It sounds as if the auger pulley is stuck. I recommend that you remove the belt cover. Now check the pulleys to make sure they all turn freely. If all of the pulleys are fine and the engine still stalls, it is most likely a fuel issue.

A clogged carburetor is most commonly caused by leaving fuel in the snowblower for a long period of time. If the fuel cap vent is clogged, air won’t be able to enter the tank and a vacuum or “vapor lock” will occur. This stops the flow of fuel to the carburetor causing the engine to stall.

The impeller turns and the shear pins on the impeller shaft are ok. All of the auger shear pins are ok too. You can turn the impeller by hand, but the auger seems to be turning independently.

A squealing or slipping snowblower auger belt is a sign that the belt is wearing out.

When It’s engaged, it should be fairly tight. It may or may not have an adjustment to tighten the belt when needed. One thing to look at is if your belt is old, it may have worn the sides of it enough to actually drop the belt farther into the pulley which could cause slipping under snow loads.

Snowblower belts start to wear out after 5 to 7 years, and should be replaced.

While prices vary as well as the level of service, you can expect the service to come in between $150-$200 (this includes mobile fee, shop supply fee, tune up parts and labour) depending on the work that needs to be done and the state of your snowblower.

1. Step 1 – Prepare the Snowblower. Unplug the spark plug to disable the motor, thereby ensuring you can’t lose a hand in the auger/impeller mechanism while working.
2. Step 2 – Remove the Belt Covers. Start by removing the auger belt covers.
3. Step 3 – Remove the Drive Pulley.
4. Step 4 – Pull the Auger Out.

How to clear a snowblower jam

1. Turn off the snowblower, disengage the clutch, disconnect the spark plug and wait 60 seconds before proceeding with clearing the jam.
2. Use the clearing tool, a small shovel-like tool, to gently break up the snow and ice until the jam is cleared.

The auger should turn in the same direction as the wheels in forward. It pushes snow down, under the auger, and then up into the impeller. The flights of teh auger should tend to move snow towards the centre of the machine.

When it’s safe, visually inspect the augers. If you don’t see the shear pin head or nut and you can manually spin the auger along the auger shaft, you broke a shear pin.

about 2 revolutions per second

Auger Control Lever Located on the left side of the upper handle, the Auger Control Handle is used to engage and disengage the augers. Squeeze the Auger Control Handle to engage the augers; release to disengage the augers.

Ideally, the cable should just be barely tight when the auger handle is in the released (disengaged) position. Note: The proper operating tension for a typical V- belt drive is – the lowest tension at which the belt will not slip under a loaded condition.

Turn the adjustment bolt on the side, top or bottom of the pulley counterclockwise with the ratchet and socket until the accessory belt is loose enough to remove. Tighten the tensioner pulley by turning the adjustment bolt clockwise with the ratchet and socket until the belt is tight.