Buying Advice I have answered the call of the Kioti!

[KiotiCall]

Greetings. I am new to the forum in terms of posting, and a tractor newbie. The other day, after a fair amount of research here and elsewhere, I went to get some seat time on three different tractor brands, LS (G3033H), Mahindra (3016HST), and Kioti (CK30HST), to determine which was my preferred make and model. I made my way to the Kioti dealer after having tested out the other brands and obtaining price quotes. The dealer had 2 or 3 new CK30 models on site, so I hopped on one and spent some time making sure it was a good fit for me. Winner- Kioti!!! Now all I needed was a price that I could live with. It was very late in the day so I asked the salesperson to work up a quote for the CK30HST with a TLB setup and get back to me, which he did the next day. Let me say here that when I left the dealership I did not have high expectations for his price coming anywhere close to the other brands with the same setup.

Surprisingly, his price came within $250.00 of the LS, which was the least costly of the three. Since the price was less than expected I asked the salesperson to run some numbers on a couple of add on's, check on some financing terms, and get back to me. After some telephone tag we finally hooked up and he provided me with all the information. All that was left was to complete a phone application with him for financing through a local financial institution. All was looking good and I was getting excited about the prospect of putting the research and shopping part behind me and moving on to the enjoyment phase- Kioti time.

But wait! I need to back up to just before the last call, during telephone tag time, with the salesman. This is where I hope you guys can help me out by reassuring me, or not, that all is still well. You see, after my initial excitement with the package price, I started getting this uneasy feeling...like something might be wrong with the price, i.e., I was missing something. It was then that it occurred to me- I had made an assumption the day I test drove the tractor, namely that the new tractor was a 2013 model. So, when we finally connected on the phone I asked the salesperson to confirm that it was in fact a 2013. He stated that the 2012 and 2013 models are one in the same and whether it is one or the other is based solely upon the invoice date- if it was invoiced at the end of 2012 it is a 2012, and if invoiced on or after 1/1/2013, it is considered a 2013 model. He said that he was unsure of the invoice date for the exact tractor that his sales manager provided the quote on, so he checked while I waited on the phone. The answer was- it is a 2012.

So, here is the big question- does this make any sense or is this a big crock of _____? And the second question, does it really matter providing that what I think is a fair deal...is in fact a fair deal? Here are the details: $23,750.00 for the TLB setup with R4 tires ; rear tires loaded with Ballast Star (spelling?); rear work light; free delivery (1.5 hrs each way); and, free pickup and delivery for the 50 hour service (not included)?

Thanks in advance for any insight you can provide, and sorry for the lengthy post.

[murphy1244]

And yes tractors are not like cars on model years. Get the two remotes if you can. What is the serial # that will tell you the manufacture date.

[murphy1244]

By the way, Welcome to the pack!

[k0ua]

Welcome to the pack! And yes tractor model years are considered when they are put into service. Of course there is a manufacture date/year and the serial number can tell you that if you want to know. But tractors can set on the lot 2 or more years easily.

James K0UA

[rmorey]

to TBN!

And the pack!

[MBTRAC]

Model Year is largely irrelevant if the spec's are the same & provided you are getting a good "deal" adjusted for new aged stock - I'd take a new aged stock Kioti every time over freshly produced from the other two manufacturers you considered.

Generallly when you come to sell this tractor second hand it's the overall condition, number of hours & importantly the documented maintenance history which will determine the value.

[GManBart]

Yep, the model year really only matters when they change specs. In this case, it doesn't mean anything.

Sounds like a pretty fair deal to me, price wise.

[KiotiCall]

Thanks for the welcome sentiments, and for the insights. I am feeling better about the 2012 vs. 2013 issue already. :-)

[Don87]

So you will be posting the pics of your new Kioti on Monday.............right?

[KiotiCall]

I will be happy to post pictures, but alas it will not be Monday.

It will likely be several days before it can be delivered. They need to weld on a couple of bucket hooks and I am contemplating having them install a mechanical thumb for the BH, which will involve some additional welding. BTW, anyone have any idea of a fair price for a thumb for this BH?