I purchased this unit approximately 2.5 years ago now and I use it quite frequently. It starts and runs like the first day I purchased it without skipping a beat. Extremely easy to start, smooth in operation, really fuel efficient and plenty of punch when it comes to cutting quite high/thick grass. From memory I think I paid around the $750 mark and it's been worth every penny. Not the first unit I've purchased from Echo and definitely won't be the last. Highly recommended!