Depends which Honda is compared to which Briggs or Tecumseh.

The Honda OHV GX series are heads and shoulders above the aluminum plain-bore flat heads from B&S and Tecumseh.

As you move down market at Honda to the OHC GC, and up-market to the better Briggs and Tecumseh OHV and steel sleeve motors, such as the Vanguards, Inteks, and Enduros, the difference narrows.

Its a marketing gimmick! I don't think they are any better than the domestic products! Pricier, but not any better!
Rustyj

OK Rusty,

Which is the "domestic" engine?
The Honda Manufactured in the USA or the Briggs vanguard made in Japan?
Also, just EXACTLY what "marketing gimmick" are you talking about?

If you compare the very cheapest Honda, the GCV160, to the very cheapest Briggs, the Quantum, here are three differences:
1. The Honda is easier starting.
2. The Honda runs at a steady rpm and is not subject to surging and uneven running.
3. The Honda will maintain its oil level between scheduled changes, and the Briggs will require oil to be checked and probably added at every use.

My experience is based on only two GCV160 engines and three Briggs Quantum engines, so is anecdotal only, but these results are absolutely consistent across these five engines. I have no conclusion to draw yet on engine longevity.

Lest we forget....
Where is is physicaly bolted together is 50% of the end product. The other 50% is from the engineered design... be it from Japan, USA, China, or Mars.

I own a shop in a high end area and it staggers the imagination how much some folks are willing to pay for a Honda! All of the mowers now have the GC engine which is okay albeit some rod failures and other related sundries.
I'm not really keen on the four gasket air cleaner to intake arrangement. The Intek's are easy starting however oil control at the cylinder head cover was a problem until Briggs came up with a new cylinder head gasket and valve cover gasket as a fix. We've got hobbs meters on both of them!

In my opinion they are the best - hands down.

I've been really pleased with the Intek Snow I put on an old Ariens. Got tons of help from B&S. Honda would not speak to me directly at all, and refrred me to local dealers - who were clueless.

Honda is a great engine company but price/performance really favors B&S.

Honda is second to none.

Smooth, no vibrations, best starting cold or hot, last nearly for ever, no carb problems, no surging problems, no oil consumption, plugs last for years in them. You never need to fiddle with them or continuously fool with the carb.

By the way Tecumseh are now made off shore and so are many B&S engines. Companies such as Honda, Robin/subaru and others manufacture here.

All one needs to do is look at what powers most equipment at rental stores. Honda is the most reliable under the abusive use of the typical renter.

walrus you are so correct, I noticed that exact point years ago. I noticed recently there are more Robin/Subaru engines out there also installed on rental equipment and being installed by more OEM's. I know Robin also manufacture a great engine, perhaps their pricing and availability is more attractive to OEM's presently than Honda. I believe Robin engines are being manufactured in Wisconsin.

Which I had all Honda engines in my small stuff.

I believe Honda engines are made in Georgia or Alabama, somewhere south anyways.

"I own a shop in a high end area and it staggers the imagination how much some folks are willing to pay for a Honda! All of the mowers now have the GC engine which is okay albeit some rod failures and other related sundries."

Having just purchased a mower with a GCV 160, I'd like to hear more. What caused the failures? What other "related sundries" were there?

AZ

I think bushleague is referring to some problems that occurred on a small amount of GC series engines back 5-6 years ago or more. My friend who is a small equipment dealer tells me those were corrected way back when and no problems since on these, he claims he had a very small % of them come back with problems on the volume of these engines in his area. The GC - OHC series of engines is Honda's consumer engine line made to compete with Tecumseh and Briggs price wise but offering a better quality engine however than the 2 main competitors. The GC's were designed for applications such as home use lawn-mowers, home owner pressure washers etc., basically less arduous applications than commercial, industrial or rental equipment rerquirements.

The GX - OHV series is Honda's commercial/industrial series of engines which is their top of the line engines which is often regarded as the best of the best available out there.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with the GC engine series in the applications they were engineered for, you should be extremely pleased by its performance and reliability.

You can read up on Honda engines at the following link

Here is a link that might be useful: Honda engines

I have never heard of a GC engine. I'll have to do some research..
My next lawn mower will be a Honda, all their products are excellent, this is due to the attitude taken by the Honda engineers and design staff.
Why can't Briggs do as well ???

earthworm the GCV is now on all walk behinds except the the commercial self propelled. The GSV which is a sleeved, crank bearing version of the GSV is even on the push commercial.

The GC/GCV engines are all OHC/OHV engines with internal timing belt.

Thankx, nevada..
I hope, but will not be holding my breath, that Briggs starts to build better engines than Honda....It will take a lot to do this; maybe starting with a totally clean slate - playing catch up, as in NFL games, does not work..

'' I have never heard of a GC engine. I'll have to do some research..
My next lawn mower will be a Honda, all their products are excellent, this is due to the attitude taken by the Honda engineers and design staff.
Why can't Briggs do as well ??? ''

You can always buy a Tecumseh instead of the Briggs !

Honda makes a good engine, but so don't the other manufacturers. I have one of just about every engine on a piece of equipment I own. The 25 hp kohler command in my cub cadet runs awesome, same for the 18 hp vanguard in my generator and the 8 hp tecumseh in my Ariens snowblower. I will say Honda's self propelled mowers suck. They are not worth the money. I have to replace the drive wheels after 4 seasons because there bald and the cable that operates the drive system broke. On top of that the mower housing rust like crazy and if you plan on cutting your lawn high, the mower has no vaccum so the cut will stink. I switched to mulching blades and it got a little better, but not much. Save your money and buy a craftsman or whatever for half the price. If you take care of it, it will last just as long as the honda.

I'm not overly impressed with the Honda 5.5HP engine installed on my almost $400 MTD self-propelled mower.

I used it last fall in 30degree temperatures to bag leaves. It idled very poorly in cold climates until after it warmed up.

It also noticably smokes for the first several seconds on every start. Been doing that since brand new. I learned quickly never to start it in the garage. Also has an exhaust odor when a load is placed on it. (like hitting thick grass) Doesn't seem very clean burning to me compared to the B&S 6.5HP engine that was on the previous mower it replaced.

On the plus side, it doesn't use any oil, than again, I've never had a small engine that consumed oil. Maybe I'm just lucky.

Overall, I would have to say it's not as good as the 6.5 B&S engine/mower it replaced. I'd still be using that mower if everthing else wasn't completely shot. At that time, I didn't think it was worth the time and effort to fix the old mower. I kept it for parts and was just recently considering getting it going again and selling the newer one. Needs all wheels, drive belt, numerous parts for self-propelled mechanism (spring/cable/gear), and deck height adjustment handle is broken. I have some free time on my hands and I like to tinker with this stuff anyway.

Lord Kelvin, if you had a 6.5 horse Briggs that powered a mower until the mower was worn out, and the engine still doesn't burn any oil, I might be interested in buying it. I'm thinking of starting a museum.

I presently have the Honda 5.5HP on my commercial 21" HRC216. I also had a 6.5HP B&S engine on my Craftsman Eager One.

The 6.5HP B&S had some serious RPM drop in heavy wet grass while the 5.5 HP Honda thought it was cutting air.

The Eager One was almost impossible to start at 40 degrees.
The Honda started easy but required 30 seconds of warm up time at that temp to run smooth. It would surge until after 30 seconds. In warm weather there is no surging.

The Honda engine is also quieter for some reason.

In fairness I also have a twin 24HP Intek on my DYT4000.
Never a problem with that engine. Runs smooth, starts easily in all types of weather.

Looking at the quality of construction...I would say the Honda engine is better built than most average engines.

Well, I bought a Husqvarna with a Honda gcv160 engine in May 2010. Thing stopped with no compression two weeks ago. Took it to the dealer, who went to Honda. They denied warranty service saying I used stale gas. There were deposits on the intake valve; however, dealer pointed out that the carb was totally clean. In his experience, stale gas always shows carb problems first before valve problems. Honda outsources their warranty service for non-Honda mowers in NE to Eastern Equipment, Inc. As I was quietly and respectfully explaining how unhappy I was with their decision, the rep hung up on me. I have worn out several mowers over 50 years of mowing grass, I have never seen a valve problem like this. Honda engines are off my buy list.

Any thoughts between a Honda GX630 24 hp vs. BRIGGS OHV 23 Hp Vanguard? I heard Hinda parts cost more.

I admittedly have no experience with these "larger" small engines. I do with the "smaller" ones, primarily Briggs 6.5 hp and under and various Hondas. Honda parts are more expensive, but the need for them is much less.

Nothing beats an old flathead B&S

Yeah, I am looking at the OHV engines. I am leaning toward the Honda.

I have a self propelled Honda lawn mower for 20+ years apart from the self propelling gear that was kind of shot, it just fires up every time ( on choke) My complaint is the heavy steel deck and needs heavy lifting when it comes to the corners. I still remembered the old commercial yrs ago with the lady used one pull to start the engine.

We have had our Honda gas powered weed eater for at least 17 years, Yes, it was expensive, about $500. but it still starts on the first pull every time. I am 63 and use it to care for my 2 acres still after all these years. That is why we bought a Honda. Before that we bought a Honda mower and a couple of years ago bought a Mantis tiller with the Honda engine.

Thanks for sharing information in your blog

In fairness to Briggs, I should admit that long after my previous post I bought a Craftsman riding mower with a 19 hp Briggs and Stratton Platinum engine. It is a remarkably smooth and powerful motor for a single cylinder, doesnt use oil and starts easy. so they arent all junk

Where you been hiding ?