Hello i actually have the 3650 and use it on our commercial driveway plowing business. This season will be its third winter only changing the plug and rubber two paddles in the front that throw snow.It's a real power house throws like thirty five feet out. I like the power seems to go through as much as you can push it through without bogging at all since the govenour ups the rpms well. As for the surging there is not any with mine. If you go to epinions.com they say it throws snow better than the 7hp snow commander which is way more money than this model. Also if i was going to buy one again it would be the exact same model i like it alot!!!

I'm glad to see kobra_karl chime in. We used to have landscape companies that each had several of these CCR 2000 and up when I was in snow country. It wasn't uncommon to see two of those in the back of a plow truck w/ 3 guys in the front seat. 1 to plow, the other two zip through the walkways and do clean up. Many other commercial users as well.They are so fast and clean down to the surface. You can't clog them. They are quite effective in snow that is as high as the rotor itself. Of course, they will do more. They are a bit more work that a 2 stage in the packed stuff at the end of the driveway, but more than make up fpr it on the rest of the job.
I don't recall a surge being a big issue either with the Suzy or the Duraforce. Some may hunt a bit. I do believe the Suzy was rated conservatively and was quite an engine- but the Duraforce seemed more powerful to me. Snowthrowers in general don't have air filter elements. Good luck with your purchase.

I need a powerful single stage that can handle 8" - 14" of Michigan snow on a driveway

LES, (lake effect snow) powder, fluff, like in the da U.P? I'd never own a single stage here in Chicago. It's just too wet and heavy. Why insist on single stage? - just curious.

To garycinchicago:

I wish to clear all snow down to the pavement of my driveway and sidewalk. Two stages can't get that last 1/2 to 1". As a result, you still have to shovel. At least that was the way it was with my 2 wheeled Gravely Tractor. It could put powder snow up to the telephone lines when I had it.
Nothing is going to throw heavy and wet snow very far.

By the way, if you guys want to see the ULTIMATE snowblower. Google V8snowblowers.com. Take a look at the video under the "welcome" heading. A Canadian guy put together a 420HP Chevy truck engine and made his own snowblower. Even hard to please guys like me were impressed. Let me know if anyone can top this one!

I also have the 3650 and it does one heck of a job....love it. I've used it 3 times already this winter. Like others said it cleans right down to the concrete...that was why I chose it over the 2 stage. I bought mine from Speedway Sales (great price no tax-free ship). I was on there site yesterday and the 3650 was sold out....that tells me something. I also noticed Toro has a new model somewhat like the Commander but has same 6 1/2 Duraforce as the 3650 but don't know much about it. I think the 3650 is made to handle up to about 12" of snow but I have gone threw 18" drifts taking a couple bites. Some complain about the 2 cycle oil smell...but this season I switched to synthetic 2cycle oil and don't get the smell and it seems to run better. I now use synthetic 2 cycle in my string trimmer , leaf blower and now the 3650 also.

Uh, guys...the ultimate snowblower is NOT some Chevy-powered 400hp machine. It's an industrial-diesel-powered railroad rotary plow with several thousand hp that can throw tons of snow hundreds of feet. I can't do youtube.com at work, but you can search for clips of these monsters in action on there I'm sure. I've linked to one of many sites with pics of these things at rest and in action.

Here is a link that might be useful: Pics of railroad rotary snowblowers

The 3650 is very popular here too, it works as advertised. Some will hunt a bit no load but smooth out when they hit the snow. Most snowblowers do not have air filters because there is no dust present and the filter will ice up.Instead they often use a box to contain the heat and keep the carburetor from freezing.

If the weather forcast is correct, then I will need
one of those railroad rotary snow machines in my
neighborhood tomorrow, (central New York).
And I'm sure Yungman is probably wondering what
kind of oil they use in those monsters,
(sorry Yungman, I couldn't resist)

My Honda 520a (4 stroke) is an amazing machine. I can easily take on snow higher than the intake allows. One thing nice about the 4 stoke is not having to premix the oil and gas.

I use the same premix in my Lawnboy, my chainsaw, my string trimmer, my blower and my pole saw. Now it would be a big pain to have to change the oil!

toro ccr2000 had the suzuki two stroke!!!! Couple of the high ups at Toro think this is the best engine that toro ever used in a single stage snow thrower. Expensive to rebuild the carb. But, the CCR2000 holds the resale value!

Buy the Lawn boy, same blower as the Toro 3650, but with more features!
Check out both of their sites!!

Fred