Snapper Robin EH18V vs Subaru EH18

13 years ago

I own a 2nd hand Snapper with a ProPoly Robin EH18V on an approx 2000 year commercial model.

I think the ignition coil is going bad (when hot it does not start. If it starts hot it takes almost a minute to become fully alive. Also it's been getting worse over the last year.) The ignition coil will cost $115 because parts on this engine are becoming scarce.

An auto dealer in town has several snappers that have not moved since I lived here. One of the commercial models has the Subaru EH18V (classic style) like the following:

www.hondayamahavillage.com/new_vehicle_detail.asp?veh=2163

My engine shows 6.5 hp and the Subaru shows 6.0 hp. The dealer is asking $650.

There is a discussion here about these engines here: (scroll toward the end until you see the EH18V snapper)

http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/load/lmower/msg091724278798.html

So are these engines the same?

I don't want to make an offer on the Subaru if I will run into the same parts problems.

Also what would be a good price to offer? And about how much could I get for mine?

Thanks for the advice.

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Comments (9)

canguy
13 years ago
Subaru and Robin are the same, the engines are made by Fuji in Japan. Very good product but parts are scarce and expensive.
subarupower
13 years ago
Hello,

EH18V was introduced to the US market in the late 90's. We've discontinued the production of this model around year 2001 due to lack of demand from the US OEM's. Since the product was on the market for a few good years, we're obligated to keep the parts supply in our stock for long years after discontinuation.

The part number for the Ignition Coil is 261-79401-41 and we have it listed for $99.96. The electronic components tend to be priced a little higher, I figure because of the costs involved in manufacturing it, compared to other engine components. Please make sure you contact one of our distributors to receive the best available pricing on our parts, $115.00 is a little high for this service part. To find a distributor near you, please visit our website and use our dealer locator, I am providing the link below.

http://subarupower.com/dealerusacan.aspx

Regards,

Subaru Power
Lake Zurich, IL
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Right, there's no reason you shouldn't mulch with a Hi-Vac. The only functional difference is that the bottom lip on the deck is turned under for a Hi-Vac and outward for the dedicated mulchers with the A.I.R. designation. I mulch with a Hi-Vac all the time, and so do a bunch of lawn crews. Dan, I'm not familiar with a smaller OHV Robin. That would be interesting. I am familiar with the old L-head Robins, that I think might have been called WT1-185V or something like that. Although displacing the same as the EH18V, these would be much smaller and lighter due to the L-head configuration. They would also make a lot less power. But as you say, I'm sure they are anvil reliable. I thought about buying one on eBay once for a mower project, but never got around to it. My current mower is a C216012RV (commercial Hi-Vac with the monster Robin EH18V but no self-propel) that I added self-propel to. This thing was the deal of the century: the guy was local and listed it on eBay as a "Robin" mower instead of Snapper for $50 buy-it-now, IIRC. So nobody with a "Snapper" search ever saw it, and I snapped (pun intended) it up asap when I saw it. I went to pick it up, and it looked brand new. They guy couldn't start it, so he figured it was disposable. I got it home, cleaned out the carb, and it ran great. I added the drive system with parts I mostly had laying around, and now I have the Cadillac of Hi-Vacs (Cadi-Vac?).
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The big problem is not with the absolute accuracy of the numbers, but rather in comparisons of various products. For instance, the Robin EH18V on my Snapper is nominally rated at 6hp, whereas the Briggs Quantum on a Craftsman mower can be rated as high as 6.75hp. The obvious conclusion any normal buyer would have is that the Robin is terrible value since the engine itself costs way more and makes significantly less power. Of course that's not true: the Robin makes about 50% more power than the Quantum, whether they are both on a test bench or on a mower or wherever. BTW, this is essentially the same Quantum engine that was rated at 5hp a decade or so back. So these issues make it impossible for the average consumer to accurately compare mowers and engines. Unlike the issue of absolute power accuracy, this is a real problem for consumers. If these were cars we were discussing, we'd be talking about the difference between the power of a base-model V6 Camaro and an LS1 Z28 - imagine if those two cars were rated at the same power! I think you'll find a _big_ (as in: ginormous) difference in the way some "high-end" engine companies rate their engines and the way others do. Kohler, Robin, Kawasaki, and Honda are examples of engines whose ratings are within the realm of believability, even though they won't make their nominal rating on a mower in the field. You can reasonably compare engines from this companies and assume that a 6hp Robin, Honda, or Kawasaki are pretty close in terms of actual output, and ditto for the 5hp Hondas and Kawasakis. That, more than anything else, is what we need. Finally guys, I think you all are giving a bigger break to at least some engines than they deserve. The assumption here is that all these engines will keep developing more power if they spin faster than the allowable blade speed. That's not the case for a lot of engines, probably most especially the L-head engines. For instance, a Briggs Quantum 12J800 torque graph published by B&S themselves shows it making 3.655hp at both 3000rpm and 3200rpm (this has to be calculated from the torque and rpm). In other words, that's about the peak output and it's only going to be lower at higher rpms. This may not be true for many OHV engines, because they have much more efficient chambers. But the point is that the power misnomers are not just a case of rating the engine on the test bench at a much higher rpm that allowed on an actual mower. And there's no "accessory" that can fudge the power rating from 3.65hp to 6.75 - mufflers and "cooling" don't cut power in half! It's really a case of companies using whatever rating they feel like using without any basis in reality, in order to achieve some marketing goal. BTW, how often are the ratings we're complaining about assigned by the engine company vs the mower company? That might have a lot to do with the problem.
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lonestar245
13 years ago
A young friend who mows for school money picked up a Snapper with the EH18V engine- I think. LOL. I looks like the EH18V anyway- the exposed metal shroud version- OHV. I handle his repairs as needed. He runs Snappers as I believe they are the toughest, least expensive decks to keep going over the long haul.

The engine ran fine when I inspected it, then again when he fired up a couple of times to show off to some motorhead buddies, then after owning it for a day, it would not start. I cannot find that it has any spark. I have removed the kill wire when cranking. Used a cheap Harbor Freight tester (the kind with a light bulb) and the bulb does not light up at all. I sanded off the magnet on the flywheel and the coil face (fairly rusty)- still nothing. I found a SB indicating some had hard restarts when hot due to coil being too far away- I drilled out the mounting holes and moved it closer- I use a Stihl service tag (business card thickness) as my spacer and it works every time- but not this time. Tired a new plug- nothing.

So, I am assuming the coil is bad. Finding this thread, I see coils are expensive! If I go by the number provided, I cant even find one for sale using google to search. I have tried all my usual online sources for parts- nothing. In addition, I simply cannot justify spending $100 on a coil for a $300 mower.

I have seen many brand new coils with different part numbers on places like eBay that look identical to this coil, but hesitate to start throwing good money after bad. Any chance some of these might fit and work on this motor?

Or am I missing something with the existing coil, or does anyone know where I can get one for less than $50, or did he just invest in a boat anchor? I feel bad for him as I advised him I have always heard these were great engines- "The Honda Killer" as I have heard some dealers say about them.
subarupower
13 years ago
If you can find coils that are older than the number we provided above, you can use them. I don't think fitting aftermarket coil will work on this engine due to certain magnet requirement specs.

Please try setting the air gap between the coil and the flywheel's magnet anywhere between 0.012-0.020in. using a filler gauge instead of Stihl's service tags.
lb1kenobi
12 years ago
Picked up a NOS Robin 2 cycle motor on ebay, need correct crankshaft for a Snapper 21" Hi-Vac mower that is selfpropelled. Anyone got any parts for these? See link:
Looks like the seller has one more left.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Robin-Snapper-EC13V-4HP-2-Cycle-Engine-/270858372254?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0amp;hash=item3f106ac49e#ht_3941wt_1374
Greg Goyeneche
12 years ago
Interesting engine. I have a couple of Snappers with the WTI-125V/EC-13V 2 cycle motor. Mine are from the late 90's so are nameplated Wisconsin-Robin. Your motor has an oddball shaft, which I believe is for the Comet BBC. Standard direct drive Snapper application uses 3-5/32 x 7/8 or 25mm. Also, your engine does not have the zone start control.

Although you can't bolt up the engine and use it on your Snapper, if you paid $100 you got a good deal for parts. Coil costs at least that much, and the Mikuni carb is in the same neighborhood.

The only thing not practical to substitute are the cranks, because the crank is a three-piece built up assembly, and requires an inspection plate and gauge blocks to set it up properly upon assembly.
lb1kenobi
12 years ago
ggoyeneche-

I don't understand what you mean by inspection plate and gauge blocks,can you elaborate on that,I figured it would be a simple procedure to switch crankshafts to the snapper self propelled style.
Greg Goyeneche
12 years ago
The crankshaft is a three-piece, right and left shafts, plus a press fit crankpin connecting the two. The con rod and its bearings are assembled thru the crankpin before everything is pressed together. It's absolutely important that you get the two pieces lined up correctly relative to one another, and that there is no sag or camber to the assembled pieces.

Send me an email through the forum, and I'll respond back with the page from the parts list which illustrates what I'm talking about.
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2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
What type of oil should I use for a 6.0 eh18 motor and what's the capacity

Snapper Robin EH18V vs Subaru EH18

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canguy

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