Cost for a new carb

[Cajunabear]

I have a brand new Onan 5500 generator and my fifth wheel toy hauler. It came with 30 gallons of regular gas in one of the 30 gallon tanks. Of course I did not run it as i was suppose to and i'm sure there is a bunch of crude clogging it up so I brought it to our local RV repair shop. 630 dollars to change the carb. Isn't there a carb kit they can use
Or am i being taken to the cleaners?

[Kayteg1]

SidecarFlip wrote:


Exactly, plus most shops (at least ours) has a minimum labor time rate. In our case it's 1 hour at 130 bucks per, no matter if it takes 5 minutes or 59 minutes. Our rate is higher for RV's than commercial trucks because RV's are harder to access components on.

Last time I check service pricing in California, it was $150/hr.
No matter Mercedes mechanic, or sewer plumber.
I check those prices YEARS ago.
I ditto Seafoam. I did not have good luck with it personally, but few bucks with all the reviews sure is worth a try.

[hawkeye-08]

Dad has a toyhauler and has to remind himself to pump the gas out (usually into his pickup) to keep the gas fresher. He runs his generator monthly so it runs ok, but that 30 gallon tank for the toys gets old.

X2 on Seafoam. I also put some Lucas injector cleaner in occasionally.

[SidecarFlip]

dougrainer wrote:

romore wrote:
That doesn't surprise me, Onan has always been very proud of their parts. If the shop is not familiar with the carb they will just replace it, it will be faster and cheaper than trying to refurbish and hope it works. The repair kit will be close to half the price of a complete unit plus $100/hr+ labor. Is it worth it?

Has nothing to do with it. 25 years ago California EPA came up with such strict rules that Onan built all their carbs to meet California rules. That means SEALED Carbs. No fiddling with them. So, NO rebuild kits. You RUIN it and you have to buy a new carb. But, they can be removed and disassembled and cleaned out. Rarely will you destroy any of the seals and gaskets needed. Most shops will not disassemble and clean out due to the labor cost. Doug

Exactly, plus most shops (at least ours) has a minimum labor time rate. In our case it's 1 hour at 130 bucks per, no matter if it takes 5 minutes or 59 minutes. Our rate is higher for RV's than commercial trucks because RV's are harder to access components on.

[shastagary]

new carbs look to cost in the $300.00 range. then there is the labor and filter. if your not going to use it or run it at least drain the carb of gas like they tell you in this manual on pages 27-28 onan handbook lots of good info on your generator. why do generator manufacturers use any type of electronic ignition shutdown on any generator the only method of shutdown should be gas shutoff and let it run dry. they could have separate temporary and storage shutdown switches i guess that would be too confusing or they like the repair money to much.

[midnightsadie]

x2 I,ve seen sea foam clean up some nasty stuff.

[gbopp]

How long was the generator sitting without being used? If there is a bunch of crud clogging the carburetor, probably the fuel filter is bad.
I would try Seafoam before taking it to the shop.

[dougrainer]

romore wrote:
That doesn't surprise me, Onan has always been very proud of their parts. If the shop is not familiar with the carb they will just replace it, it will be faster and cheaper than trying to refurbish and hope it works. The repair kit will be close to half the price of a complete unit plus $100/hr+ labor. Is it worth it?

Has nothing to do with it. 25 years ago California EPA came up with such strict rules that Onan built all their carbs to meet California rules. That means SEALED Carbs. No fiddling with them. So, NO rebuild kits. You RUIN it and you have to buy a new carb. But, they can be removed and disassembled and cleaned out. Rarely will you destroy any of the seals and gaskets needed. Most shops will not disassemble and clean out due to the labor cost. Doug

[time2roll]

Cajunabear wrote:
Of course I did not run it as i was suppose to and i'm sure there is a bunch of crude clogging it up so I brought it to our local RV repair shop.

Next time just fire it up and give it a go before you take it in.

[wnjj]

If it's just dirty you shouldn't need any parts, just someone to take it apart to clean it. If it needs jets or o-rings they should be $30-40 for a kit if you can find the right one. Worst case I see new carbs in the mid $200 range.

[romore]

That doesn't surprise me, Onan has always been very proud of their parts. If the shop is not familiar with the carb they will just replace it, it will be faster and cheaper than trying to refurbish and hope it works. The repair kit will be close to half the price of a complete unit plus $100/hr+ labor. Is it worth it?

[ksg5000]

Use the forum search feature and look for threads with Seafoam. Carb clogging is common in generators that don't get exercised regularly and many have had luck using Seafoam to remove the "gunk". As far as the cost of a new carb - s/b easy Google if you know the part number.