G-
I do not think a 3120 is misrepresented as a bad tractor. I also believe there exists a market for the tractor, lest JD not make it. They have a very good marketing and sales department. The main problem I have with the 3120 is that it is priced very close to the more powerful tractors. I wish JD would delineate the pricing a bit more so they could sell more of them. I noted in a previous post that my dealer who sells a boatload of tractors says he cannot sell them well. The only explanation either he or I have for that is the lower HP relative to the cost. My dealer might be an anomaly, but I doubt it. Looking at other dealers in my area, they all seem to have some 3120's on the lot that they cannot move. That said, I think the 3120 is an excellent machine. If one does not have a huge amount of PTO work to be done, or might be interested in stepping from a small frame compact to a mid frame without spending a lot more money, or lives in a relatively flat area, I think the 3120 is a great choice. You are exactly correct in the fact that the 3120 has just as much hydraulic flow for attachments as the higher horse mid-frames. So thusly, if one has a backhoe and is digging all day, the 3120 would do just as well as a 3720 at less cost. I think that one has to look at the tasks a machine is going to do and buy accordingly. For me and where I live, a 3120 would struggle some, but say for my dad who lives in a flatter area, it would be fine. I posted in the general forum about six months ago about this very question: "how does horsepower affect performance?" and the answers were varied and points of view very interesting. It also was one of the more popular discussions in that segment, so obviously there is some debate. In short, I think the 3120, specifically your 3120, is a very nice machine. I am glad you have one and I know it does well for you. I feel JD needs to price the 3120 more competitively v. the higher HP mid frames so dealers like my friend can move some (thankfully he only preordered two). I also think that JD did a big disservice to the 3120 by coming out with the 3203. Interestingly, it has the 32 hp engine, I wonder why that would be?
John M