I own a 17hp Kawi with only 600 hours on it and it has been nothing but a problem from the beginning. From gaskets leaking to carburetor kits and complete engine overhauls. New rings and pistons at 220 hours. Another complete engine overhaul at 450 hours. Bent the rods and had everything done again. New coil, starter, throttle cables. Has anyone else had this many problems with a Kawasaki? And don't get me wrong this engine is pampered. Never sees the weather and always gets the oil changed every 50 hours. Should Kawasaki replaced the engine at 220 hours when it was still under warranty? Sounds like a lemon from the beginning to me. What do you think? Any suggestions on how i could get something out of Kawasaki? Thanks for your responses Eric
Bummer, sorry to hear that. I have a 17 kawisaki and have been problem free 520 hours. What kind of mower, mine is on a great dane.
i have a 17 hp kawi on a john deere 277 I replaced both coils at about 400 hours. I also have oil blowing out the carb.
:blob3: i will never buy another kawi, im blowing white/blue smoke, and using a ton of oil, have about 650 hours on it. i too have changed the coils and a breather kit to help prevent form having the oil in my air filter which is doing nothing, thinking about scapin the motor this winter for a kohler. tony ps, kawi customer service sucks as well, they feel they produce a flawless motor and all the problems are the result of what im doing.
i have 2 17 hp also.there 3 years old and i just change the oil.my friend did have a problem with his but it was an easy fix.his carb would overflow with gas.because when he changed his belts the first time he tipped the machine over on the carb side and the float got all hung up.sounds like you got a friday or monday kawi made engine....lol don't feel bad my new 27 hp kohler has 90 hours on it and it runs like crap.already replaced the carb. i will only buy kawi engines from now on.there product support has always been great for me.sounds like your dealer is the problem.
I have a 17 Kaw on a 5 year old 48" JD. The engine has run fine the only problem with eh mower that I have had is a bad wiring harness that keeps grounding out and killing the battery. It is going to be a winter project for me. Now my dealer has repeatedly told me that he dislikes Kaw. He says that he sees at least 60% more Kaw than he does Kohler's so he suggests to everyone that buys new go with the Kohler option. Ron
bommaritro, Is that 17hp Kawi that you have a TWIN cylinder like the ones talked about above? For a 5 y/o JD, I will assume that its the older single cylinder 17hp. Whatcha got?
Yup, I've got over 500 on mine, running 3,800 rpm doubles, and it's fine. I had a bad coil at 300, but that's it. Pete
