Generating distrust -- Canada vs USA

[marchhare]

I recently went to a Honda Generator Dealer and asked about their product. They seemed very interested and showed myself all that there was. The EI 3000 was my choice and when I checked the price against my US and Canadian price list, the US was significantly less. I went back to advise the dealer and hoped for a break but was informed that they would not honor any US warranty should I go that way. Honda Canada advised the same.

Its a no brainer where I will buy it but was wondering if anyone from US has had this problem in Canada or Canadian purchses being refused warranty in US.

[newroswell]

Your dealer in Ontario said they would not honor the warranty if it was bought in the US? I would take the issue up with Honda and ask what their policy is. Seems like an issue to consider when buying a Honda product if US visitors traveling to Canada with their generators can't get service under warranty.

[newroswell]

Quick search turned up this;

Honda Power Equipment: Honda Generators, Lawn Mowers, Snowblowers, Tillers

Q: Where can I get my Honda equipment serviced if I am not in the United States?

A: American Honda only distributes and supports products sold in the United States, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands and dealers in the same areas. If you need to find a dealership outside of the United States to work on a piece of equipment, visit Honda's worldwide website at Honda Worldwide : Honda Motor Co.,Ltd..

[cwf]

Yup. Don't cross the streams. Bad karma?

On fleabay I found cheap cameras. Only problem is the warranty only good in Pacific rim select countries and dialects. No good in US even if broken out of box!!!!

So much for the "global" thing,,,,eh?

If possible, buy and have serviced in same country. ... MAybe even French must be spoken!!!

Good thing the legal folks let you know prior to boo boo.

Your "option"... Buy and hope for best.

If you buy from WartMart u can return anything...at least today. Proof? I saw a woman give the reason for returning worn out shoes "don't fit my dogtah no Mo!" Verbatim.

Of course that wouldn't be a nice thing to do...sorta like rejecting warranty work.

[wahoonc]

I suspect the reason may be legal. Warranties requirements differ from country to country based on law. Also units built for some countries will have different safety "features" that are not required in others...

Aaron

[andreasduess]

Originally Posted by wahoonc

I suspect the reason may be legal.

And here I thought the reason might be profiteering and price gauging...

[wahoonc]

Originally Posted by andreasduess

And here I thought the reason might be profiteering and price gauging...

I have a sneaking suspicion that quite a bit of stuff in the US that is higher in price than stuff in other countries do to the insurance required to protect against lawsuits.

In other cases the tariffs of the specific country come into play. A litre of decent quality vodka can be purchased in the Caribbean for ~$12usd that same litre costs nearly 3 times that in a state owned liquor store in NC USA. All taxes.

Aaron

[andreasduess]

Originally Posted by wahoonc

I have a sneaking suspicion that quite a bit of stuff in the US that is higher in price than stuff in other countries

As a Canadian my experience has generally been that stuff is more expensive north of the border than south - often for no good, obvious, reason. Thus my sarcastic comment.

[polarlyse]

Now I just gotta ask. How many buyers / users of quality Honda or Yamaha generators have needed warranty service ? If the savings is significant enough I'd go for it and keep the savings in escrow in case a normally covered service is needed. I think the number of returns for warranty service would be a pretty small number.

Ran into a Canadian couple last year in Montana that had come south for a vacation and bought a Honda generator in Mont. I think he said the savings was $ 800. If it was that much I'd go for it.

[Skater]

Originally Posted by polarlyse

Now I just gotta ask. How many buyers / users of quality Honda or Yamaha generators have needed warranty service ? If the savings is significant enough I'd go for it and keep the savings in escrow in case a normally covered service is needed. I think the number of returns for warranty service would be a pretty small number.

The only thing I know of was that recall a while back. One of mine was affected by it. But, yeah, it seems pretty unusual to need repairs on them.

[daveswenson]

Warning. F Bomb alert.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bOR38552MJA

[marchhare]

Thank you for your replies. Yes, it seems that Canada and the USA are opposite when it comes to repairing under warranty the products sold in the two countries. So much for "Free Trade" etc.

[perryg114]

I expect it has to do with the tax rates in Canada versus the US. Everything is taxed to the hilt in Canada so they have to charge more to make enough profit to live on. Since 2/3 or more of the pie goes to the governement and less than 1/3 goes to the government in the US then there is your answer.

Perry

Originally Posted by marchhare

I recently went to a Honda Generator Dealer and asked about their product. They seemed very interested and showed myself all that there was. The EI 3000 was my choice and when I checked the price against my US and Canadian price list, the US was significantly less. I went back to advise the dealer and hoped for a break but was informed that they would not honor any US warranty should I go that way. Honda Canada advised the same.

Its a no brainer where I will buy it but was wondering if anyone from US has had this problem in Canada or Canadian purchses being refused warranty in US.

[DaveFL]

Honda Fit cars in Canada are made in China, U.S. they still come from Japan, next year it will be Mexico. They claim the exchange rate on Yen they lose money or at least have a very thin margin. They won't sell Fits in the U.S. that have a lot of bells and whistles compared to Europe's model, seems like Honda doesn't want Americans to have a luxury small car, unless it is the upscale models they produce at a better profit margin. Old saying of buy American hard to do anymore.

[Condoluminum]

After a lot of years negotiating multi-national contracts for global manufacturers, I can add a few items to ponder..
1. Often prices set based on expectations of currency rates, and manufacturers hat adjusting more often than annually.. If Loonie was weak versus Yen when pricing planned that can explain some difference
2. Legal requirements for warranty (term/transfer/covered conditions) do vary by country, and Canada may have more consumer-friendly warranty.
3. VAT or other embedded taxes are going to be baked into Local Currency price, even though not visible to buyers
4. Pricing is "manipulated" by region to reflect local markets and competitive conditions.. Manufacturers use warranty denial as way of enforcing partitions between markets.. That is why DVD players and DVD's in Asia won't work in US, and vice versa.. Mercedes in Asia very pricey, and in Germany pretty reasonable. Computers and ink cartridges in Asia much cheaper than in US or Europe. Manufacturers also use warranty limits to keep their own distributors from selling "gray market" by shifting product by container-load from one country to another where they aren't authorized...

All that said, if you are willing to assume warranty risk, you can save money.. In our experience we did need Honda generator warranty for failed valve/valve stem, but allegedly because of poor quality gasoline used during initial run/break-in period.. Dealer made deal to exchange complete unit plus some cash since I needed unit that day and couldn't wait for repairs, which would have been done for free in 10 days.. Your mileage may vary...

[MrUKToad]

It can be just good old gouging, based on what the manufacturer thinks he can get away with in a given market.

I bought a branded pair of shoes in Canada and happened to price check it with an identical pair in the UK (both made in Vietnam, of course). Taking the banks' exchange rate, the UK price was more than double that I paid in Canada. I wrote to the company to ask why this should be the case and they replied saying that it was "currency fluctuations". I know the GBP has its ups and downs but twice the price? No, it's just what the market will stand - darned shoes probably only cost a couple of dollars to manufacture

[switz]

Apple computer stuff in the UK usually has the same price number with the British pound symbol that we have with the dollar sign. The 1.6+ multiplier for dollars to pounds plus 20% VAT is still not an equal price. The Brits are fond of saying, "grab your socks".

In the 2009 model year, the Honda Gold Wing had fewer features in the UK and cost significantly more than the fully loaded top model here. I was in the market for a UK bike at the time.

[Gene]

You're less than 100 miles from Buffalo and if there's a problem with a US bought Honda, the price difference seems to say take it to Buffalo to buy and for warranty work. Our Honda has always worked flawlessly.

Gene

[newroswell]

The price difference is just based on taxes. I believe the warranty issue is related to the fact that those generators sold in the USA are from a corporation called Honda North America, which is a different corporate entity than Honda Canada. One sibling doesn't want to do warranty work for the other.

[switz]

Yes those are two different companies on paper, but the money pocket is common and the profits flow back to Honda in Japan.