Who makes MTD engines

[mulch]

I have a student with an MTD 1P65BU. We are trying to find specs and buy parts.I hae found a manual but the parts store told the student he couldnt find the engine without the make. I have always been curious about the manufacturer. Who makes these?

Thanks

[bgsengine]

A plant in china - they are basically Honda Clones - same basic block and parts as an HF Predator or Husqvarna's own brand or the current LCT or Tecumseh/Lauson engines.. Even Briggs & Stratton and Kohler have some "low end" entry level engines built by one of the same factories in China.. Subaru Robin and Yamakoyo are other examples of these "similarities" - The price you are paying reflects the brand strength and warranty by each individual manufacturer.

The differences among the engines are factory spec for things like trim, intake and exhaust, etc. Another MAJOR difference among them all is the quality control process each manufacturer or brand applies to the engines that get their "badge" - For example, a Harbor Freight Predator engine might just be a visual check that everything's put together, box it and ship it.. so your odds of getting a "bad one" are more likely... other manufacturers may have specific quality control steps that need to be taken by the factory - and some even have their own "final finish" production lines where they assemble the engine from the bare block to their own specifications. But once you get them stripped down to the bare block they are all pretty much the same - You can generally go with Honda GC*** series (NOT GX series) of a similar displacement for internal specs - Parts are *sometimes* interchangeable, but there are many many *many* variations on things like carburetors, linkages, air intakes and exhaust systems - all are manufacturer specific engineering to meet EPA emissions requirements.. so a carb off a Powermore may look just the same as a carb off a Husqvarna or Briggs or Kohler or Predator version - but unless it is specifically built for that particular engine, it will likely not meet EPA Emissions requirements - so you may likely notice a great disparity in price strategy used by any given manufacturer since you won't be able to get that *exact* part from anywhere else.

But in the end, the basic block of the engine may be built by any one of a small number of production facilities in China... and they all have pretty much the same basic dimensions as the Honda engines they were originally cloned from.. Now that Honda's design patents are expired.

[HondaG100]

Very informative BGS. Also sad that there is even a market for these engines.

[bgsengine]

Very informative BGS. Also sad that there is even a market for these engines.

When they are built right and follow good quality control, they can be very good engines - as reliable as any Honda (which in fact they are, technically as they use Honda's designs)

The "bad rep" they get is from the other "off-brand" vendors that sell them dirt cheap with no quality control measures - Basically they tell the factory "slap it together, box it and ship it" - same reason the "Clone Carbs" you can buy all over the internet for $10 shipped are possible - if you are lucky, you get a good one.. but if you are more like me - "if I didn't have bad luck, I'd have no luck at all" , you're better off spending the money on one good brand with a warranty to back it up, or you can end up spending twice as much buying several "el-cheapo" models to find one good one.

[acscolo]

This is a Powermore engine. 139 cc
It could be off a MTD, Huskee, or Yardman walk behind mower
For parts, search the MTD site using 952Z1P65BU or maybe 752Z1P65BU
Just get the MTD part number and go back to the "parts store" and give it to the counter person.
If he still can't find the part, change where you get your parts!

[KE4AVB]

I have a student with an MTD 1P65BU. We are trying to find specs and buy parts.I hae found a manual but the parts store told the student he couldnt find the engine without the make. I have always been curious about the manufacturer. Who makes these?

Thanks

1P65BU IPL

P65 Service Manual

[mulch]

Great guys I will pass this on to the student. I have also instructed him to go elswhere as I figured they should be able to find the parts from the numbers he has.

Thanks,