Around here they are seldom ever started before delivery to the customer. IE the customer must put the oil and fuel before attempting a start up.
I can't answer the question though as I never get new mowers or engines in just after they have been used for awhile. I did have a GCV160 earlier this year that required mods to get the choke to close fully here too and I don't even remember what I did to get it to work right now though I think required some bending of tangs.
Usually I either get the manual timed choke or the thermal choke version. I have only seen a handful of the throttle lever controlled choke version.
