I have a 1998 Toro Proline 44 with a 16hp Vanguard engine. It is one of the best small engines I have ever owned. It takes a long time for the oil to start to darken, which, according to a mechanic friend, means the rings are still very close to "new" tolerances. That little motor has been quite a trooper....it has mowed a LOT of acres since I have had it. Besides that, it is quiet and smooth. The key is, though, I never let the oil go too long. I change it early when I can. Now I am anxious to see how many thousands of hours I can squeeze out of the new Commercial Turf engine on the 700Z I just bought
Briggs is really talking this motor up quite a bit.
Being a bit of a cininc I rather think B & S are feeling the cold wind of China blowing up their trouser legs.
Husqvarna & Stihl both joint partnership factories in China pumping out 1/2 decent chainsaws & trimmers and from there is it only a short hop to push mower engines then ride on engines.
So things that used to be good enough a few years back are not good enough any more.
The EPA is also sniffing around their back sides which is not making things any easier to boot.
Honda had the reputation for being the best quality but too dear, Kohler the best value for money and Briggs took up Tecumseh's spot as the most cost efficient.
now there is a flood of wing wang wong engines ripping market share off B & S in occasional use stuff like log splitters .
So Briggs need to do more than play on the patriotism of the population and it looks like the cyclone is going to be the launch pad to convince the market that a B &S powered impliment is better value than the China powered implement at 1/2 the price.
However as the big box stores have shown conclusively the pocket is more important than the patriot and 99% of the populatin can not tell poo from perfection if the poo is shiny enough.
