my mtd lawnflite 547 wont start (12 hp briggs & stratton )?

you may have a low battery. The other thing to check is your battery connection. The cables may not be getting a good connection to the battery. With someone holding the key in the start position, tug on the cables or rotate them while it's on the battery to see if a bad connection is happening. The other thing that could be happening is the starter silenoid could be shot. Take a srew driver and short out the two large cables on the silinoid to see if the starter engages, just do not touch the chassis as you can get a good spark going.

Good luck

David
July 2007