Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Discussions

I will premise this with the statement that I have just found this site today, and did as much power reading as I could on snowblowers do for about an  hour straight.  I have needed,  and known I needed a more powerful snowblower for years now.  I currently have an inherited 1979 Toro, 2.5 hp (yes I said 2.5 hp) true paddle (not rubber auger) single stage 2 cycle.  Unbelievably it has functioned as my main method of removing snow, albeit it usually took me about 2 hrs to snow blow my moderate to large paved drive way.  (I live north of Detroit, where we've been hammered by heavy snowfall the past few years.)  Anyway, anticipating heavy snow again this year, I went out and placed on order a Ariens 7524 from home depot yesterday.  I made the choice primarly on the information I found on other websites as well as the Ariens website.  I now wonder  after reading the other  posts here, if I made the right choice.  It would seem If I could clear the drive way with my little 2.5 hp, anything bigger and more advanced would be better, even if it's not one of the leviathan I've read about in some of these other posts, i.e 9.25 to 11 hp.  I'd consider the 926DLE but its 2X the cost.  I guess my question is: Does anyone own this model or something comprable ever have any "real" trouble removing snow with theirs?  I've gotta believe this 2 stage 7.5 hp would make a world of difference over what I've got.  I do get this EOD build-up as I'm off a main road, but even my lil' Toro could manage through 18" of that...it would just take 45 minutes.  I just don't want to spend all this money and wish I would have purchased something bigger, although I can't see that happening.  Any advice would be appreicated while I can still change my order.

As with Lint, I keep up with the snow, so I am usually doing 4-6 inches because I like snow, and being in it. 

My 3650 handles that very well (aka- no trouble at all).  I do 12" EOD pretty well too.  Standard 12" depth isn't any problem, and an incline of 1-3/4" per foot isn't any trouble.  My driveway is 2200 square feet. 

The portability of the machine is great. Lower maintenance is also good.  My trimmer uses 50:1 oil, as does my 3650, so "mixing" isn't a problem, I always have it on hand anyway.  (The labor involved with mixing 1 gallon of gas is far less than replacing augers and gear housings)

My .02