Outdoor Power Equipment and Small Engines - Opinons on B&S 31C707 engine

My dad wants to buy a new Poulan lawn tractor that has a B&S 31C707 engine in it. At HomeDepot it is on sale for $200 off this weekend, while supplies last. Just wondering what "quirks" this engine has. I will be using synthetic oil in it on the first oil change. Here is the link:
Poulan XT - Mowers & Utility Products - Outdoor Power Equipment - Outdoors at The Home Depot (http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Navigation?Ntk=AllProps&N=10000003+90260+528374+5477&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053&langId=-1&omni=b_Poulan) XT

Is there an authorized Briggs / Poulan dealer in you're area for warranty work & parts later on??? This should be a good machine, but if you need repairs & parts, make sure you have a dealer close.... Sometimes it's better to buy from the dealer than the Box Store as you support the local people, & you have a connection with the people that sell it & fix it if you do have a problem.. I don't think Home Depot has a service / parts department that does repairs.... Roger

Hopkinsr2, I fully understand buying local and would much rather he buy local. He is 92 y/o, fixed income and lived thru the Great Depression and was in WWII and Korea and learned in all 3 that you save everything as you may need to reuse it later. Yeah, he still has used parts from his 1948 Hudson Hornet.
Anyway, he buys for price ONLY. If this same tractor was advertised locally for $50 more, he would drive the 15 miles to HD to save the $50. I tried to talk him into the Ariens with the 18hp Kohler, but that 1 is $400 more.
Anyway, I just wanted to know how good that B&S engine is and what problems it has. I would rather he spend the extra $$ to get a full oil pressure lube engine, but no go.
And yes, there is an authorized Poulan/B&S dealer close by.

For an inexpensive mower, that's about as good of one as you'll find. I favor AYP mowers like that over MTDs for sure. That briggs has been around for a while. There are a few things to keep in mind with that engine. I've seen a few with bad camshafts...maybe they've fixed that by now. The valves need to be adjusted yearly. The air filter is clamped in a plastic housing that doesn't always seal the best. I put grease on both sides of the rubber part of the air filter where it clamps in the housing so that air will not get past it. I've seen a few that had worn out rings prematurely because of this. In light of this, they are generally good engines that can last the lifetime of the mower if maintained properly.

Well, we went to HD this morning. They said they just got the tractors in today. They got 10 of them. Anyway, they loaded in the truck, still in the crate. I asked them where I would have to take it for warranty work. He said bring it back here and we send it to the authorized repair shop. There is a $35 diagnosis fee which is refundable if it is a warranty-able repair. That surprised me. I assumed they would have a list of dealers to take it to.
Reading the engine manual, it says to change the oil after 5 hours use. I was thinking the break-in period would be longer than 5 hours. Thats good in a way cuz now after the second time the lawn is mowed, it will get the synthetic oil.

Here's a note on that warranty repair thing..

Depending on the individual shop..they may have no problem with you bringing it directly to them for a problem. I would presume they wouldn't if they are an authorized dealer, though they may be a little PO'd you didn't buy from them, and put you at the back of the line....I dunno.

As to the HD warranty..when you take it in, they fill out an order and you pay the $35..then it goes to receiving, has to be processed by the RTV person in the back as well, and sits (..and sometimes sits and sits and sits) until it is picked up by the repair company that has the contract. It may not be the closest authorized service center near the store. Once its in HD's system, you may be hard pressed to get any updates on the status, since you'll be going through 2-3 different people.
I saw nail guns take over a month to be returned and the service center was only about 18 miles away. Some people didn't care since they had 4 or 5 others.

That's what I know of how it works. I'd be checking with the local shop about any warranty work.

I found out some very interesting things about Poulan. Husqvarna makes Poulan.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (January 2000) -- Husqvarna today announced an addition to their consumer goods offering. Husqvarna is now offering Poulan Pro wheel good products, including riding mowers, walk-behind mowers and tillers to the independent retailer market.

"The Poulan Pro line compliments our premium Husqvarna brand and gives new and existing retailers an economy line of quality wheel goods for their customers," said John Bailey, business unit manager, consumer lawn and garden, for Husqvarna.


"We want to offer our retailers a full range of options, from quality economy lines to premium high-end products. With everything from consumer wheel goods to commercial equipment, Husqvarna is the Total Source for outdoor power equipment," added Bailey.




Just for everyone's future knowledge.

I will add my $0.02, the man is 92 years old, give him anything that will make him happy, Hudson made good cars, waste not want not. I think he was using a walk behind last year. Have a good one. Geo

Yep, husquvarna, poulan, weedeater, craftsman are all AYP products. They're my favorite of the consumer grade mowers. Not 2-strokes though...except husqvarna.