Chris, Davo et al,
There is a difference between the Spirit and the Genesis
the spirit is built to a price and is designed to compete in a different market segment. Having said that, the Spiritgets up to heat quickly and will hold the temps as well as a genesis can. It cooks as good as the Genesis and also comes with a limited 25 year warranty. It is lighter than the Genesis which is understandable and the sheet metal appears to be a slightly thinner gauge metal. The Sprit is not as well finished as the Genesis as it does not have double skinned doors. Out of all the Spirits that I have seen and what the store where I demonstrate have sold, there has been no problems with the Spirit models. In Australia they are availabe with a side burner which makes them more marketable here.If dollars were an issue I would happily purchase a Spirit and have pride of ownership, many people do.
Regards