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

  well guys i just got word this morning that tecumseh will be closing its doors as of  dec 15.  this means no more rngines as well as no more parts.   a possible 3rd party is in the mix.  more to come

Considering that a Brigss & Stratten will drop right into most Tecumseh powered equipment, why would anyone be concerned about parts supply?   The old Tecumseh L head is a durable engine provided the oil is kept up.  Chances are that when id does fail, it will probably be unrepairable.   I wouldn't be losing any sleep over parts availability.  If you have a Tecumseh engine.  Cherish it.  It's now a piece of history. 

Sad to see a company that's been a stalwart in American small engine manufacturing go down like this.   It's a God damned shame.   No one to blame but ourselves I guess.  We all want everything for the lowest possible price.   Walmart started the process of dismantling our manufacturing base over ten years ago.  Item by item, piece by piece.   We consumers enjoyed the savings while the remaining manufacturers struggled to survive.  Meanwhile the insidious process of erosion to our manufacturing base was chipping away at jobs, plants then ultimately entire businesses.   Now that the exodus of our manufacturing sectors have gained momentum, we are beginning to see the disappearance of household mainstays such as Tecumseh.   I certainly hope  that this economic crisis will be a wake up call for how we do business.  We cannot expect to compete in a global economy where labour is  thirty five cents an hour on one side of the ocean and thirty five dollars on the other.   I'm not certain what the average consumer thinks regarding this situation.  I however, would be willing to pay a few bucks more for quality products to keep people working in our countries.     Apologize  for another rant...    

I was following this closely last year and knew that there was a good chance this was coming. Knew this before i bought my machine with a tecumseh. Was a big issue for me actually.  Most dealers at that time acted like it wasn't a issue and not to worry. Almost as if they didn't know tecumseh was in trouble. But it was on the forums and private messages that i found comfort in knowing that not likely tecumseh will completely fold and if so parts should be available for long time. Here we are a year later and how it has changed. Tecumseh is closing down, parts will be around for who knows long. Kinda kickin myself in the a$$ a little, cause I saw this coming and still bought a tecumseh based machine.  None the less, the only model around here worth buying with a briggs last year was a craftsman. It was a husky and appear to be a decent model. Tho, i still feel the ariens was a lot better in a few areas. So really i was damned if I do, damned if I don't.. lol 

Hopefully my tecumseh will last long time with proper maintenance. Fingers crossed :)  But just incase some troubles arise, I was wondering if there was a few parts that maybe I should have in the backup. Things that will likely go, that don't cost much to buy.  Things that can be replaced rather they purchasing a new briggs.

Its a really shame to see this manufacture completely shut down. Hopefully somebody sees the value in making the parts.

Cheers
Goofie Newfie



 

I wouldn't sweat the parts issue.  If the engine ever stops, you can pretty much bet that it will be a catastrophic failure and a rebuild would be more expensive than a replacement B&S engine. 

Keep the oil clean & level up, keep your fuel clean, run some Seafoam through it once a year, drain the fuel tank and run the carb dry for indoor storage.   Follow those simple tips and that engine will probably last as long as you'll be able to operate the machine. 

borat wrote:
It's begun to really bug me that when I go out looking for real American durability I find that it's no longer available.
I'd be more than happy to pay more for it.  I'd rather pay the price of a Honda for a really solid Ariens (like my 1999
1024SHO, 924106) than to have to settle for a lighter duty Ariens.  Some examples : my 1024 has big bearings
everywhere, heavy steel, and the impeller has six blades made from 1/8" thick steel.  This year I needed a second
machine and was disappointed to discover that I couldn't buy the same quality.  The closest is the 9526DLE Pro,
the top model without tracks, and it's a few hundred dollars cheaper than what I paid for my 1024 9 years ago. 
It has bushings just about everywhere (and some of them plastic) and what bearings it does have are smaller. 
It weighs 15 lbs less.  I would have preferred paying the same price, or even more (as I was expecting) to receive
the same durability  and ease of maintenance as my old machine.

I just spent a hundred dollars or so replacing most of the bearings on my 1024 (I did the wheel bearings last year
and the gear box still looks just fine).  I  took the auger all apart and repainted everything.  There was quite a bit of
rust but oddly only at the many welds. I have not taken good care of this machine over the years, it's outside all the
time (in a shed) and I don't like working on it outside in the cold so things get put off to the summer.  The parts are
so robust that they can take the abuse and the machine can be put back to just about new condition at any time with
cheaply available parts.  I have a feeling that the 9526 is going to require quite a bit more preventive maintenance
to keep it going for a long time and I'm not sure I feel like taking it apart on a regular basis.

I have two Mom 'n Pop Ariens dealers nearby and am always impressed that they usually have just about any part
already on hand, or if they don't they can get it within a few days.  This is the traditional way of doing things but
unfortunately I fear that it's on its way out.   I'd hate to have to find a part for a cheap machine (and Honda's prices
for parts are outright ridiculous).

I wonder how long Ariens can stay alive.  There are just two many equity funds out there buying up companies just
to shut them down.  Like Borat I'd also like restrictions on importing products from abroad, especially China, that
are cheaper because the living and working conditions there are so much lower than here in North America.  Not
only are we putting our own people out of work but we're actively supporting the exploitation of others in other
countries.  It's shameful.

Paul

I just read an interesting post over on another forum in which it was pointed out that
Ariens' warranty  (and I suppose other manufacturers using Tecumseh engines)  does
not cover the engine, that the engine is warranted by the engine's manufacturer.  With
Tecumseh out of business this would seem to imply that  their engines are now without
warranty.

I'm expecting a new Ariens in the next couple of weeks.  I wasn't too worried about
parts availabilty for the engine since my 9-year-old current snowblower with a Tecumseh
10hp L-head has never needed an engine part and it starts on first pull every year. 
But manufacturing defects on a new machine are a bit more of a concern now that
nobody seems to be there to take responsibility.

Perhaps Snowmann has some company policy to offer us regarding the  warranty
coverage on a new Tecumseh engine ?

Paul