I have 20 year old Toro s-200 snowblower. I ran it dry last spring before storing it for the summer. Pulled it out recently and it won't run. It will turn over and run for about 5 seconds...it seems to just be using the fuel from the primer bulb...any thoughts?

Probably a lean fuel issue . Engine coolant temperature sensor reading warmer than it actually is causing a too lean mixture , restricted injectors, restricted fuel filter , weak pump or bad regulator on return systems causing too low of fuel pressure , Mass Air Flow contamination .

It is very possible the carbureator needs a cleaning. Moisture can corrode the inner parts of them if left all summer. I find that the fuel usually does not go bad over the summer. I always start my snowblower once a month over the summer and then have no problems when the snow flies again. There was a time when mine was losing power and quitting also. There is a screw on the bottom of my carbureator that needed adjusting. If you are lucky that may be all you need. By turning mine in and out a bit I found the spot where the gas was correct and it worked fine again.

So you are saying it wont run in the cold. Will it run if you left it in the house until you wanted to use it?
Are you going thru the procedure of Choking the engine ? Is there a Primer Bulb that you have to push on this machine?
I'm just saying that engines don't like the cold to begin with, just make sure you are going thru the 'Cold Start' procedure properly.

Did you run the engine for about 15 minutes after you added the fuel conditioner? If not then the conditioner didn't get into the carburetor and you probably will need to take it apart and clean it again. The ethanol in today's fuel causes problems in carbs that sit

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I believe that Toro Guarantees to start 1 Pull, was gas left in it all winter?, If so this is'nt covered under warranty, cause gas is to be ran out or dumped out at end of season this will prevent any gumming up of carb . did you completely disassemble carb? does it have a primer on it, those gskts need replacing, clean out the jet in bottum of float bowl,small holes,sometimes missed and remove and check your needle/seat to make sure that when float drops gas runs out then lift float up and gas should stop. hope this helped you,another thing spray carb cleaner in carb and pull over and see if it will start that way enough to keep running with choke to see if it will **** gas into it

empty the fuel bowl & tank. start out with fresh fuel for one. then get a new spark plug if it still dont start. as far as the cable thats another deal completely but it shouldnt cause it to stall out. but if it ran last year it will this year too. always run it empty for summer storage. its your personal choice if you use a summer storage lubricant.

The carburetor probably sucked up junk from inside the gas tank. Never run the tank dry. Take the bowl off the carburetor and clean out the Jets.

Hi
I have seen them go through the engine into the muffler. Did you check the valves if it damaged them. I would check for spark first if that is good put a tea spoon full of gas in the spark plug hole and try to start. If it fires you need to clean the carb. If not i would do a compression test that will tell you if the screw damaged anything.
Sam

that could be wiring issue that the battery isn't able to take up the electricity supplied to it.. u know, the conductor between them..
if possible get a manual from reliable-store to fix it urself

If it sat for some time without running aslittle as 30 day the fuel is probly stale and needs to be drained and the carb cleaned and possibly a new spark plug