Your generator quit, or it’s due for the service you’ve been putting off. Before you call, it helps to know the range. Here’s the short version from techs’ own price lists. A routine service with oil, filter and a check runs about two to three hundred dollars for a gas generator. Diesel costs more. A full annual service on an Onan runs into the four and five hundreds. And when it won’t run at all, the first bill is a diagnosis visit.
Every price below comes from a tech or shop that publishes it, with the date we read it. Your price will move with your generator, your rig, and how far the tech drives to reach you.
If it won’t start at all, read RV generator won’t start or shuts down first. A blink code and a few owner checks can save you the call.
What a routine generator service costs
A routine service is the oil, the oil filter, and a look over the rest: the air filter, the spark plugs on a gas unit, the exhaust, and a test under load. Some cards call it an oil service, some a tune-up, some just “generator service.” The Onan operator manual puts the oil and filter change at every 50 hours of running, and more often in hot, dusty conditions, so a generator that runs a lot needs it more than once a year.
On published rate cards the gas price usually lands between $175 and $300:
- In The Sticks Mobile RV Service in Cedar City, Utah: $175 for a gas generator, $200 for diesel.
- Javi’s RV Service Center in Lancaster, California: $189 for a generator maintenance tune-up.
- i75 RV in Florence, Kentucky: $199 plus parts for a basic generator service.
- 3R RV Service Center in Union, Missouri: $200 for a gas oil service, $300 for diesel.
- Endless Summer Mobile RV Repairs in Cape Coral, Florida: $200 to $300 for oil, filter and plugs.
- Howdy RV in Aransas Pass, Texas: starting at $238.
- Family First RV Service in Guthrie, Oklahoma: $275.
- Sandy Feet Mobile RV Repair in Sebastian, Florida: $275 for an oil change and service.
- Abe Thompson RV Service Center in Oak Grove, Missouri: $325 for generator maintenance.
Watch the words “plus parts.” On i75 RV’s card the $199 is the labor and the parts are added. On others the oil and filter are part of the price. Ask before you book.
What a full annual service costs
Some shops sell two levels, and the difference matters. 3R RV Service Center lists its premium generator service at $300 for gas and $500 for diesel, against $200 and $300 for the plain oil service.
At the top of the range are the full annual services, where more parts get replaced and the generator gets a longer look:
- Florida Mobile RV Repairman in Saint Johns, Florida: $450 for a generator annual service.
- The Mechanic on Wheels in West Palm Beach, Florida: $500 for RV generator maintenance.
- No Worries Mobile RV Service in Tampa, a generator specialist: $549.95 for an Onan 4000 annual service, and $620.95 total for an Onan 5500 or 7000.
So a “generator service” can mean a $175 oil change or a $620.95 annual service. If you’re comparing two quotes, ask each tech to list what they replace. That’s the only way to know you’re comparing the same job.
What it costs when the generator won’t run
When the generator won’t start, starts and dies, or won’t hold a load, nobody can quote the repair until they’ve found the cause. So the first bill is the visit.
- No Worries Mobile RV Service in Tampa lists a mobile generator diagnostic and repair visit at a $475 minimum. That covers the trip and up to the first hour of diagnosis or repair on site. After that it’s $265 an hour, and a return trip for the same repair is $125.
- The Mechanic on Wheels in West Palm Beach lists generator diagnostics and performance repairs at $550.
- Some general RV techs charge their usual diagnostic fee. Javi’s RV Service Center in California, for example, lists diagnostics starting at $149.
A specialist can cost more per visit than a general tech. On a generator that won’t run, it can still be the cheaper call if it means one visit instead of two.
When it’s time for a new generator
Sometimes the repair costs more than the generator is worth. No Worries Mobile RV Service lists refurbished Onan 5500 and 7000 units from $4,999, installed in the Tampa Bay area. That’s one shop in one area, and the price will vary where you are, but it’s a useful yardstick. If a repair quote starts closing in on that kind of number on an older generator, ask about replacement too.
Not every RV tech works on generators
This one surprises people. Some mobile techs don’t touch generators at all. Ranger RV Services in Cypress, Texas, says so plainly on its rate card. So ask before you book:
- Do you service generators, and my brand and fuel type?
- Is the service price with parts, or plus parts?
- What exactly does the service include: oil, filters, plugs, a load test?
- For a repair, what’s the diagnosis fee, and does it count toward the repair?
- Is there a trip fee on top?
Do it yourself, or call a tech?
Checking the oil level, the fuel, and the battery is an owner job, and the generator’s manual lists what the owner can do. An oil and filter change is within reach for plenty of owners who are comfortable on their back under a rig. Anything inside the generator’s control board or the fuel system beyond the filter is a tech’s job.
The next step
Start the generator and note what it does: won’t crank, cranks and won’t start, runs and dies, or won’t carry the air conditioner. Count any blinks on the start switch light. Then call a tech with that. To see what mobile techs in your state charge to come out, the mobile RV repair cost pages list every published trip fee and hourly rate by state, and what mobile RV repair costs explains how trip fees and hourly rates add up.