I've maintained horizontal shaft Briggs & Stratton & Honda engines on water transfer pumps for several years and what I have noticed is the 1998 Briggs & Stratton Vanguard engines that were made in Japan by Mitsubishi for Briggs & Stratton will do more than 20,000 hours and still show cross hatch in the bore. However, the then USA made Briggs & Stratton Intek engines all wear oval by 4,000 hours. The Honda GX's have a reputation down here for flooding petrol into the sump if the fuel tap is left on and tend to burn oil at around the 5,000 hour mark but still start easily when worn compared to the small vertical shaft Honda's or the Chinese Briggs & Stratton's.
Yep, the Japanese-made Briggs are a cut above the rest. So was the short-lived Kubota-made [IIRC] Briggs 4hp I/C 2-stroke vertical shaft mower engine of the early 1990s.
It is disapointing Briggs & Stratton are choosing to pursue a price conscious market. No doubt that is why Briggs & Stratton have separated the Vanguard model and now using it as a brand name for their comercial grade engines.
Pretty much.
Has anyone had any experience with Kohler engines? The small 5hp Kohler engines are in fact rebadged Yamaha's. They are not as common as Honda or Briggs & Stratton engines down in this area.
Not with recent models. There was quite a long gap between Kohler engine distributors here, after Mobilco Ltd, the long time agent, closed down in 1976. These older models often crop up on Mobilco-made machines at clearing sales.
