cub Cadet for everything just because it was the only one that I could get off of to open the gate and have the engine keep running! (Well, it's still the one that gets closest to the fences without the tires getting in the way though.)

worked on my new 2021 jd s240. Thank You

worked great..thank you so much

Thank you awesome and informative

So I just removed mine… but it still shuts off when I get up? Not too sure why it didn’t change anything

Worked perfectly ! Thank You !

Thanks! Needed my ten year old to use the lawn sweeper and he's too light 😅

Thank you for this information! Very helpful.

The craftsman t2400 is disabled and won't fire unless the peice is slide back in reversed then it's truly bypassed

Worked for me on my 15 year old Husqvarna

Helpful thanks for the video. Just one question if you plug it back 8n with out that part in the plug will the seat shut off still work, Or do you need to put that part back in?

It works on a YTH2448T also but id like to be able to go in reverse with the blade engaged. I'm still working on that. Thank you Sir

You poor thing you. That was so funny that the jumper is the sprain That was outrageously hilarious. I don't know whether to laugh or cry

Great tip. Very helpful. Thanks

Awesome. Thanks for taking the time to make video. Huge help for me, Thanks my friend

Hi Thank you for the tip. However the three wires that extend from the switch can you tell me their function . I presume the black is ground where do the other go to? Could I just cut the wires and join them with connectors so nothing changes, then connect in one of the wires an emergency tie switch that in case i slipped off the seat the my fall would pull the switch, close the circuit and the engine would stop. So which of the three wires is connected to the magnito to cut the engine. Tks for your help

Worked great took me 5 mins thanks

After watching your vid about the seat safety switch, I fully expected I'd want to do what you showed. Now that I've actually run my YTH24V48, I found the key switch had a "reverse while mowing" position. So, I was going to do your fix. Then I discovered if you just leave your key in that reverse position....you can mow forward without having to move the key to the full run position. So now I just start it, move it to the reverse while mowing position....easy peasy....no modifying. Why do all that?

I have a Craftsman YT4000 and did this but I just unplugged the harness and zip tied it to the fuel line so it doesn't flop around and it worked fine, didn't have to remove the insert....just unplug it and you're good to go.

I'm not sure when Husqvarna made the change but sadly the fix you showed here didn't work for me. Instead, I had to press the seat button down and run a zip tie around the tabs to hold the switch down.

Great, to the point. Some guys take 6 minutes to tell how to turn on the lights.

Thank you! Excellent Video!!

exactly what I needed .....thanks

wow tried tooth picks and never worked that was so easy thanks

With the switch disassembled do the blades turn on without you on the mower ??

i like my seat safety switch so that if somehow i fall off the mower stops running!!! the switch i want to bypass is the one that wont let me back up the mower while the blades are engaged!!!! ive got a 42" lawnmachine rider!!!

Simple, straightforward and to the point! Great info!

Thank you Sir! You are a genius! Much appreciated! :^)

That is awesome!! And it works! Thanks so much

FANTASTIC, your's the best I've seen, thanks.

Thanks for the video!!!

Craftsman t3000, pulled out that piece like I've seen in a couple videos. When I do that it only runs if I am stepping on the brake.

Worked on my Toro LX425, thanks brother

Worked like a charm! Thanks!

You are Rite on man... Thanks for the info...

Worked like a charm thanks.

Question are you able to put it back in ?

I'm just going to take a plastic card (old cc, membership, or those fake ones they send every day in the mail) and cut it to fit, slide it between the contacts, and tape it in for good measure. I think this would do the trick? Seems easier to undo, if needed.

Perhaps they can make them with adjustable sensitivity or simply more sensitive for lighter weight riders on rough ground.

Can u just plug the connector back in so its not just dangling? Doing this tomorrow :)

Thank you sir. My toes are worried though.

Thank you! Very useful!

Brilliant. Thank you!

I tried this just for troubleshooting and it did not seem to make any difference. So now I'm wondering if my mechanic was telling me the truth about needing a new seat switch...

I still have to jump the starter, but at least I can get off the mower without it shutting off again. Thank you for this. I just wish I could figure out what’s wrong with my ignition. Mower is only a few months old. So I feel like it shouldn’t be the ignition switch itself. But I may replace it anyways. Either way, thank you for this information.

Thank you

This did not work for my ariens Kohler lawnmower variant.