The Official unofficial CPE 2000i Generator Thread

[pritch272]

8/1/2010 edit: Thread renamed at the suggestion of the Professor.
Renamed from: Champion Inverter and Remote Gens Promo on CPE's web site)

3/22/2011 edit: Thread renamed ...
Renamed from: Official CPE 2000 Watt Inverter Generator Thread

3/23/2011 edit: Thread renamed at the suggestion of the Professor.
Renamed from: (Un)Official CPE 2000 Watt Inverter Generator Thread

Inverter Available August 2010



Remote Available July 2010

[canadiankid]

Did you just call the # that comes in the manual.

[bradyk]

No money involved just straight exchange. I have not picked up the new one yet so I am not sure how it is going to perform. The last fix above suggestion sounds promising. I really think from the changing the module and they had me take the fuel lines and jet apart to blow out and cleanup made it only marginally better but still has the hunting and burping. I still think it is fuel system related not electronic. I told Jeff at Champion that if it was a car I would be thinking dirty fuel or lines/contaminated fuel. The only other thing I thought it almost runs like a car when you have an arc across your spark plug wires. I tried running it in the dark one night with cover open and ruled that idea out. Hopefully the new one does the trick.

[83trekker]

Old & Slow wrote:

PrivatePilot wrote:
I know of a similar place here in Canada that deals with liquidating Costco returns, and I see the occasional Champ in there. Just today there was a 2000i there, and a few weeks ago there was a synchronous there as well.

Champion themselves clearly don't refurbish/resell, but there are most certainly companies out there that do.

Now I'm the one konfused. Are you saying the big box stores are selling the Champion returns? Will they also be showing up on Ebay?

I Have a store in Calgary that buys all costco rejects, and yes there have been numerous CPE 2000I there sold, tested and working. I also bought 6 honeywells 2000 inverters there for 100 bucks ea not working.

[Angus_NB]

06bowtie_guy wrote:
Just checked them out at costco online.. Seems good expecially with that stackable feature with fancy plug. Question is what kind of adapter plug would you need for a regular 120 volt plug? Like if i was going to plug in a tv directly. Also, you must obviously have to pull the top one off to refuel the bottom one?

No adapter is required for 2/3 prong 120V plugs. Each unit has two regular 120V outlets on it.

[canadiankid]

bradyk wrote:
You are correct on both counts. They did send me parts and also other instructions later when the parts didn't change anything and trying to tinker with it. They also sent me a brand new one that is supposedly sitting at my office waiting for me. I have been working away from home so have not been able to pickup or try it yet. I am back to the office Monday so will take it home and give it a run this week. Hopefully this one does the trick.

So the fix doesn't fix it. Did you have to send them your old unit or do you send it after the new one comes in? Did the exchange cost you any $$.

Thanks.

[Oletop]

As far as used equipment at Lowes, I know my dad just purchased a self propelled lawnmower at Lowes that was marked down to $25. It was a returned item and had a tag on it that said the engine was no good.
He purchased it and had a new engine put on it from a local small engine repair guy for less than the mower would have cost new at Lowes.

[06bowtie_guy]

Just checked them out at costco online.. Seems good expecially with that stackable feature with fancy plug. Question is what kind of adapter plug would you need for a regular 120 volt plug? Like if i was going to plug in a tv directly. Also, you must obviously have to pull the top one off to refuel the bottom one?

[bradyk]

You are correct on both counts. They did send me parts and also other instructions later when the parts didn't change anything and trying to tinker with it. They also sent me a brand new one that is supposedly sitting at my office waiting for me. I have been working away from home so have not been able to pickup or try it yet. I am back to the office Monday so will take it home and give it a run this week. Hopefully this one does the trick.

[canadiankid]

I am thinking about calling CPE about my burping problem. Can I get some feedback from people that have done this. I have heard that they will either send parts or a new unit (is this true?). I have heard that the parts they send don't fix the problem (is this true?). I just don't want to waste my time and CPE's money if I don't have to.

Thanks for your replies.

[professor95]

Old & Slow wrote:


Now I'm the one konfused. Are you saying the big box stores are selling the Champion returns? Will they also be showing up on Ebay?

Floyd,
As Boone noted in a previous posting, resale of returns or defective merchandise containing an internal combustion engine can require a lot of paperwork and testing to certify that the product still meets EPA emissions standards at the same level as new.

The regulation does not apply to private sales - such as my selling you a used generator. I am also under the impression that Joe's Lawnmower Shop or Mack Anyname on eBay that has used engines in his possession is free to resell them.

But the company that builds them and originally certifies EPA and CARB compliance that chooses to resell used or returned gas engine equipment in the USA is required to certify engines as "compliant" before resale. Since this has to be done individually, rather than in lots as new equipment that has not been tampered with is handled, it is extremely expensive.

Items without gas or diesel engines are not part of the regulation.

Once again, from appearance, if company XYZ sells returned lawn power equipment or generators to a vendor in Mexico where the EPA has no oversight - it is legal.

I have observed used equipment that "might" have come from Mexico for sale in the US without EPA re-certification. How it gets here and how vendors get away with selling it is beyond the scope of my explanations.

This brings up another question that I have no legal answer for. "What if" a company like Home Depot chooses NOT to send power equipment merchandise returned to the store back to the manufacturer under their warranty? I would assume they would be able to sell it as used or damaged goods to anyone or another vendor - perhaps with a little liability release clause that says something like, "to be used as scrap or recycle material only".

I have seen used (returned) mowers and tractors at Home Depot for sale in the past - but now that I think about it - not recently.

I do know at least one of our local Lowe's stores field destroys ALL power equipment that is not returned to the manufacturer. But, some unscrupulous employee or store manager just "might" figure out a way to save a generator from the compactor and resell it for cash independent of the store's inventory.

So, I guess returned equipment could pop up for resale most any where. But, not equipment that is returned to the manufacturer unless it is completely re-certified.

[Old___Slow]

PrivatePilot wrote:
I know of a similar place here in Canada that deals with liquidating Costco returns, and I see the occasional Champ in there. Just today there was a 2000i there, and a few weeks ago there was a synchronous there as well.

Champion themselves clearly don't refurbish/resell, but there are most certainly companies out there that do.

Now I'm the one konfused. Are you saying the big box stores are selling the Champion returns? Will they also be showing up on Ebay?

[MrRchitty]

I purchased a 1000 watt msw inverter several years ago from an outlet on ebay. The price was right. It had a return receipt taped to the box with a defective sticker applied to it. It came from Circuit City. I guess you are right, there are probably people or companies who specialize in purchasing returned merchandise from the big box stores... It cuts the loss. From my experience in the parts business, often times, returns are negotiated in the final price of shipped merchandise. The company is either going to sell the goods for a higher price and allow write-offs for a certain percentage of goods or give the better price and the box store eats the returns. Anyhow... we learned something about the carbureter. Thanks, Mitch for your contribution to the thread.

[professor95]

byates wrote:

I'm confused again - the poster on 3/7/11 said:

"As the common saying goes, "S**t Happens." I have been told that most of the 2000i returns to CPE have nothing sent with them to indicate why they are returned. Big box stores like Costco or Sam's take them back and ship them to CPE's warranty service department with NO documented user problems or complaints. It is then CPE's responsibility to determine what (if anything) is wrong. Many returns never show a fault - so go figure? CPE does not resell any refurbished or returned products in the USA or Canada. What they do with them is not shared openly but I do know many are simply destroyed. The EPA prohibits this without extensive emissions re-certification. Thus, a high return rate can get pretty darn expensive to a company committed to customer satisfaction and service."

But of course, pointing out this discrepancy could be construed as a snipe. So be it. I am convinced that CPE is aware of the solution to this problem, but as the poster on 3/7 said, recall repair and/or resell can get pretty darn expensive.

Boone, I do not pretend to know it all. But this is what has been "mentioned" to me over the years.

Returns are checked and if easily repaired they are put back into operating condition. The repaired units are stripped of the Champion name and sold to dealers in Mexico. I am not aware of any dealer in the USA reselling CPE returned products - but I guess it is possible. If it is going on, I am confident that it is not a CPE endorsed outlet.

The same question can be asked of any product that comes under the armpit of the EPA. What happens to returned lawn mowers, water pumps, other brands of generators, etc. that are not repaired for the customer? My son-in-law works for Lowe's. He tells me it is depressing to see how much stuff they destroy in a huge compactor. No resales. Employees are forbidden to take the items. He tells me that he has seen $3,000 riding lawn mowers with what appears to be minor problems totally destroyed.

Yea - it is expensive and my take is the price we pay for a product includes a percentage for returns. What irks me are people that abuse the return privilege - like buying a generator when the power goes off during a bad storm, using it for a few days and then returning it with some made up problem after the power comes back on. We end up paying for the abuse when we purchase a similar product from the same company.

[PrivatePilot]

I know of a similar place here in Canada that deals with liquidating Costco returns, and I see the occasional Champ in there. Just today there was a 2000i there, and a few weeks ago there was a synchronous there as well.

Champion themselves clearly don't refurbish/resell, but there are most certainly companies out there that do.

[mskobier]

byates wrote:
CPE does not resell any refurbished or returned products in the USA or Canada. What they do with them is not shared openly but I do know many are simply destroyed. The EPA prohibits this without extensive emissions re-certification.

I think you are commenting on how and where I purchased my generator. It is indeed a returned generator. It was still in the original box (as most were) with all of the accessories and documentation. Mine is model number model number 73538i with a manufacture date of 2011-03, and the manual was still sealed in the original plastic bag. The store I purchased it from is called Spokane Discount store and they have two stores located in Spokane, Wa. I wandered all through the very large store and saw many items I could identify as coming originally from other stores. There was suff from Costco, Harbour Freight, and Sears to name just a few. On the generators, they have at least 50 CPE generators. There were many 2000i's quite a few were larger models (didn't get model numbers). So the 3/7/11 post above would not be quite accurate. It is possible, that since they are selling them with no warranty, they are just selling them as "used". That would meet the strict interperation of the 3/7/11 post. I have purchased many re-furbished gas engine items over the years. A friend recently purchased a re-boxed name brand chain saw. I do not know what process they go through to be able to do that, but it seems to me that it would be more economical to sell them as used instead of re-furbishing them.

Anyway, again, I purchased my generator from a store whose business is selling returned items.

Mitch