Chinook RV

You can't buy a generator like that for a mere $700 and now you will be able to just push one of the start buttons and not have to think about it.

For reference, a previous owner of my Concourse had the generator serviced years ago (I'm guessing lack of use so carb issues - clogged jets) and the receipt was for ~$300 for a new carb.

One internet reference said that 1,600 hours is a typical service life internal of these generators with some people getting as many as 5,000 hours. Change the oil and make sure to exercise them. Onan Quiet 4K's are super common.

Thanks. It's definitely an "ouchie" for the pocketbook, but when I get it back I'll have a baseline for it. From this point forward I'll be doing my own oil/filter/spark/etc changes and will make sure it's run under load at the monthly intervals. Like you said, I just want to be able to press a button and not worry about anything. I don't know engines that well so I guess with a new crankcase I'm replacing one of the major parts that I won't have to worry about in the future.
Help me understand. From what I think I know, the crankcase houses certain parts like the lifter arm and oil. Because they said I'll be getting a new crankcase, does that mean the arm damaged the crankcase or does it mean it's sealed and a new case is warranted regardless?

No time to go into detail now but basically there is a top end of the engine (it's an OHV aka Overhead Valve) and a bottom end. The top end has rocker arms and valves on a cylinder head. The bottom end is engine cases, crank, and connecting rod.

By "lifter arm" I assume that's a rocker arm because the rocker arm is operated by the lifter (with pushrod in between). So why a broken rocker arm requires a new engine case I don't know. Me thinks some language an terms got muddied along the way from the technician, to the service writer, to the customer, and to the post. If you are getting a new case and rocker arm then there's basically a full tear down and engine rebuild involved but for $700 that would be a steal which again supports my confusion of the terms and description here. A rocker arm is easy to replace and not very expensive. If the valve it pushes got bent then maybe the cylinder head would come off for some work but no engine case replacement unless something really weird happened but I don't think you mentioned an oil puddle on the ground.

Different news today. But during the several phone calls to me they said lifter arm and rocker arm at different times. I'm assuming it's not both and it's getting muddied by the time I get the phone call. No oil puddles, btw. Sooo, phone call today they said they had better news. No new crankcase needed. What will be done now is rocker arm, valve adjustment (I'm assuming now because of your post the valve adjustment is due to new rocker arm), and ignition coil replacement. And of course the tune-up. New price is just over $600. Don't know if that's a deal, but I'm a $100 richer since the last quote. They hope to get it to me tomorrow.

Got it back today and here's the description of the problem. Total cost was $598:
They replaced:
Ignition coil
Fuel filter
Spark Plug
Cylinder head gasket
Oil
"Removed plug and tested spark. Found no continuous spark. Removed generator from rv. Separated genset from baseplate and removed pcb and fan hub. Removed magneto and found severed secondary coil wiring. Replaced the magneto and the generator starts and runs good at this time."
The shop was pleasant to deal with and they gave me daily phone calls. I'd certainly recommend them, but I know I will try and solve stuff first in as much detail as I can before it goes in!

That sounds really reasonable to me, and just by the wording I get the feeling they are a "real" shop vs. one that only replaces components. So you have a good baseline generator now - yeah!

PS: If you are comfortable doing so, maybe mention the name of the shop? Nice to balance the feeling that the Internet is all complaints and give kudos to a good shop.

I've got no problem naming them. They are one of the Cummins/Onan shops. Possibly franchised, but that's all they work on.

Cummins Power Systems LLC, Manassas, Virginia

They said they had 2 rv's in this past week with generator issues. The problem was the owners never checked the gas level in the rv's tanks. Both were well below 1/2. They were happy to see mine in there with a real problem!

Thanks, will keep that one tucked away for future reference.

For what it's worth, my onan still won't run at 6000' altitude. Last time I was here, it was really cold, but this time its 80 degrees.. So it must be the altitude and not the temperature. I would try the altitude adjustment knob again, but it feels like it could break. I have never tried another to know if there's something wrong with my adjuster or not, but just doesn't feel quite right.

Does your carb look like this? I can't speak to specific altitudes I've run my generator at (it would take some effort to match dates to locations and calculate the elevations) but never had an issue with it and haven't touched the altitude adjustment. Had the RV at sea level all he way up to 11,000 feet just not sure about gen use levels.