Do you still have a carbureted vehicle with crank windows and manual locks too?
That is an extremely poor comparison to compare a saw to a car and why electronic controls are better....
I own a 550xp and it is a good saw, it makes good power and the electronic controls operating the carb do a good job, sometimes too well I will say.
For example I always seem to run out of bar oil before gas lol, the saw will tune so well automatically that it can great power on practically fumes... you need to watch your b&c or at least put less gas than oil in this saw.
Another thing is cleaning the filter, especially if it is still slightly damp, or if day for some reason you put on a brand new filter right after your other one is 99% clogged.
The saw will learn a new fuel map to adjust for the lack of air which is great but it can be annoying. For me this adjustment takes about 10 good cuts in the wood.
For my purposes of firewood and furniture this is not a big deal, just annoying.
But for a pro logger who’s balls deep in a job this could make or break the choice between electronic adjustments and manual.
Cold starts do need warm up time to adjust, again it’s only a couple minutes but if your a logger and you want to just get right too it, annoying...
With my carbed saws it’s start, choke off and start cutting. Not as much power but it won’t stall and die!
Hot starts work 100% of the time if you follow the directions in the manual.
-flip choke lever up and then back down to run to set choke at half.
-keep decomp out
-pull and start.
I deviated from this a couple times and had troubles getting it to keep running...
The stock muffler is extremely restrictive in which heat is kept in the engine too long!!! IMO this greatly reduces lifespan of bearings and seals. After a muffler mod I didn’t make much more if any power but I can tell you that heat is properly expelled from the engine now. I can keep my hand on the top bar without feeling any heat and I can touch the top plastic without getting burned when the saw is idling.
Another note is that with manual adjustments you always know your running rich if that’s how you like it, and you rarely have to adjust unless you go from winter to summer and vice versa
Finally I do wish I would have done more reading and got the 562xp, it has larger bar support and with only two more pounds of weight it’s worth it for the firewood guy like me.
The 550xp maxes out at a 20” bar, and is not designed to use 3/8 chain, only .325. People say it doesn’t have the proper power but I’m gonna mount a 3/8 rim 20” bar and chain tomorrow and find out for myself.
The build quality on the saw is excellent and did I mention it’s really light? Also up here the 562 is about 300$ more so it’s all about what you can afford. For the price I think this saw is great and will last a lifetime if treated well.
Again there are pros and cons to electronic fuel control and I think husky should be putting in throttle position sensors to greatly improve learning time for the cpu..
This all just what I think based on my own experience with this saw and a few others, but a saw is not a vehicle and comparing it that way to convince others they are wrong in their choice is naive.
