One Call To Kioti USA Was All It Took To Convince Me Not To Buy The Mechron

[Misfire]

The entire TBN site is based on opinions and experiences... That's what a forum is. :irked:

Deere is a good company too.... :wink:

People's opinions are very valuable here. I have always thought JD green was the color of money, so I didn't even bother looking at their UTVs. Then I noticed this thread and decided to check out their offerings. Their MSRP wasn't out of line after all, but their gas consumption was too high for my purposes, so I didn't pursue them any further.

They were the only UTV manufacturer that I came across with fuel consumption figures listed in the specs.

Misfire

 

[Martian]

The entire TBN site is based on opinions and experiences... That's what a forum is. :irked:

Deere is a good company too.... :wink:

Along with Kioti... I'm saying that all companies can be considered good companies to any individual, we shouldn't be saying which is which

There are a lot fewer bad companies than good companies because people won't buy from the bad ones. The treatment the OP received is, in my opinion, wrong, but it must be an isolated incident, otherwise Kioti would be out of business. I can think of tons of great family businesses and large corporations alike that have one employee, such as a salesmen or someone in the customer service department, that's a bad apple and reflects the entire company poorly. Though as much as I appreciate seeing something like this, I saw a statistic not long ago that said that people are over 25 times more likely to report a bad incident with a company, than a good. So as much as we like to bash companies for what they do wrong, we must take it all with a grain of salt, because there are overall a lot more people happy, than not, otherwise they'd be out of business. Papa, don't take this directly at you, there are a ton of people way to far on one side of the isle than the other. I like my Deere in the barn and my GM vehicles in the garage, but I'd also like to think that I'm level headed enough to point out where the competition is better.

 

[Misfire]

Along with Kioti... I'm saying that all companies can be considered good companies to any individual, we shouldn't be saying which is which

There are a lot fewer bad companies than good companies because people won't buy from the bad ones. The treatment the OP received is, in my opinion, wrong, but it must be an isolated incident, otherwise Kioti would be out of business. I can think of tons of great family businesses and large corporations alike that have one employee, such as a salesmen or someone in the customer service department, that's a bad apple and reflects the entire company poorly. Though as much as I appreciate seeing something like this, I saw a statistic not long ago that said that people are over 25 times more likely to report a bad incident with a company, than a good. So as much as we like to bash companies for what they do wrong, we must take it all with a grain of salt, because there are overall a lot more people happy, than not, otherwise they'd be out of business. Papa, don't take this directly at you, there are a ton of people way to far on one side of the isle than the other. I like my Deere in the barn and my GM vehicles in the garage, but I'd also like to think that I'm level headed enough to point out where the competition is better.

I don't think it is isolated. At least two forum members have posted to this thread that they have had problems with Connie. None have posted anything in her praise. There is also the matter of corporate policy dictating that a customer's call cannot be routed to anyone else, period. I am retired now, but have a lot of years experience dealing with manufacturers and suppliers. I have never encountered anything like it before.

There is also this thread about their dumping a successful and popular dealer. It's worth a read. This thread has more on that subject.

Misfire

 

[Martian]

I don't think it is isolated. At least two forum members have posted to this thread that they have had problems with Connie. None have posted anything in her praise. There is also the matter of corporate policy dictating that a customer's call cannot be routed to anyone else, period. I am retired now, but have a lot of years experience dealing with manufacturers and suppliers. I have never encountered anything like it before.

There is also this thread about their dumping a successful and popular dealer. It's worth a read. This thread has more on that subject.

It's more that there are plenty of people completely satisfied with Kioti. I'm not blaming you, I would have done the same.

 

[johnrex62]

The major reason as I stated was future support and the attitude at Kioti USA. I was deliberately lied to (this is just a distribution center) by the only person that a customer is allowed to talk to at Kioti USA.
Misfire

Actually, she did not lie to you. The company you called, Kioti USA, is just a marketing arm of the parent corporation. Their only job is to distribute the product the parent corporation manufactures to consumers. They are only distributors. Just like Kubota USA is simply the marketing company for Kubota Japan. Neither company manufactures it's own product, their parent corporations do that job.

I tend to believe that a corporate rep should have more knowledge about their product than the average tractor fan, and certainly be able to bull their way through a conversation as well as the average US politician, but I will stop at saying they need to be "technical". I dont expect them to be able to troubleshoot a mechanical issue, much less know how to handle the wrench, but they should know the names of all the major parts and which end the 3pt is on. A good spokesperson should be able to defuse and angry customer rather than create one.


As to the comments about trying to call Kubota....I did and got a fantastic response from the regional rep. He got my email and called me back the next day and personally contacted my dealer to help them with my 3pt jerkiness issue. My dealer sympathized, but did not have the technical knowledge to know exactly how to fix it. They got together and got it done for me. No bull and no stories.

 

[CBW1999]

What would it have taken for the person on the phone to explain exactly what you just did? So, a lie of omission- She took the easy way out rather than help the potential customer come in contact with the right person. A "flip" answer of "talk to the dealership" doesn't cut it when someone is trying to decide about spending thousands of dollars.

What is the issue with companies not following through? Shouldn't basic business common sense dictate the idea that "If I do not know the answer, I will find it for you or connect you with someone who can".

Tact goes along way-

 

[Misfire]

Actually, she did not lie to you. The company you called, Kioti USA, is just a marketing arm of the parent corporation.

Marketing involves more than just a distribution center. A USA headquarters will handle all facets of a business's operations in this country. It certainly will not be limited to warehouse workers. After all, Connie herself is (cue laugh track) "Customer Relations," hardly a distribution function. The fact that the machines are made elsewhere is irrelevant. Beyond that, I know for a fact that technical training for Kioti mechanics takes place at that location. I got that directly from a factory trained mechanic. He didn't go to Korea for training, he went to North Carolina.

The number I called is for all activities at Kioti USA. The switchboard operator did not claim it was just a distribution center, only Connie did that. The switchboard operator, who was obviously as frustrated as I, simply stated she was not allowed to connect my call to anyone but Connie when I said I wanted to talk to a technical person. She did not deny there was anyone like that there. That was Connie, who lied.

 

[murphy1244]

Enjoy your Kubota.

 

[PapaPerk]

As to the comments about trying to call Kubota....I did and got a fantastic response from the regional rep. He got my email and called me back the next day and personally contacted my dealer to help them with my 3pt jerkiness issue. My dealer sympathized, but did not have the technical knowledge to know exactly how to fix it. They got together and got it done for me. No bull and no stories.

There ya go! Proof is in the pudding as they say. :applause:

 

[crazyal]

A few years ago when I was looking to buy a tractor I was finding it very hard to get an answer from Kioti as to if they made a front mount snow blower. The local dealer couldn't find anything on it but since they did offer a mid pto that was independent of the rear (something I really liked) I decided to check on their website. After not seeing one listed I called the toll free number. I didn't have any better luck. This was just before Bobcat started offering Kioti tractors. Well the dealer went under, a different place started carrying them then dropped them, and now there's a different company selling them (they look like they are going to stick around). When I told them that I was having issues navigating their website trying to find the attachments that fit the DK line they treated me like it was my fault.

A few months ago I looked at Kioti's website and it's better now and they do have a front mount blower. But they more than a year late. My impression is that the company is very disorganized. This is not a knock against the tractors or their quality, I was impressed enough to try harder than most would. As sort of a new comer to the US market (compared to Deere and Kubota) they should be going further than the other brands to make sure that people's questions are answered. If they can't answer them, and I've had lots of companies do this, then pass the question to someone who can answer it.

I have never seen a Mechron at the local Kioti dealer. If a customer wanted one and they couldn't answer questions then how would they find answers?