Buying Advice 2buy or not 2 buy

[4man]

I've been looking for and at tractors for several months now and I think I've finally gotten past the stage of want vs. need. To do some ground blading at home and light landscaping, as well as brush cutting and small food plots at the deer lease I think a heavier 2wd will do as good for me as a CUT w/fel. So now I'm looking at a 02 Mahindra E350DI,I haven't seen this one yet as it's a little over 200 miles from me found on Craigs List . This is the response I received from my email
"To answer your questions.
All lights work but fuel gauge has not worked since I purchased the tractor new.
The fuel shut off does leak when it is in the on position.
The starter was rebuilt last year and works fine but now the solenoid has gone out, the tracter will still start but I have to be creative.
The PTO works fine and has no leaks.
The fluids and filters were last changed a year ago.
The shredder is a standard duty mower and does not have a stump jumper.
The tractor is very easy to operate but does have enough power to get you in trouble if you are not careful. I have only used it to mow a 5 acre property and maintain a dirt driveway. Due to the fuel leak and the solenoid issue I will reduce the price to $3800 if you are serious about buying.
The tractor shredder and box blade will all fit on a 16' trailer."
Does this seem like a good deal ? He states that it has only 130 hours and the tires and paint (more pink than red) look new but weather worn.Having never owned a tractor before I don't want my first to be a bad experience.

[madmax12]

I had never owned a tractor before, either. That is a big reason why I went new, with a warranty. If u had a great friend (who would know what he was looking at if he saw this tractor), I'd bring him with you to assess it. If u have no knowledge of tractors, well, u know what I did, already.

I have a bunch of jobs to do, that the tractor is supposed to help me do. I do not need another project to fix. So, I went new.

Others with way more experience and wisdom will guide u here, too.

[case245]

i never owned a used tractor in my life and never will buy a new one to many headaches with used i have a 7040su kubota fel 4x4 i would go new you get a warrenty you i can take out insurance thorgh the tractor man i did with my kubota incase someone steals it

[Cat_Driver]

New used it doesn't matter. I've bought new stuff and it turned out to be a Lemon, I've bought used and never had a problem with it.
If you buy used spend the extra $100.00 or so and have a tractor shop check it out - they will help you decide.
I bought a used Kubota in 1984 it still runs like a swiss watch today.

Buying used if the mechanic checks it out can save you a lot of money.

The other side of the coin is, I purchased a NEW Kubota once, drove it hard for 10 years and sold it for near what I paid for it new.

[madmax12]

New used it doesn't matter. I've bought new stuff and it turned out to be a Lemon, I've bought used and never had a problem with it.
If you buy used spend the extra $100.00 or so and have a tractor shop check it out - they will help you decide.
I bought a used Kubota in 1984 it still runs like a swiss watch today.

Buying used if the mechanic checks it out can save you a lot of money.

The other side of the coin is, I purchased a NEW Kubota once, drove it hard for 10 years and sold it for near what I paid for it new.

That's another reason I went new...what most want for used or what it cost to rent. Cheaper to buy new, sometimes.

[case245]

my pap always told buy new when you can so you dont get someone elses junk been driving junk trucks all my life finlly got a new one last summer

[94BULLITT]

I would have a someone look at it before you buy. You should also find out how much it would to get everything fixed on it and be sure it is priced accordingly. Keep in mind that most brands you can get 0% APR on a new tractor.

[Gary Fowler]

Compared to a couple listings on Tractorhouse, that is a very good buy at $3800. Only one E350DI listed with bare tractor with 176 hours @$7600 with not issue noted. A starter shouldnt cost more than a couple hundred and if it is just the solenoid, maybe $50and about the same for the fuel shut off or less. Fuel gauge shouldnt be too expensive although I have never bought or priced one. I would have to have that fixed as you sure dont want to run out of fuel with a diesel. All this can easily be done at home with basic tools in a couple of hours. If tires are good and engine doesnt smoke or rattle or knock then I think it is well worth the price.

[4man]

Thanks for the advice and the words of encouragement,the tractor above is a little over 200 miles for me to go look . Today I found a 1999 Mahindra E40 DI with 5'shredder,5'box blade,4'disc set all with only 140 hours,price $5500.00 . It's being sold by a brother of the man who purchased it new. He (the original owner died of cancer) this is part of his estate being sold to help pay some of the left over costs. These people live less than 40 miles from me and are willing to provide all records including the original bill of sale from a local dealer which is less than 50 miles from my home. I go look at it and test drive this Sunday after church. This I hope is a good deal as I could go buy a new one but would have no funds in the bank . The attitude of this man and his wife who I spoke to first is reassuring and the fact that they live just down the road and have all manuels and paperwork gives me some peace that I haven't felt on any of the other tractors I've looked at over the past 5 or 6 months. Thanks again for all of your comments and I will post some photos of this one if it's what God has planned.

[BobG_in_VA]

Thanks for the advice and the words of encouragement,the tractor above is a little over 200 miles for me to go look . Today I found a 1999 Mahindra E40 DI with 5'shredder,5'box blade,4'disc set all with only 140 hours,price $5500.00 . It's being sold by a brother of the man who purchased it new. He (the original owner died of cancer) this is part of his estate being sold to help pay some of the left over costs. These people live less than 40 miles from me and are willing to provide all records including the original bill of sale from a local dealer which is less than 50 miles from my home. I go look at it and test drive this Sunday after church. This I hope is a good deal as I could go buy a new one but would have no funds in the bank . The attitude of this man and his wife who I spoke to first is reassuring and the fact that they live just down the road and have all manuels and paperwork gives me some peace that I haven't felt on any of the other tractors I've looked at over the past 5 or 6 months. Thanks again for all of your comments and I will post some photos of this one if it's what God has planned.

4man....the E40 is a good basic tractor....however, I think (don't hold me to this) that it is manual steering (wouldn't bother me if it doesn't have an FEL) and I'm betting that it has a transmission driven PTO....ie. it is not independent...check the PTO shaft, I'm pretty sure it will have an overrunning coupler on it... if you're not sure of what I'm saying do a search here on tbn and you should be able to read for quite a while...BobG in VA