Brian Whatcott wrote in
:
On 25 Dec 2003 17:17:09 GMT, (Karl Denninger)
wrote:
That [Fischer-Panda] generator...
we were considering buying one...
Don't.
Buy a Kohler. 5 year, 2000 hour recreational warranty, INCLUDING
REMOVE AND REPLACE LABOR.
You can't beat that ANYWHERE.
I've owned one for 2+ years now, and have over 600 hours on it. It has
been a 100% trouble-free piece of equipment. I'd buy another in a
heartbeat, and recommend the unit to everyone I come across who needs
one.
This note has such a ring of confidence about it.... reminds me that I
bought an econobox with a 5 year 100,000 mile drive train warranty.
And would you believe it, I had no mentionable problems in ten years.
Manufacturers who offer impressive sounding warranties usually have a
distinct hunch it ain't gonna cost them the ranch. That's my
experience anyway.
Brian W
I couldn't agree more. One of my favorite stories is about my swim
ladder warranty. The ladder is made by Windline and at one point it
lost a large "C-ring" that stopped one of the step levels from
descending. BlueJacket was in the Caribbean when this happened and I e-
mailed them. I explained the situation and they asked me to return the
unit to them. I wrote that hauling a swim ladder back with me would be
very difficult and re-stated that I would just like the C-ring and that
I would replace it. They stated that replacing it was very difficult
and that they would simply replace the entire unit! They shipped me an
entire new ladder and didn't ask for anything back.
What an amazing company! I would recommend them to anyone and would
purchase from them in a heart-beat. I love companies who stand behind
their products almost to a fault, but they build customer loyalty.
When you pay "marine" prices for products I believe that those companies
who don't provide an appropriate level of service should be exposed. I
think that all too often we sailors/cruisers take it up the tail and
expect that because the products are exposed to marine environments that
they will fail prematurely. For the additional cost that we pay for
these products, they shouldn't. Sure, if you've beat upon a component,
that's one thing, but if it's simply in a marine environment, that's a
completely different beast. I think that we need to hold the
manufacturers to a higher standard and demand better products.
Maybe it's just me, but I sure believe this. I can tell that some of
you think that I went too far with my generator, but I believe that I
made things better for future customers. I can assure you that I
*didn't* make any money on the deal. I didn't even break even. I
pursued them because I felt that it was the right thing to do. I agreed
to end it because I'm headed around the world and couldn't afford the
time or expense to come back and continue to litigate this. You can
disagree with me all that you want, but it wasn't your dollar on the
table. It was mine. It's quite interesting what people would do who
don't have any money or time invested.
Anyhow, I'm about to head out of here. I wish everyone a wonderful new
year!
Fair seas and smooth anchorages -- Geoff