(4.8 / 5)
In the world of premium grills there are pretty much two avenues that the creators seem to pursue. We have the do everything models and the specific goal models. Do everything grills focus on bringing you a variety of different features for a decent taste of near everything a grill can do while the other focus on things like infrared grilling, heat retention or self cleaning. This Weber Summit model is a do everything grill that matches premium stainless steel with multiple cooking options, good power, and a price around $1899 on the lower end for premium grills.
Here we have a grill that brings a reasonable 468 square inch main cooking surface while also including sections for warming, smoking, rotisserie, searing, and even an additional side burner thrown in there to round everything out. This is a intelligently built high functioning grill that accurately represents how much time Weber has spent in the grill game with a bountiful package of value.
Main Characteristics
With a ton of experience in grill design Weber brings to market this heavy duty premium grill. Here we have four main burners pumping 48,800 BTU’s of cooking power over propane gas. It doesn’t stop there though the highlight of this model is all of its grilling utility.
We have a 12,000 BTU side burner along with a 10,600 BTU sear station burner. We still do not stop there as there is also a 6,800 BTU smoker burner and finally a 10,600 BTU rear rotisserie burner all working with stainless steel for a group of burners that could for their own band. The rotisserie system can tuck away and also includes a motor to keep it moving. Our main cooking area spans a total of 468 square inches with a 112 square inch warming rack for 580 square inches of total cooking space which is on the low end for premium grills but perfectly fine for a large family and even a small cookout. This grill is designed to work with liquid propane or natural gas and even includes a ten foot natural gas installation hose. Weber brought a bit of everything for the premium grill customer who is not trying to break their budget, but still wants to experience all the variety that a premium grill can bring.
Pros
- So many extra burners and side areas give you a grill that can cook any type of meal in any type of way
- Stainless steel an other high quality materials are used for a long lasting grill that is still quite pleasing to the eyes
- Sturdy build gives you ample storage space with spots for tools, condiments, and preparation
Cons
- Main cooking area is on the lower end for premium grills which might restrict your meal size without using the specialty burners
- Only four burners puts it on the lower side for premium grills
Design
With a primarily stainless steel build this grill mixes together a long lifetime with a beautiful exterior. Weber’s experience is apparent here as they switch up materials and coloring in just the right places to create a grill that out performs many higher priced grills when it comes to the looks department. We have a sturdy smooth opening grill shroud sitting over a stainless steel enclosed cart. These work synergistically to give you a nice circulation of heat during cooking. In between that we have individual knobs for each of the grills burners with red markings for differentiation and a unique look. We have six spots for hanging tools along with the shelves underneath for anything you might need on hand during cooking.
This grill looks sharper than most premium grills with a professional accented design that you can really appreciate in comparison to the competition.
Special Features
Weber brings a bit of what you would expect along with their own innovative special features for this model. We have exterior temperature gauges and a convenient exterior gas gauge that lets you know when you are running low. The ignition follows the trend of premium gas grills with their Snap-Jet individual burner lighting systems. The burners can work on direct or indirect heat and the controls are fine tuned to give you superior control over your cooking surface.
Weber uses their innovative Flavorizer bars to bring an extra element to your cooking. They are designed to catch dripping for smoking and sizzling to add flavor to your food. They also funnel the excess away from your burner tubes for easier cleaning and to prevent flare ups. Finally it would not make sense for a grill with this much utility to not work at night so we have built in lights that work on a sensor to keep your grilling illuminated.
Warranty
With a lot of experience I guess Weber feels that they don’t need to extend the same level of warranty as their competition. Anyway it is still not too bad just don’t expect to find a lifetime warranty anywhere. For the stainless steel shroud, lid, and aluminum castings we have a ten year warranty with a couple years on the paint. The stainless steel burner tubes are also warrantied for ten years. Along with the grates and the Flavorizer bars another ten years. All other remaining parts are warrantied for 2 years. So we don’t have lifetime anywhere but ten years for the majority of the grill is still pretty nice.
Image Credit: Amazon.com
Weber Summit S-470
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Summary
Weber has been doing this for a long time and it shows their ability to combine design and utility at the low end for a premium prices grill. You get four burners and a stainless steel build with the versatility to smoke, sear, or rotisserie your food which is a rare combination even for most premium grills. Webers time tested design give you advantages in cleaning as well as flavor when it comes to features like the Flavorizer bars. The cooking space is not massive but that won't matter if you are just interested in cooking anything you want with this grills variety. Also, from the same category you can look at Napoleon Prestige Pro 500 and of course Broil King Imperial XLS.