Disappointed with Champion brand generator!

[Vtnewbie]

Bought a 3500 watt Champion brand generator about 2 years ago at Tractor Supply, mainly to run the well pump during power outages. Of course we haven't had a power outage of more than a couple of hours since then :laughing:

The first one I got poured gas out of the carburetor bowl, but TS took it back with no issues (love that store). The replacement worked fine for a while, but basically all I did with it for almost 2 years was start it up every couple of weeks to keep the stator up; always shut off the gas and let it run dry to keep from gumming up the carburetor.

Well, in October, it just wouldn't start. Took it to a repairman, who found that a metal tab on the on/off switch had broken off in the back. The metal tabs/contacts for the switch were made of the same stuff you see now on the plugs of cheap, Chinese-made power cords. You know, kind of a silvery, brittle metal, rather than the bendable, resilient brass blades that older cords have. Cost me $45 to get that fixed, as well as having him clean up one of the intake valves that had developed some rust from sitting while it wouldn't start (also had repairman change oil, etc). Champion Tech services had previously emailed me the repair information, such as proper compression readings, etc. They then passed me off to Champion customer service.

Champion customer service immediately answered that they would not cover the repair, because rust on a valve meant that I had let the generator sit without running. When I pointed out that the broken switch was why it hadn't been run, then they curtly replied that they would reimburse me the $3.84 one of their switches cost IF I sent them a bunch of paperwork from the repairman.

SO, 2 defective generators in a row, and very poor customer service. I won't buy another of that brand!

 

[diesel lover]

I'm sorry to hear the quality of the champion generators are so so. In 2000 my parents decided to buy a generac 3500 working watt generator. It too has had some performance issues over time. For the most part it has in fact been 99%!!! It has served us well living in the sticks. When power goes out in the winter the biggest precaution is heating the house to keep from bursting pipes etc. we backfeed the electricity through a large outlet in the garage after we shut the power supply off. Doing this we can run the furnace and one major appliance. It has served us well. Something has gone wrong before weather it well gum in the carburetor or something else. While trying to start our ford tractor in the spring it failed to start. I needed to brush hog grass. I started the generator to charge the 6 volt battery since I was 100 feet away from an AC power supply. The generator has a idle up and down system. It saves fuel by idleing when instant power is not needed. The generator failed to idle up with such a small load. It was very odd as even with a circular saw it would always power up even with such little wattage required.

I believe the result was either a carburetor performance issue or the engine would not idle up due to the governor not responding to the need of electricity.

Testing is preformed in spring and fall at daylight savings. We disconnect the power to the house and power it using the generator for a few hours. This puts a load on the engine to run all the equipment required. We keep the fuel full with stabil to keep it running smoothly. We also siphon out the fuel if it does get old. The fuel is siphoned out and simply put into a antique tractor. Fresh fuel is added to the full mark to keep out any moisture.


Sorry to hear about your poor experience with your generator. Depending on what I do I may get a 3 point generator or I may get a gasoline stationary unit. Honda and other company's still make such a quality unit as others do not. Harbor freight generators are so- so

 

[buickanddeere]

What do you expect for a $250 Chinese clone?

 

[Hdoilcan]

What do you expect for a $250 Chinese clone?

I'd expect good customer service no matter what type of product I buy.

 

[Vtnewbie]

What do you expect for a $250 Chinese clone?

Yep, you got me there! Now I'm looking at one of these Your Source for Military Diesel Generators! - Green Mountain Generators

 

[4shorts]

I see guys coming into our shop with generators and the ones with the biggest breakdowns are Champions. The sad part is when they come in they need power right away. Even the owners admit they think their junk. They simply don't last but as the saying goes "you get what you pay for".

I could have bought a Champion for around $900. last year but instead paid $3000. for a Honda 6500 and yes it was a little pricey but I'll get a part for it easily for the next twenty years at my local Honda dealership if needed but I truly doubt I'll need any parts.

In the early 90's I worked as a Honda power equipment tech and even back then I didn't see many " natural" issues with the Honda product. The issues I seen were "man made". I'm sorry to hear about your issues. They didn't treat you right. I sure don't have any confidence in Champions or the other 50 plus Chinese built generators that on the market.

 

[zzvyb6]

I also just picked up a Honda EU6500IS (Inverter based, quiet, electric start is what the codes stand for). I'm also in the market for an EU2000I or an EU3000IS to service my JLG man-lift. There are quit a few generators for sale in this class and very few Hondas for sale below 80% of their new price. All the rest are 50 to 25% of their new price. I happened to look at a Generac 2000 watt model and noticed that it only has a 2.5 hp motor while the Honda's is 3.5 hp. The reviews say it all. The Honda does a better job of handling a starting load before the throttle ramps up, while the other models fail to get the appliance started and overload. Even though they are all rated about the same. I see that a Yamaha inverter generator is also well rated in this power range, but is actually a smaller displacement 2.5 hp motor like many of the other non-Hondas.

So, its both a quality and a performance advantage that you need to watch out for when buying a generator that's closely matched to your needs. I have a 50kw pto generator that really does the job, but I love a bargain and flexibility of tools like this. Not very many Honda inverter generators are available for a bargain price. Plenty of others, though...

 

[MikePA]

I could have bought a Champion for around $900. last year but instead paid $3000. for a Honda 6500 and yes it was a little pricey but I'll get a part for it easily for the next twenty years at my local Honda dealership if needed but I truly doubt I'll need any parts.

In the early 90's I worked as a Honda power equipment tech and even back then I didn't see many " natural" issues with the Honda product. The issues I seen were "man made". I'm sorry to hear about your issues. They didn't treat you right. I sure don't have any confidence in Champions or the other 50 plus Chinese built generators that on the market.

I agree, 100%, about Honda generators and getting what you pay for.

Our power came back on at 3:00 pm this afternoon after being out for 3.5 days. My EM5000SX ran flawlessly for 90 straight hours, using about .4 gallon per hour.

 

[ultrarunner]

With the changes to fuel in California... I've had no end to problems with carbureted gas fuel systems that sit for extended times.

All my cars from the 50's and 60's will need repairs just to function.

Only my Model A's seem unaffected because the fuel systems are 100% metal except for the float cork!

I was given a Champion and used because it was much smaller than my Honda EM5000.

Worked well for the first summer and then had fuel issues next spring and the next spring after that... ended up taking things apart and cleaning...

Didn't make it up to the cabin one summer and the Honda also had fuel issues... it had been 16 months... so only me to blame.

 

[bullbreaker]

I got a whopping 2 hr.s on this one , original owner paid almost $2400 for it and then sold his house month or so later to move up north. Didn't want to take it. I bought it off him for $1200, Subaru mtr.Unit has E-start and recoil . I know Honda makes a kick butt unit but felt like I did well.