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

Has anyone used the little Toro Power Clear 180 yet?  It has the 87 cc engine 4 cycle engine on it. 

Waterloo wrote:
Yes, when I first saw the choke extension lever, I thought it was flimsy.  However, after a little bit of thought, it made sense.  Now, I don't remember how it was attached to the choke itself and how easy to replace it in case it breaks.  Hopefully it's a fastener-free smart snap fit.

Thanks for the writeup on the 180 performance.  The paddle is virtually the same as the 221/421, only scaled down.  If the 180 had the "blue" quick chute gizmo, I'd be getting one myself. 

Toro marketing department, are you listening?  Give me a 180 with quick chute and recoil start for $399 and 5 year GTS.  :)  While u're at it, integrate the deflector with the quick chute too.  :)

aa335 wrote:
Yes, the quick shoot would be nice on the 180 as it would have sped things up quite a bit for myself, especially in all of the nooks and crannies of my deck and walkways. The quick chute is something I would have paid extra for after using the one on my 221QE.

Also, it is kind of a back breaker turning the chute on the little Toro if you are tall, as the chute is right down below my knee level. And that blast of cold air up my jacket when bending over isn't much fun either. And no, my plumber side was not exposed.

Waterloo wrote:
Well, since you got that side covered, I'm not going there.  

I might have to get both the 180 and 221Q.  All reviews of the 180 have been favorable.

Bought the electric start model Dec 22, used only twice since then, today discovered it is leaking gasoline on my garage floor. Emailed Toro, they said to take it in to the dealer. Now I have to talk my wife into letting my use her minivan to haul a machine that is leaking gasoline, and take time out of my day to do it. Oh, and the shop said it will take a week to fix, let's hope it doesn't snow in the meantime.

Do not buy this machine. The external parts are cheap plastic, it doesn't plow down to the pavement, and oh yeah, it leaks gasoline after two uses. I bought a Toro on their reputation for quality. Big disappointment.

jlge99 wrote:
You must have a unit that was not put together right.  These little Toro's have been cleaning the snow right down to the pavement for the last 20 years or so, starting with the CR20 model with the same curved paddles.

External plastic parts seems to be as same quality as they have been last 5 years or so.  Better than the Powerlite that it replaces.

Welcome to the forum, sorry your first post had to be a negative review.  Hopefully the dealer can take care of the problems for you.

Mine has been working great.  BTW this little guy will fit in a trunk.  Just take out the rear chute bolt and tilt the chute flat.  The handles also fold down.  I'd just wrap it with a tarp and put it in the trunk for a ride to the dealer.

The little 180 sounds like a perfect fit for my brother-in-law. Wouldn't mind trying one out myself if I were in the market. What kind of prices or deals are you guys seeing right now? Are any of the big-box stores stocking these? BTW, my kinfolk live in SE Michigan, near Pontiac. Thanks in advance.

Seems to be uniform price fixing here in the Midwest on Toro single stage units.  Everywhere I go, it's the same price, whether it is Home Depot or independent dealers.

Home Depot in my area are completely out of stock on the Toro 180, 221Q, and 421Q.  There's plenty of 210 left though, their stripped down model that's seems to be replacing the 2450 model. 

no one having problems?

mine won't start, took it out of the box followed instructions for start up everything worked fine.

Week later it snowed, started right up worked fine for about 2 hours  then I put it away.

2 weeks later tried to start it only ran about 3 minutes and stalled out now it won't start at all.

been trying for 2 days , no trouble shoting sugestions in book, have to wait until Monday and try and take to a service center

aa335 wrote:

Not only did the dealer not take care of the problem, they didn't bother to tell me they weren't taking care of it. Called them up, they said bring it in it'll take a week to fix (!). Dropped it off 10 days ago, called today to check the status, dealer said, "Oh our guy who does the repairs is down in Florida, he'll be back in three days." Would've been nice to know when I dropped it off. I told him I'll come pick it up, bring it back to the store I bought it from (which does not do warranty service, hence I had to bring it to this place) and get my money back.

First off, for anyone inclined to shed a tear for the demise of the mom and pop hardware store, think twice. Some of them are going out of business for a reason. Second, I don't know if the "unit was put together right" or what. I only know I paid good money for it, it leaked gas after two uses, and didn't get down to the pavement as advertised. So, it fell a bit short of expectation to say the least.

Lived here in Chicagoland for 18 years, resisted buying a snowblower until now. One month, $400 and two uses later, it's been gas leak followed by trip to service dealer followed by incompetent non-service. Happy ending though -- the leaking fuel vapor didn't explode in my garage and burn my house down, and the dealer I bought it from agreed to refund my money. Lesson learned.