Perhaps better said, a new generation generator is coming on line. At some point in the service life of a system, there are technical advancements that make it worth getting rid of an old system. The wisdom of this decision is often questionable. I tend to believe the KISS principle holds a lot of water. Keep It Simple, Stupid. Be that as it may, at some point in time, it was decided that the current power generation fleet needs to be replaced.
I have seen and worked on 4 generations of power generation. I have to admit, each HAS been an improvement. Of course, the start up phase of a new system can be a little rough. Almost everyone, (and I am one of them!!!) today, raves about how dependable, how long lasting, how easy to work on, for instance, the MEP-006A, 60 KW generator is. Few people here in the forum remember (or have the slightest idea about) the first few years that the 006A life. I sure do. We were issued the sets in 1977. We got 13 sets. Six weeks later, 60% of the fleet was deadlined for speed switches and static exciters. It did not get better for a few years. There was no difference in the other gen sets of this time period. And the new generation generator is no different. While I will not question the wisdom of the change to a new generation generator family, I will question the need for a generator that has an ECU that cost as much as a MEP-802A. I have been told by people in the know, that it the new generation set are taken care or properly, the MTBF, (mean time between failure) is about 1000 hours. No TQG, comes even close.
The generator set you THINK is new, low hour, is in all probability older, and been through at least one if not two or more resets. When a gen set gets a new hour meter, you have no idea how many hours it in fact, has. And, an hour meter can also go bad. So it gets changed. And rarely is it documented. So just how old is the set? You don't know. And, (Mrs Wright, my English teacher would be screaming about all these ands) a new hour meter was not always installed during a reset. Build date is no good, for the same reason. Do not place a lot of worth on hours and build date.
LOOK, at the condition. LOOK at compleat nests. These are concrete. You can see, to some extent, in the pictures, these two things. If you can look at the set, touch it, smell it, feel it run, listen to it, even better. I understand that's not the norm. But it's the best way to really tell if a set is worth the price you pay for it. We see lots of people like you ask the same questions you asked in your first post. Our answers don't change. It's worth what you are willing to pay for it.
So the next questions........... Have you dome your homework? What makes you think you need a 803A? Why not a 802A? Or a MEP-002A, or 003A? They might be a good way to save a few bucks. What about buying from a reputable person/company, who will sell you something that is overhauled, or reset, repaired and tested. Might cost more money, but unless you are willing to do the work yourself, AND get smart on the equipment, it still might cost less in the long run.
the ball is in your court.
