STIHL Reviews 8

At stihl lithgow mick and mel are good people and if you need anything to help with your garden they are the 2 to see

Absolute trash, This wipper snipper has had problems from day one. The cord keeps snapping, ans you have to reload every five minutes. I have had clutch problems. Have taken it back to the dealer four times, tried three different cords and different sizes, and still the cord keeps snapping at the top of the head, this is so frustratin.gg . I have contacted Stihl and was told to take it back to the dealer. Buyer beware of this company as they are greedy grubs, so I am now stuck with a rubbish wipper snipper. I have two chainsaws a ms261 and a 500i, I will be selling them and buying Huskie out of principle . I have started a small fire wood business, I will never buy Stihl again, they have lost a loyal customer. What a grubby company.

Trimmer head issues: Some users have reported that the stock AutoCut head is not ideal and can be difficult to use, with some suggesting it is "garbage". It is possible to replace it with other models, but this can be complicated with bent-shaft models.

Above is on Google. Stihl has known about this problem, and has done nothing. All I want is my money back. This company makes it do hard to get your money back, just keep going around in circles until you just give up. Terrible customer service.

Update. I have tried to ring Stihl corporate, all you get is a answering machine. Left a message, no response, why does that not surprise me. What a disgraceful company. All I want is my money back so I can buy a trimmer that actually works.

Be very careful buying anything from Stihl, if you have any defects in there products they make you go around in circles and ignore you, no customer service what so ever. Going to try and sell back to the dealer. Or through it away as it is useless. Should have bought a echo or Honda like I was advised, very disappointed. Stihl won't last if they keep ripping people off.

We bought an AP200 battery and it lasted for only about 50 charges, and not the likely 1000 or more the battery is supposed to do. It’s near new to look at but out of warranty, so there’s nothing anyone can do. I wish Stihl would take it back just to figure out what went wrong and build the learnings into new models. But they don’t seem interested - it’s just our bad luck. We have a few AP300s and they are working as expected…steer clear of the AP200 unless you like lotteries.

Purchased a Stihl FSE 52 trimmer and it is the worst trimmer I have ever had. The line constantly breaks and does not automatically feed. I thought Stihl was a good brand but obviously I was wrong!!

I bought a Stihl M170 chainsaw recently from Mitre 10 at Mount Barker WA, ironically decided to spend the extra $100 over the cheaper Yardforce chainsaw as I thought it would probably last me a lifetime just for chopping firewood being a brand I've always considered the best or at least on par with Husqvarna.
Unfortunately this chainsaw was faulty and while on the same tank of petrol that Mitre 10 filled it up with to demonstrate it starting I was in the bush and noticed a washer on the ground. I stopped the chainsaw for an inspection and noticed where the chain joined the motor some plastic gauze looking out of place which I was later informed held bearings.
I bought the chainsaw on the Friday and Mitre 10 being a 75km drive from my place didn't take it back until Monday. Straight away the staff told me they didn't deal with Stihl warranty I needed to take it to Albany to the closest Authorized mechanic. I gave Albany store a call to see what was needed on (08) 9841 1844 and spoke to a very rude man who told me it's at least a 2 week backlog until he could look at my chainsaw. Considering Albany is 135kms from my house and I needed firewood to keep my family warm I decided to leave the chainsaw with Mitre 10 and bought a Yardforce chainsaw.
Mitre 10 told me I needed to ring Stihl as it was out of their hands and Stihl would not reimburse them if they replaced mine. Very frustrated I phoned the Melbourne head office on (03) 9215 6666 and once again dealted with a rude lady who straight away told me it was up to Mitre 10 to deal with it but eventually after explaining everything that had happened she gave me a reference number K6378383 and told me the person involved in these matters would give me a call.
Well I finally got a call from a private number a week later from a man who never gave his name and one of the first things he told me was "the chainsaw looks very dirty" I said yes it's a chainsaw and I cut some firewood with it before it broke and I didn't clean it I left it as is and stopped using it as soon as it broke. It has a typical amount of would particles you would expect from cutting wood. I explained to him that I had bought another chainsaw as I couldn't wait 2+ weeks to have this one evaluated and fixed and I wanted a refund as I don't need two chainsaws. I also explained it wasn't worth my time to do two round trips of 135kms each way for a $269 chainsaw as the petrol alone would cost half of it's value without considering my time.
The man told me he would talk to Mitre 10 and organize a refund and I should expect a call from them shortly. A couple of times over the next week I called back Stihl head office in Melbourne and quoted my reference number which they couldn't find my case and I needed to explain the whole situation again. They couldn't tell me the name of the man who I had spoken with but said they would work out who it was and get him to give me a call back. I have never heard from him since.
A week later Mitre 10 called me and said the chainsaw was ready to pick up and was fixed. I explained to them I wanted a refund and they told me that wasn't possible the man from Stihl had sent them the parts and helped them over the phone to fix it.
17 days after I had given the chainsaw to Mitre 10 I picked it up against what I had wanted but was given no choice and while the young bloke from Mitre 10 started it in front of me again he said I don't know why they got me to fix it we are not authorized to do so. He also explained to me that plastic gauze held bearings in and it wasn't an easy job for him.
So I can assure you based on purely on arrogance and unprofessional people you need to deal with if you get a faulty Stihl product (which I'd imagine is very rare as they are quality products) I will never buy anything Stihl again and instead buy Husqvarna when after a quality product.
On a comparison between the Stihl and Yardforce chainsaws I now own I wish I had of just bought the Yardforce from the start, it's $100 cheaper, came with a load of extras such as chain sharpeners and petrol mixing containers and has the M170 beat in every department but weight. The Yardforce in saying that isnt overly heavy it's more so the Stihl feels nearly like a kids toy.
The Yardforce has a much bigger bar and chain along with nearly twice as much power and definitely cuts through my firewood much easier then the Stihl. The Yardforce has a much bigger petrol and oil tank which means it's runs about 4 times as longer before needing filling then the Stihl. Also the Stihl floods easy and can be difficult to start but the Yardforce starts easy everytime. I would definitely recommend taking the much cheaper option to anyone in a similar position to me.
It's a shame such a good quality brand like Stihl has such poor representation in Australia and I feel this really needs to be looked into.

Bought the chainsaw, noticed the plastic cover looks like it was made for a different model. Does not align with main body. Significant gaps. Stihl said it was normal. Ok, looks like a cheap made knock off but I let the issue go.
I then notice there is a "double your warranty" promotion which is activated when buying 25 dollars of their two stroke when buying the saw. I was never informed about it and only bought ten dollars worth as it is for light use. Contacted customer service to request consideration for the double warranty if I bought the extra oil four weeks late, on several different platforms. They straight out ignored all contact.
The worst company I have ever come across for customer service.

Lithgow Valley Outdoor Specialists are amazing! Clearly customer service is their priority and it shows! Professional old fashion great service. These guys are easily the best Stihl dealer I’ve ever dealt with! You have a customer for life!