2018 Genesis II: Two New Grills


 

Chris Allingham

Administrator
Staff member
Some of this info was included in the 2018 Spirit Gas Grill Redesign, but wanted a separate thread for changes to Genesis II grills for 2018.

Changes to the line include a new 3-burner SE-310 for $749 (similar to the 4-burner SE-410 with enamel lid but stainless steel grates and Flavorizer bars) and a new 3-burner S-310 for $799 (same as the E-310 but with a stainless steel lid, grates and Flavorizer bars).

So in the 3-burner "sweet-spot" of the Genesis II line-up, there will now be four grill configurations:

E-310 (enamel lid, CI grates, PE Flavorizer bars)
S-310 (stainless steel lid, stainless steel grates, stainless steel Flavorizer bars)
SE-310 (enamel lid, stainless steel grates, stainless steel Flavorizer bars)
S-340 LX (stainless steel lid, stainless steel grates, stainless steel Flavorizer bars, plus additional LX features)

CI = cast iron
PE = porcelain enameled


Also starting in 2018, all Weber Spirit II, Genesis II, and Summit gas grills will get an improved 10 year warranty covering most parts. Previously, major components were covered for 10 years, stainless steel grates and Flavorizer bars for 10 years, porcelain-enameled grates and Flavorizer bars for 5 years, and all remaining parts for 2 years. And we’re told that this new warranty will be applied retroactively to all Genesis II models sold in 2017.

Thanks to TVWBB member Robert JS for providing much of this information!

Here are some pics:

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Genesis II SE-310 LP

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Genesis II S-310 LP
 
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Happy to help Chris!

I do have one correction to make to your post: The Genesis II S-310 will have stainless steel guts, so it will basically be an SE-310 with a stainless steel lid.

I also have a couple other changes to the Genesis II line that I guess are worth noting. First, all natural gas grills will now include the two "tank enclosure" panels that are featured on the LP grills. I guess a common complaint from consumers purchasing a natural gas grill was that it looked incomplete without the panels on the right side. I never heard that one personally, but I guess it's up to each individual to decide if they want those on there. Second, there will now be a black (plastic?) tube to house the wires that run from the ignition to the battery pack. That's probably a good idea, and will give it more of a clean look. Lastly, all Genesis II LX grills will no longer be "pallet shipped". This year, similar to Summit gas grills, the Genesis II LX grills came mostly assembled besides for a few of the smaller finishes. Now, these grills will come just like Spirit and regular Genesis II grills where you have to assemble the entire grill. Personally, as a retailer, I prefer this as storing these "pallet shipped" grills can be pretty inconvenient.
 
Second, there will now be a black (plastic?) tube to house the wires that run from the ignition to the battery pack. That's probably a good idea, and will give it more of a clean look.

Not knowing much about the system, and I know heat rises, but wouldn't plastic melt from the radiant heat? Color me inquisitive.
 
Not knowing much about the system, and I know heat rises, but wouldn't plastic melt from the radiant heat? Color me inquisitive.

I'm not exactly sure what it's made out of, just guessing based off the picture I saw. You're probably right. I should know more later this week when I'm hoping to have some SE-310's in stock.
 
Just saw this on Weber.com regarding the improved warranty:

"10 Year, 100% Weber Guarantee

From casters to lid, it’s the warranty that won’t let you down. At Weber, we have your backs, not just your backyards in mind when we develop our products.

With the 10 YEAR, 100% WEBER GUARANTEE, should your product have any manufacturing defects within the 10-year timeframe, the part will be replaced at no charge to you—no hassles, just happiness.*

* Valid for Weber® Genesis® II series gas grills purchased January 1, 2017 or later. This warranty does not cover Genesis® series grills or Genesis® II series grills purchased prior to this date."
 
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Thanks Robert, I've corrected the info on S-310 in my original post.

If Weber is going to sell the LX models knocked down/assembly required, they ought to reduce the price a bit. My guess is that won't happen.
 
Regarding the upgraded warranty, here's the fine print from Weber's warranty page:

"10 Years (excluding normal wear and tear and subject to additional terms and conditions in the warranty)"

What will the "additional terms and conditions" be? Will Weber be generous or strict in their interpretation of "normal wear and tear"? We'll see...

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I checked these out today. The stainless steel heat shields, flavorizer bars and grates are the lower grade stainless as they are magnetic. The external stainless is not magnetic.
 
Does anyone know for sure if the old Weber's used non magnetic 300 series stainless for their flavorizers and grates? The flavorizers always rust even the Cadillac quality rcplanebuyer ones. Rusting really isn't an issue there until they rust through. Not sure about the grates?
 
Does anyone know for sure if the old Weber's used non magnetic 300 series stainless for their flavorizers and grates? The flavorizers always rust even the Cadillac quality rcplanebuyer ones. Rusting really isn't an issue there until they rust through. Not sure about the grates?

I posted elsewhere, but I did a magnet test on a 2012-2016 Genesis s-330 "all stainless" and found that both the grates and flavorizers were also magnetic. As I said there, in spite of this, in all the otherwise rust-bucket Genesis 300 grills I have picked up, I have never seen one where the stainless grate had rust. Junked up, ugly yes - but no rust. I would think that regardless of it apparently being 400 series SS that the construction of these grates is adequate if given even the most basic care.

The flavorizers are another story, and I am just glad for Dave aka RCPlanebuyer. Definitely the way to go for upgrading/replacing these.

So, at least the Genesis II has SOME 304SS. That is an improvement, since the 300 series were magnetic on the externals, too. Still, I believe they should at least give an option of having it all be 304SS.
 
Just tested my E330ep and. Flavorizers magnetic, rod grates slightly magnetic (hard to detect in some places maybe because it's round?), warming grate not magnetic and handles not magnetic.

Used regularly in bay area California for over 5 years. Covered during rain with good raveena brand covers. no rust

With SS Rod that thick I don't think the grade matters as much as the sheet metal.

Garth
 
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The quality decline began somewhere in the genesis silver/golld era. I have an original genesis gold b 2003 open cart design and all the stainless parts were none magnetic including burners and stamped grates. Later the parts they would send under warranty were magnetic and didn’t last as long.

I will post pictures if I get a chance. I still have original grates and burner tubes so you guys can see the difference. To me the biggest difference was in the burners the only reason I needed a replacement was because the tab where the middle one goes connected to the crossover the weld points fell off. When I got a whole new set as a replacement under warranty I noticed it was magnetic and I stored the original ones with the hope of using them later, and that’s what happened. The ones they sent rusted through really quick maybe 2 years compared to 7 years of the original ones and no rust through just a failed weld. What I ended up doing recently is buying just a crossover tube and reusing the original burners I’m sure the crossover will rust through and the rest will be in good shape.
 
Well, that sounds like some good evidence of the reduction in quality of parts being used in the newer grills.
 
Yep they might save $10 per grill and yet raise the prices by 30% maybe even more since they're offshoring. So typical of how this country is going. No one will have jobs but we'll be buying everything from China
 
Weber shows pretty well in the Consumer Reports rankings but certainly not where they should with the prices they charge.

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Charbroil seems to dominate in terms of bang for the buck.
 
Yep everybody's been flaming them (no pun intended) and yet they've actually been quietly improving their product and still pricing it quite well. Notice too Nexgrill. And of course Napoleon also showing well. Used to be Weber was the ruler the others were measured on. Not so much any more. Especially when you take in bang for the buck.
Notice too not a single Weber Spirit model even made the charts.
I would love to see an old Genesis fully restored to as new run up in these CU tests. I have a feeling they'd blow everything off the charts.
 
Those reviews went thirty or more deep in each category. I don't think I saw a Spirit anywhere on them.

I wish Consumer Reports would do reviews on "used" grills. I believe they do that for vehicles.
 
Yep everybody's been flaming them (no pun intended) and yet they've actually been quietly improving their product and still pricing it quite well. Notice too Nexgrill. And of course Napoleon also showing well. Used to be Weber was the ruler the others were measured on. Not so much any more. Especially when you take in bang for the buck.
Notice too not a single Weber Spirit model even made the charts.
I would love to see an old Genesis fully restored to as new run up in these CU tests. I have a feeling they'd blow everything off the charts.

Larry,

I think that CR takes so long to do their reviews that the lead time results in new models of all kinds of things already for sale not being included in their tests. I really suspect that the new Spirit II wasn't available at the time they rounded up grills. Notice, too, that they didn't have the new Nexgrill we were discussing.

I do think it would be a really interesting comparison for them to include a well-restored Genesis 1000. I would like to see if they think grill manufacturers have made progress or are going backwards as we all tend to think.
 

 

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