Honda Water Cooled Gas 6KW Generator

[gus]

I've been working off and on on installing this gen for about three months but now that it is finished it has been worth the work.

This makes one nice installation, quiet and NO vibration. After all I had read about 3600rpm generators I thought this would be noisy but it is half the noise of my old 1800 rpm air cooled Onan.

I know there are very few of these installed in buses so if anyone wants installation details feel free to email me with "Honda Gen" as the subject so it doesn't get filtered as spam.

[jjrbus]

What do you mean "very few installed in buses"? Every bus I own has one in it!

[gus]

jjrbus,

Every bus I own has one too but we may be the only two! All I ever hear on this forum is diesel at more than twice the price, go figure? I sure do like the lighter weight and small size.

Have you had any problems so far?

I just installed mine and am about to leave on a 6000+ mi trip so I'll soon know if I made the right decision!

[jjrbus]

 There have been a few of us that have installed the Honda's. I could not see spending big $$$$ for the deisel for the little I use it!! More than 1 year now with 17 hours.
Trouble of course its a bus!!! I went to bussin 2007 and drycamped. It started and worked fine, once. Would not start again. I checked it over, tested, talked to people, read the manual, cursed, stomped my feet, held my breath till I turned blue.
By then I wish I had my 2 Honda 2000" back. So I start all over again. To make a long frustrating story short. The F2 fuse blew. But it did not blow completely. It is possible for a fuse to blow but remain intact. I tested it with a multimeter it showed good. The electrical vendor tested the fuse for me it tested good.
A fsue can blow but the contacts remain touching. with a meter they show good (no current). Apply some current and they seperate. I'm not an electrical guru so I was very fortunate to find this on my own!
Had I bought a deisel this never would have happened?

[Don4107]

I have been thinking the Honda converted to propane and installed on a slider in the Spare tire compartment.  It should fit.  Might have to do some of the sound insulation on the outside of the compartment.  I think it's doable.  Please lets not start the spare tire debate again.  

I hope that by the time I'm ready to buy one they have a factory propane unit.   I really don't want to have to carry gas too.

Don 4107-501

[NJT5047]

Would that place the genset in the front, in what is considered the "crush zone?"   Don't know about GM coaches, but not sure that I'd want LP plumbed in front of the steer axle if indeed your spare tire compartment is behind the front bumper. 
Are you using the OEM AC?  If not, what about that compartment?
LP is a great fuel for gensets as long as you don't camp in really cold weather.  Always ready to go.   Oil change is optional. 
LP cost was a problem...now the cost of diesel fuel has made that point moot. 
If you plan to run the unit much, check on the fuel usage vs run time from your existing LP capacity.   
Best, JR

[Jeremy]

I also have a petrol generator, and am very happy with it. I originally went to buy a diesel one, but the dealer pursuaded me that for my application petrol was the better choice - in fact he started up both a fully sound-proofed 'quiet diesel' and an equivalent petrol generator to demonstrate the difference in noise levels, and that, together with the big cost saving, made the decision for me. I especially like the 'smart throttle' feature on my gen, which means it only turns as fast as it needs to to produce the power you are using, which makes it very quiet indeed most of the time.

The downsides of choosing petrol is having to carry different fuel, and that the maintenance is higher and the lifespace is shorter than the diesel versions. Diesel should also be cheaper to run, especially if you are running the gen on red diesel or veg oil. If I was living on board my bus I would probably have chosen diesel for these reasons, but for occasional recreational use petrol is the best option for me.

I don't have any propane on my bus, but if I did have a large enough tank I might well want to run the gen on propane; my Range Rover is dual-fuel, as are quite a few vehicles in the UK due to our high fuel costs.

Jeremy

[FloridaCliff]

They also make that same genset in a portable frame.

It is the ES6500.  I bought mine used and it has worked great, well, after I fiixed it.

If any one needs a new cam shaft pulley I am your man.

Honda sells parts in unexpected combinations.

I built a full slideout and have been very pleased with it.

The dual fuel is a minor hassle.

Like others, my usage doesn't justify a diesel, yet! (in my mind) 

Cliff

[gus]

I couldn't justify a diesel either because we are mostly travelers, not campers. I guess a lot of dry camping would justify a diesel but it would take a lot of use to make the difference in price. It is so lightweight too, amazing.

The nice thing about 4104s and earlier GMs is they already have a separate gas tank for the old gas engine powered AC.

jjr,

Thanks, that is good info on the F2 fuse. Never heard of a partly burned out fuse either and I've been messing with auto electrics for 50 years, weird!