I'm not fond of those type mowers, but it's only a matter of preference. I expect that there are many people that like them.

As far as Kohlers go, which model Kohler model does it have? There were a few of the models that have been nightmares, but the horizontal shaft industrial quality motors and the old single cylinder motors have been very good.

I don't think that the one you describe is a commercial machine, so it most likely has a vertical shaft engine.