A robotic mower area coverage system, includes a load sensor on the robotic mower (100) signaling a load on a cutting blade motor (112) a boundary sensor (119) on the robotic mower (100) indicating the distance from the boundary sensor (119) to a boundary wire (103, 104) a timer on the robotic mower (100) indicating when the robotic mower (100) last used a specified boundary coverage a vehicle control unit (101) on the robotic mower (100) selecting the type of area coverage based on inputs from the load sensor, the boundary sensor (119) and the timer, and commanding a pair of traction drive motors (110, 111) to drive the robotic mower (100) using the selected type of area coverage.