I will preface this thread by saying the Honda eu generators are by far the top of the line.With that said, and with all the new technology in the past few years, aren't some of the Chinese knock offs becoming legitimate buys? I bought a champion 3100 four years ago and have been very happy with it. My only complaint was gas usage. When using my fish house in the winter I would need to bring two five gallons fuel tanks to get through the weekend. this required me to to put a receiver hitch storage rack on my truck to hall the extra fuel.four weeks ago I purchased a Ryobi 2200/1700 watt generator from home depot for $379, i paid another $60 to put a 6 year warranty on it. So far I have been very impressed>it ran in -20 degree temps last weekend and runs 10= hours on a tank of gas (very nice in that cold weather). Are we getting close to where the Chinese generators are a viable long term investment??

Yup, I wish I had the Champion 3500 with electric start instead of my Honda.

I think when repair parts for the Chinese generators are readily available they will be a strong contender for the red and blue generators.

bob213 wrote:I think when repair parts for the Chinese generators are readily available they will be a strong contender for the red and blue generators.That's one of the things I like about Champion. They have parts readily available and a great support line to call.Champion hit the US market with serious intent and they have earned their reputation.BTW, Honda gens are made in many countries including China.

At $399 from Home Depot from Home Depot the Champion #100478 seem to be "leading the pack" in the "bang for the buck" category.There maybe some cheaper ones out there, but Champion now has a reputation almost as good as Honda and Yamaha.

bob213 wrote:I think when repair parts for the Chinese generators are readily available they will be a strong contender for the red and blue generators.At a 1/4 of the price throw it out and buy a new one if you can't find a part....even if you are only getting 3-4yrs out of them, it will still be cheaper.

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ScottG
Nomad
Feb 03, 2019
Yup, I wish I had the Champion 3500 with electric start instead of my Honda.
bob213
Explorer
Feb 03, 2019
I think when repair parts for the Chinese generators are readily available they will be a strong contender for the red and blue generators.
ScottG
Nomad
Feb 03, 2019
bob213 wrote:
I think when repair parts for the Chinese generators are readily available they will be a strong contender for the red and blue generators.

That's one of the things I like about Champion. They have parts readily available and a great support line to call.
Champion hit the US market with serious intent and they have earned their reputation.
BTW, Honda gens are made in many countries including China.
theoldwizard1
Explorer II
Feb 03, 2019
At $399 from Home Depot from Home Depot the Champion #100478 seem to be "leading the pack" in the "bang for the buck" category.

There maybe some cheaper ones out there, but Champion now has a reputation almost as good as Honda and Yamaha.
valhalla360
Navigator
Feb 03, 2019
bob213 wrote:
I think when repair parts for the Chinese generators are readily available they will be a strong contender for the red and blue generators.

At a 1/4 of the price throw it out and buy a new one if you can't find a part....even if you are only getting 3-4yrs out of them, it will still be cheaper.
jjrbus
Explorer
Feb 03, 2019
Interesting post. I bought an electrical replacement receptical lately, made in China, the screws quickly stripped. That is not China's fault, it is the fault of the people that spec'd how the part was to be manufactured. Lowest bidder and all that.

I caught a deal on 2 Honda 2000's some years ago, used them for 2 years and sold them for almost what I paid for them.

I now have 2 Honda 2000's one I bought used about 6 years ago for $600, it has had little use and I bet I could sell it for what I paid for it.

They tell me that Honda replacement parts are expensive. I have had a total of 6 Honda generators over the last 20 years and never bought a replacement part!

You will never convince me the off brands are cheaper, maybe a lower initial price but not cheaper!

I kick myself often for letting a Honda EV4010 go with an RV I sold, I should have switched it out.
wanderingaimles
Explorer
Feb 03, 2019
Most of the chinese inverter genny's use honda clone engine designs. Parts are usually available by looking up the part for whatever size Honda Engine. The main things that are problems are the fuel controls, inverters running at variable rpms according to need are a much more specific part, and those can be difficult to track down.
But recoil starters and the like arent a problem.
MFL
Nomad II
Feb 03, 2019
theoldwizard1 wrote:
At $399 from Home Depot from Home Depot the Champion #100478 seem to be "leading the pack" in the "bang for the buck" category.

There maybe some cheaper ones out there, but Champion now has a reputation almost as good as Honda and Yamaha.

This one is on sale at HD right now for $399. It is a much improved newer model 100565 than first one pictured. I agree the Champs are a good product, with great customer service, and parts supply!

Jerry
BarabooBob
Explorer III
Feb 03, 2019
I picked up the Champion 2000i for $349 with free hipping from Home Depot about 3 weeks ago. It arrived in 3 days. Added oil and gas. Let it sit for about 30 seconds for the gas to get into the carb and it started on the first pull. I have been using it at light load to get the first 5 hours on it before changing the oil for the first time. This is suggested by the owners manual. I put a full load on it for a couple of minutes and was impressed by how quiet the gen is.
This gen will be used to top off my batteries while boondocking.
So far I am happy.
agesilaus
Explorer III
Feb 03, 2019
I have a Champion 3500 digital inverter and to my way of thinking even if you have to replace it more often you can buy 4 Champions for the price of one Honda/Yamaha. They have a three year warranty. They have good tech support, you talk to a human in California and they send you to a semi-local repair shop. However then it bogs down, you can depend on them taking a month or more to fix it. I does get 17 hours on a tank of gas with economode. I doubt the H/Y gensets are any better.