It’s a dirty task that most homeowners probably wish they could avoid (and some skip altogether): changing the oil in their lawnmower engine.
Now they won’t have to, thanks to a new product from Briggs & Stratton (NYSE: [[ticker:BGG]]). The Wauwatosa, WI-based small engine and power equipment manufacturer says it has developed a new engine for walking lawnmowers that can go the decade or so lifespan of the mower without needing an oil change, according to an article by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
The enabling technology is a tightly sealed air filter that blocks out dirt, which could sully the oil, and a new cooling fan and engine design that funnels exhaust heat away from the oil, so that it doesn’t break down, the newspaper reported. The engine will hit the market this spring in certain Toro, Craftsman, Snapper, Troy-Bilt, and Yard Machines walking mowers.
Briggs developed the engine in response to research that found consumers generally understand that regularly changing the oil can extend the lawnmower’s lifespan, but they don’t always follow through because it’s a messy task that involves draining and throwing away the spent oil.
The new product might not generate the kind of hype usually reserved for fancy consumer gadgets or lifesaving drugs, but it’s an example of a big corporation trying to innovate in its field.
Briggs, founded more than a century ago, has made some moves in the past couple of years to free up money for research and development, and it restructured its hierarchy so that the R&D team reports directly to CEO Todd Teske. That has partly led to a flurry of new lawnmower products, including the new engine that doesn’t require an oil change, a quieter lawnmower motor, and an engine that doesn’t leak fuel or oil when stored on its side.
