The CLAAS Cougar Is The World's Largest Mower (And Here's Why You Can't Use It On Your Lawn)

While you might sit atop a 60-inch zero-turn mower feeling mighty, the truth is that you have nothing on the monstrous CLAAS Cougar 1400. Of course, even the Cougar pales in size next to Big Bud, the largest tractor ever built. Considered the world's largest self-propelled mower, the Cougar 1400 includes five cutting decks: three in front and one on each side. This means, depending on the configuration, you could mow down up to 45-foot-wide swaths, operating at as much as 13 miles per hour. Boasting 480 horsepower, mechanical four-wheel drive, and DISCO cutterbar design, this machine offers plenty of performance, paired with rugged construction. 

However, there are several reasons why neither you nor any of your neighbors will be climbing onboard one of these colossal machines to mow a yard. For one thing, CLAAS doesn't manufacture the Cougar 1400 any longer, and you can only find them up for auction occasionally, such as one model listed on Farmers Weekly, which sold in 2022 in the U.K. for £39,000 ($51,924). Secondly, this machine is designed for industrial-sized farming operations with hundreds of acres. Not only would its sheer size make storing it in a residential neighborhood impossible, but its bulk just isn't designed to navigate compact areas.

The CLAAS Cougar is going to cut similarly to a tractor with mowing implements attached to it. These are rotary decks with spinning blades made to handle overgrown fields, capable of processing more material, even over rugged terrain. Reportedly, the original price of the CLAAS Cougar was $475,000; however, this is hardly the costliest piece of equipment from the manufacturer, which made the list of the most expensive tractors ever made. While a significant area of land can be mowed with the Cougar, it's not nearly as manicured or precision-cut as turf maintained by a lawn mower.

Farmers mow their fields for a variety of reasons, such as the benefits it provides for livestock. An overgrown patch of land becomes full of vegetation that includes stems and seed heads, which animals don't like to graze on. Running something like the CLAAS Cougar across this land will remove unwanted parts of the plants and encourage the foliage to produce more nutrient-rich leaves, which livestock can thrive on.

Unless you're in the agriculture business, likely the largest mower you'll ever use is a zero-turn. In terms of residential models, the big box hardware stores do offer units with up to 60-inch cutting decks. You can bump up to 72-inch decks with commercial models like the Kubota diesel zero turn. However, another manufacturer, Lastec, has announced the massive WZ1000 model, which can mow a cutting swath 120 inches wide. This translates into a capability to cover around just under nine acres per hour.

Naturally, a machine that offers this level of productivity doesn't come cheap, and starts at $48,900. The new Lastec model is also far too large for most residential properties, but would be ideal for maintaining sports field complexes and golf courses. While it's nice to dream about how quickly you might be able to mow your lawn with one of these behemoths, the reality is your wallet and yard are far better off with a unit designed to cover an area equivalent to your property size.