Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Discussions

I bought this machine because I needed a rugged machine that would last me. I would rather purchase a "Tim Taylor" machine rather than fuss with an inferior one. This beast has 13hp, 36" wide, locking diff, heated hand grips, light, elec start, ect.... I have a 100 foot paved driveway. It has snowed 4 times since I purchased it, and it has broke down on me 3 times.  everything from a factory recall that i wasnt notified of, so it burned belts (4)!!, to nuts & bolts falling out, chute breaking, auger stops turning, wheels stop driving, etc.... The dealer has a special place for it in his shop that they dont fill when it is at my place. I believe this machine would last forever,  if i dont use it. The dealer stood behind me 100% when I told them enough is enough I wanted something done, money back, or a replacement. Now it has snowed today, 20", I have a bad back and have to shovel while the ariens company sits on my $3000.00. Anybody else have this problem?

Looking Back on all the threads, I fail to see where I stated ANYTHING about "all" or even one single locknut falling out. Bolts that are threaded directly into the lower housing sheet metal with NO nuts are the trouble, as are the console bolts, and the belt cover bolts,... nope, still no mention of a locknut. Maybe I need glasses,  and I am sure I can get my hands on a complete record of repairs from the dealership If needed to "freshen the air".  If anyone is interested, the dealed AGAIN called yesterday to offer to do my drive for me (yep, more snow). I talked to the owner of the company today, and after seeing the record of this machine, he told me he will make it absoulutely right for me and assured me that I would not in any way be dissappointed. This is why this dealership came highly recommended to me by other customers I know. They've been in buisness for many years, and I believe for good reason.

It does appear that I misinterpretted what you said:

I.E. "As for nuts and bolts, none of these had lock nuts on them, they were on the console, and cable guides"

I thought you were refering to all nuts and bolts, not just the ones on the console and cable guides. Sorry for the confusion.

I would also guess that part of the "suspicion" was due to the timing of your postings. I'm in the habit of checking at least once a day and am used to seeing "hot topic" threads with several postings per day, including replies to queries from the original poster. Since you had reported a problem and then didn't post for several days the antenna started to go up. At the same time as I previously stated maybe you were just fed up with the ongoing problems. I can also see that if there has been no news from the dealer then you wouldn't necessarily have anything to post here. I must also admit that Ariens has a very good reputation around here so there is some scepticism when a horror story like yours occurs. That's not to say you aren't having a problem and that it should be fixed, it just means it hasn't happened that often with that manufcturer.

I hope we will all see a post soon that says the matter was resolved and that you are now happy.

good Luck

I am self employed and work all over the state, so i dont get to go online that often. Sorry, but when you get frustrated, and then have somebody question your integrity, I guess I might have over reacted. I have been in contact with snowmann. we'll see.

I don't feel that you over reacted, I do understand the frustration though both with the machine problems and with the allegations of people's suspicions. You have handled the situation well, as did the other people who posted. You bought what I would consider a top of the line machine from a dealer and you've had nothing but problems. We will have to see what happens next.

Please let us know how this turns out, enquiring minds need to know !

It appears snowman was well aware of this machine beforehand, and has been  in contact with several individuals (my dealer, etc) who can do something about it. We'll see.

heyyip

The way Ariens is going on your problem, you might have it repaired by the end of next years snow season!!!

Lots of luck on having your problem solved!!

                                                                 Fred

I'm new to this forum but I have to admit that from reading numerous posts, it appears that many of the posters appear to be pro Ariens.  Not trying to offend anyone,  but  I get the sense that there  are participants who try to mitigate anything negative said about Ariens.  Maybe it's just my imagination........ 

Ariens does seem to be a gold standard in price/performance.  That's true here and just about everywhere else I go.  Nothing wrong with that.  However, it's just impossible to make that many machines without a lemon.  Whether all the tolerances lined up, it was a Friday afternoon build, or whatever, it just happens.  A good company isn't defined solely by defect rate -- it's also how it responds when the few unavoidable defects happen.  Obviously, none of us know the full story of what has happened in this case, but hopefully Ariens will use this as an opportunity to demonstrate the brand promise of the Ariens name.

When I was shopping for a new snow thrower about a month ago, the local Cub Cadet/MTD dealer had a similar, used, 2005 model Ariens 1336DLE on his lot.  I looked it over pretty good and it did look like an impressively built machine.  All steel construction, cast iron auger drive gear case, OHV Tec engine, 12 volt electric start, light, hand warmers etc.  The dealer wanted $1600.00 for it.  Upon close inspection, i noticed a few details on the engine that looked out of place.  It appeared to me that the engine had been worked on.  Dealer claimed that it hadn't been.  At least not by him.  That doesn't rule out that someone else may have had it apart.  He also claimed that it had very little time on it.  The attached maintenance minder showed 70 hours, which is more than very little in my book.  Another feature I disliked was the wheel lock down on the right hand wheel.  Now that I have read this post, I'm all the more pleased that I decided to go with a new Simplicity 9528 for considerably less money.  I looked at the HD models of Toro and Ariens and wasn't impressed.  Prices were substantially higher than the Simp and neither machine had all of the desirable features nor apparent build quality.  I would have looked at the higher end models of Ariens and Toro but the local dealer is worst price gouger I've ever come across.   So I didn't bother to visit his dealership.   Now I have to wait for some snow to put the Simplicity through it's paces to see how well it performs.  Will provide a review after a few months of operation. 

OK people, Here is the update on my machine: The dealer told me he was going to swallow the loss and get me a new machine, which he did last year. he had it all summer as an agreement between us because he was busy with mowers and the snow was gone, free storage, right? Just before our first storm, i recieved the new machine with "all the updates", evidently there were a few. I used it without any problems through 2 BIG storms. We got a wet snowfall last week of about 5 inches. I made 1 pass down my paved driveway, turned around, made a half a pass back, and I smelled something hot. 10 seconds later the machine was on fire. I put out the fire with snow, took pictures, and brought them to the dealer. They were back to my home as soon as I was to retrieve the machine. He called me back to tell me not to worry, it is under warrantee. He said the machine was wired wrong from the factory, and the wires chaffed and shorted out under the battery, and that he ordered a new wiring harness, and it will be good as new....I wonder, will it?  For the price of this monster I could have had a couple of K-Mart machines.