Grass is not growing at our elevation yet, but it will be soon. So my experience with the Husqvarna GT48DXLS is limited. My unit is brand new-- a first year model. So there is some risk to buying a new year model, but Husky has also been making these machines for a long time. I have owned it less than 2 weeks and have maybe 20 minutes driving over the lawn. What I did observe is an almost unbelievable discharge force to the side. We have many, many leaves. So I was driving over the lawn mostly chewing up leaves and blowing them out to see what it can do. I didn't measure, but it was blowing the leaf debris quite a long ways out the side. I think they advertise a high capacity bagger will work even without a separate powerflow unit.
I agree on considering your needs, then matching the equipment to that. Mine are simple-- about a half acre of lawn, mostly flat. The previous mower was a 12hp Craftsman, with a 38" deck. It lasted 14 years before it finally gave it up. It was a lower end machine compared to my Husqvarna or compared to anything made by Deere (except maybe the Deere 100 series.) The Deere advocates talk up longevity of their models, and are justifiably proud of that. By my feeling is that if a low end Craftsman made it 14 years, either a Husky or a Deere should do that, and probably more.
Considering that, a $3,000 Husky beat a Deere x380 hands down. Both are fine machines, of course. The Deere has a slightly stronger stamped steel deck (10 gauge vs 11,), but the Husky has a 24hp Kawasaki engine vs 22, the Husky has a K66 transaxle, upgraded from the earlier K46 variants, and the Husky has electric locking differential, completely absent on the x380. I felt the x380 was a bit light to push it into higher service tasks. And it seems the locking differential is purposely omitted on the x380 to push buyers into the next level (and higher priced) platform. So, I also considered a Husky GT48DXLS versus a Deere X5XX model, which is much better suited to using the many optional various attachments. But that comparison pushed the pricing from $2,999 for a Husky vs $5,500+ for a Deere, before purchasing any attachments.
Deere models are well proven, at least the quality models. I've seen many complaints about their 100 series. As best as I know, Husqvarna's previous models had a weakness with the K46 transaxle. That was a common weakness across many brands and models. They seemed to have addressed this, and much more, with the GT48DXLS. Good luck with your decision!
