Anyone own a Champion Generator?

[Maxtar]

For anyone who owns this brand how about a review? I know they are louder than the Honda's, but how about reliability? (That would be my main concern.)

[Foy_R__Smith]

I bought a New Champion 3500-4000 last year from Tractor Supply. I had heard good things about Champion, before. It starts 1st pull about every time. It is about as quiet as the older Honda gen I used. I just point it away from 5th wheel and we watch TV with no problem. We absolutely love it! Not bad on gas at all!

[jasult]

Maxtar - You can get the Champion 3500/4000 pull start at Tractor Supply for 279.00 and it will be more then enough. You can also find them on craigs list as since storm sandy people are selling them after using them for a few days and want to recover their gouged price paid.

I paid 600 cash for a new never used Champion electric remote start 7000/9000 12 days after the storm

[Maxtar]

beemerphile1 wrote:
Anyone notice between the chest thumping and declarations of what is best - that the OP hasn't been back since asking the question?

Some are too lazy to use the search feature and then don't bother to even respond to those offering answers.

Hey, I appreciate the answers very much. There are 5 pages here and I have read every reply. After posting the op I was not able to get back online. As a long haul truck driver when I'm rollin there is no time for banging the keys. Now in 4 years when I'm sitting at Quartzsite in my RV I'll have more time. Thanks again to everyone for replying.

[Maxtar]

I was just looking for one to put up at my camp and not spend a whole lot of cash. I will not be running it much, just when I need some electric for power tools, (skill saw and such) Would the 4000 watt model be suffucient for this application?

JiminDenver wrote:
I figured this would become a Honda/Yamaha vs Champion thread. Sigh

Are the Champs perfect, no. Search the forum for problems with the big names and you will find they are not perfect either.

Still for the money saved, the vast majority of people that use the Champs are happy with them even if they are inferior to the big names. Mine may not be as good, but it fills my needs and that is good enough not to have to spend the big bucks on the big names.

BTW I am the third owner of my older 3500/4000. The original owner used it to run his trailer. He sold the both to the second owner that used it to run that and after he sold the trailer, he used it to run his cabin. By it's appearance and the oil that came out when I changed it, I can tell you it was not pampered. Still it starts with one or two pulls every time if it's below freezing or 100 outside. It'll run our AC at 5280 ft and even 9200 ft as long as the converter isn't pulling power to charge the battery. A good buy for $62 used. I'd buy another tomorrow if it died, that is unless the new Champion 3100 inverter model proves to be as dependable. Then I might spend the $899 for it.
Actually come to think of it, my solar will do the charging and any inverter model will have to ramp up to run the AC, especially up there, so I may not be gaining much for the money spent considering the need for AC at that altitude is rare.

[NC_Hauler]

jasult wrote:

Lantley wrote:
Since this is an RV forum . I assume the buyer plans to use the genset for camping purposes. Power Outages are a entirely different scenario and are irrelevant to the discussion.

Stating that the genset is great in a power outage only brings confusion to the discussion.
Any genset you can get your hands on is great during a power outage:S

Agreed

To OP and fellow NJ RV'r
I have 3 different Champs and they are reliable.
As I stated, their customer support is great when I had some questions.
They answer the phone and talk too you.
I had one small problem that was simple over the phone resolved.
I have never been in situation where I was asked to turn off generator at RV events or parks that had no power and that would be when we needed the genny.

I don't see where purchasing a generator for power outage is "irrelevant"...Most rv'ers for years purchased generators for their rv's to have "IN CASE" they lost power to their camper. How do you figure a power outage is "irrelevant"

This is an rv forum and MOST people purchase generators in case they have a power outage and absolutely have to fire it up to supply power to their rv...WHEN did that change?

How in the world does bringing up that the Champion generator works great in a power outage situation causes confusion and is "irrelevant????

Sure ANY of them would be great to have in case of a power outage, but it's absurb to say that the Champion is as loud as a contractors gen set...ridiculous!!

For YEARS, ( for me, since 75)...campers purchased generators to supply power to anything they camped in in case they had no power...there were some boon docking which WOULD be an entirely different situation...but no where did OP say, "I'm going to be boon docking , what is the best generator, I will be using it a lot"...I would have NEVER posted that I would recommend a Champion for that, as I stated. BUT AGAIN, MOST campers, like myself, want BACK UP POWER, ie (in case of power outage), to provide AC/ lights, whatever to their rv if they lose electrical power...

So, WRONG that it isn't relevant...it was relevant when we lost power at Lake Keowee while camping for 2 day's in SC....needed a generator....It was relevant when we lost all power for a week while camping in WVA as a back up power supply...so how is it NOT relevant on an rv forum????? REally PLEASE explain that one to me because it would be a FIRST!!!

How could it cause confusion????? DId OP say they were going to be boon docking a lot? Did they say they would be running the generator more often than not? NO, they asked if anyone owned one.... So those of us who do, posted and I went as far to tell WHY...

Sorry to have gone on, but to say talking about a Champion gen, when that was the topic was either irrelevant or would cause confusion is nonsense.

[jasult]

Lantley wrote:
Since this is an RV forum . I assume the buyer plans to use the genset for camping purposes. Power Outages are a entirely different scenario and are irrelevant to the discussion.

Stating that the genset is great in a power outage only brings confusion to the discussion.
Any genset you can get your hands on is great during a power outage:S

Agreed

To OP and fellow NJ RV'r
I have 3 different Champs and they are reliable.
As I stated, their customer support is great when I had some questions.
They answer the phone and talk too you.
I had one small problem that was simple over the phone resolved.
I have never been in situation where I was asked to turn off generator at RV events or parks that had no power and that would be when we needed the genny.

[Lantley]

Since this is an RV forum . I assume the buyer plans to use the genset for camping purposes. Power Outages are a entirely different scenario and are irrelevant to the discussion.

Stating that the genset is great in a power outage only brings confusion to the discussion.
Any genset you can get your hands on is great during a power outage:S

[NC_Hauler]

77charger wrote:
I had the 3500/4000 it did fine but only got about 2 years out of it.after about 1.5 years it was struggling to start my a/c and even the micro would load it down.

Before that i had an elim 3000 i got about a 1.5 years out of it.

I would use them to run my a/c for hours straight in the summer in my toyhauler,and quite a bit over the winter riding season at glamis to power my flood lights or charge batteries.
When my champ went out i priced them and the price jumped here in ca i had 600 into gens that got me 3.5 years and i could dump another 400 into a new one.I decided to get a used honda 3000 in 2009.So far its been great and put alot of hours on it.It also uses half the fuel of the champion and in a week long trip it makes a difference.

Again, I stated numerous times that the Champion is for someone who will only use their generator in a power outage situation...nothing more, nothing less...not hours or weeks on end, though the 3500/4000 that I spoke of provided power 24/7 at our own campsite on a river in WVa after the winds tore through there and caused a lot of devastation. Used it at home once when power was out for a couple of day's...again, 24hrs/2...never had a problem starting it, never had an issue....

Guess I must not be able to communicate well, but did say, yet again, and numerous times that "I" use mine in power outage situations only...don't boon dock...would only fire it up at a campground, (should I go somewhere else other than my own property), IF and only IF there were a power outage....SO, in MY CASE, see know reason whatsoever to put the money in a Honda or Yamaha when the Champion has met my needs in emergency power outages to supply power for lights, AC, Fridge, whatever...

IF I DID boondock or plan on firing up my generator while camping as some of the posters do in here, I would have puchased a more expensive, quieter gen set...but don't need it.

Guess most in here can read the minds of others and KNOW when and where some are going to use theirs....I can't do that...thus the reason when I answer one of these questions, I qualify it with "depends on when and where you're going to use it", and "how often"...depending on the answers to these questions...THAT should determine just how much money you should put into on.

[77charger]

I had the 3500/4000 it did fine but only got about 2 years out of it.after about 1.5 years it was struggling to start my a/c and even the micro would load it down.

Before that i had an elim 3000 i got about a 1.5 years out of it.

I would use them to run my a/c for hours straight in the summer in my toyhauler,and quite a bit over the winter riding season at glamis to power my flood lights or charge batteries.
When my champ went out i priced them and the price jumped here in ca i had 600 into gens that got me 3.5 years and i could dump another 400 into a new one.I decided to get a used honda 3000 in 2009.So far its been great and put alot of hours on it.It also uses half the fuel of the champion and in a week long trip it makes a difference.

[bill_h]

I have several Hondas and one Champion. The Hondas were all bought used. The Champion was bought new. The Hondas have given me no trouble. The Champion has.

[steiny93]

NC Hauler wrote:

steiny93 wrote:

2oldman wrote:

JiminDenver wrote:
I figured this would become a Honda/Yamaha vs Champion thread. Sigh

They always do... over and over.

as that's always the question; how close to the gold standard are the cheap ones

I totally get it; I went through the exact same decision process.

In our 'crew' we have all the players Honda/Yamaha/champion/kipor all in the 2000. We've run them side by side and for extended periods in pretty harsh conditions. (hot and humid as well as terrible cold)

Personally I can't really tell the difference between the Honda/Yamaha. But anyone can tell the difference to the rest (noise / issues / etc).

The question; are those differences worth the uptick in regards to the price. This would totally depend on your usage and willingness to put up with the issues.

Oh; the other difference we've noticed between the champion and the Honda is fuel use. The Honda uses somewhere between 30-50% less. Not a big deal until you are refueling in -20 with a 25mph wind.

Thing is, I haven't seen the issues you speak of ....Most KNOW that the Honda's and Yamahas are better and quieter, thus the reason they're so much more expensive. But again, I haven't seen all these issues you talk about "putting up with", to more or less, save a buck...not like it's being used at ANY TIME, in my case unless, and I will say it again, There is a power outage...you act as though these generators will be fired up every day, any time, any where for day's on end, which in reality, is a bit silly, unless there was an extended power outage, and at that point, I really don't think someone would comdemn someone for using a Champion generator to stay warm, keep their food fresh and have lights at night time.

Don't really understand what the big deal is about -20 and 25 mph wind....this past summer, wind was blowing at 55 plus mph and wrecked havoc in WV and VA...power out for a week or better....generator was refueled in 55 mph wind and pouring rain, temp wasn't cold though....don't know what that has to do with anything..but if it's a way or reason to deter someone from purchasing a cheaper generator that will do the job, then more power to you. In an EMERGENCY, hope I'm not going to have to answer to you about using my generator to make life just a little better for my family....

Again, haven't seen or experienced any of the issues you speak up just to hype up the Honda or Yamaha...some people don't have that kind of money for a generator, surely you're not going to "look down your nose at them" if they don't purchase the more expensive Yamaha or Honda generator , are you??

definitely not condemning anyone; i'm just calling out the experiences I've personally seen when we have been running these gensets next to each other

I even stated the following "The question; are those differences worth the uptick in regards to the price. This would totally depend on your usage and willingness to put up with the issues." which is what I believe the original poster is trying to determine.

These 'issues' being the ones I called out in my first post; the restarting issue and the no power output when cold.

My comment regarding refilling the genset in -20 temp with 25mph wind is in regards to how much that sucks (being outside and doing it). think -60 degree wind chill; its very not fun.

For our usage we need these to work in a very cold environment a weekend at a time. This year we have over 200 hours of genset time since December. To date the Honda's and the Yamaha have always fulfilled this need and the Champions have yet to make a weekend on a single unit(they are 0 for 3). On the plus side those two gensets cost less then a single Honda.

I don't really care what anyone else purchases or spends on their equipment; I'm just relating my personal experience.

[2oldman]

beemerphile1 wrote:
the OP hasn't been back since asking the question

Pretty typical..I bet some posters get a real thrill out of doing this. Start fire, walk away...

[JiminDenver]

The gold standard is having your needs met dependably. Our Champions do that for us. Would a Honda 3000 run my AC at 9200 ft, maybe not. It takes everything the 3500/4000 has to do it and the Honda is rated for 2800w.

The noise police like to jump fast not even caring if any one but us will ever hear our generator run. We have no neighbors so if a Champion runs in the woods and no one hears it, is it really running?

Had I blown my budget on a 3000i or a pair of 2000 inverters, I would have to listen to them charge up my single battery every day just as I did last year with the Champ. Even at 50 db, that sucks.
Instead I was able to take the money saved and add solar and battery, plus LEDs and there's still money left over. These things allow MY generator to sit idle, not run at idle. Silence is a gold standard too not quite matched by the big names and certainly not the Handi that runs 3 db quieter than my Champ.

I don't suggest any one run a generator in a campground when others are in hearing distance. However if we were in one and someone dropped a inverter between the sites, I'd run the Champ out too and let them make sweet harmony together because if I'm going to listen to yours, you can listen to mine. 🙂

[raytronx]

I did a review on my inverter type Champions a while back and there is a video I made using them up a Joshua Tree NP if anyone is interested in the noise levels.

Champion 2000W Generator Review

I'm boondocking right now and if I walk away with the genny running, I'm one of the quietest, and most of the Class A rigs are louder, although with a lower frequency type noise.

Ray

[beemerphile1]

Anyone notice between the chest thumping and declarations of what is best - that the OP hasn't been back since asking the question?

Some are too lazy to use the search feature and then don't bother to even respond to those offering answers.