I have just taken deliver of a new DK 45 tractor. I have been using a 57 hp Belarus tractor, but 3 years ago I picked up a grey market Yanmar F16D. After using a "nice" tractor (the Yanmar), I started scraping pennies together in anticipaction of buying a larger grey market Yanmar. Recently, I got to looking into the Kioti DK series. I got real serious about 2 months ago and starting checking for local Dealers. I got the email address of a dealer in Metropolis, IL (you know, home of Superman) and sent a message. I got a prompt, courteous response answering all of my many questions, and he also sent literature (with pricing) on all of the Kioti tractor. I took a trip to this dealer (Little Tractor and Equipment) and was quite impressed with the owner, James Little, and his operation. He has been in business for 12 years in tractor sales and has carried Kioti for over 3 years. He has (at any one time) 15-20 Kiotis on the lot, as well as used tractors and Daewoo SkidSteer loaders. Anyway, I test drove a couple of Kiotis and was very impressed.
I also did some comparison shopping. I went to West Paducah Equipment and looked at the Mahindra tractors. I drove a 4110 and really liked it as well (I thougt it was very similar to the Kioti). After checking the literature, I saw that it uses the same Daedong engine that is in the DK40. The dealer was a nice guy, but has only carried Mahindras for less than a year. I would say though, that if I had not had a Kioti dealer close as well, I probably would have gone with a Mahindra.
Of course, I had to check out some big name tractors, to make sure that I was getting a good deal. I went to my local John Deere dealer and was shocked to find that a tractor the size that I was looking for with similar features (40-50 HP, 4WD, open station, synchro transmission) would be 20,000-22,000. I thanked them for their time (and proceeded to buy some parts for my '64 JD 2010 backhoe/loader - but that's another story).
I checked into the "other orange tractor" and found out that a huge dealer in western Kentucky had gone out of business. I talked to him and he just picked up the Scorpion/Millenium tractor line. However, after talking to the Scorpion importer, I just didn't quite have enough faith in a fella that couldn't keep a Kubota dealership to be around to service a Scorpion tractor. The prices were very competative, and the Kubota or JD engines are a plus, but they couldn't close the deal.
So I went to the closest Kubota dealer that was in business and looked at some tractors. Unfortunately, when I let him know what other tractors I owned (Belarus, Yanmar) and looked at (Kioti, Mahindra), he was only interested in telling me how bad each brand was. He didn't try to push any good features of the Kubota tractors (and maybe he didn't feel like he had to), but he wasted no time pointing out various issues with the other models (about Kioti he said: they are just trying to ride Kubotas coattails (paint scheme-and he could be right about that); they haven't been around too long; South Korea could be invaded by North Korea any day now. He said a couple of other things that I can't recall, but made no feature by feature comparison between Kubota and Kioti. In the end, he quoted me a price for a M4900 that was on the lot, but it was 2WD and still more expensive than the DK 45, and it would be extra for a rear work light and hydraulic remote - and it was only 2wd, so not a "oranges to oranges" comparison.
To make a long story longer, I sold my Belarus and called James Little on Tuesday morning to let him know I was ready to buy a DK 45. He told me he was sorry, but he had sold the two he had on the lot but he would get me one as soon as hew could (I was thinking probably a week). He called me back within an hour and he had a truck with 2 DK 45s, 2 DK 40s, and some smaller tractors on its was from North Carolina. He received the load yesterday morning and let me know that he hoped to have my tractor delivered later that evening. He called me several times thoughout the day, updating me on his progress and at about 3:30 PM he called and got directions to my place. He got here about 7:30 with the tractor (complete with a 6' rotary cutter and canopy, the only options/attachments I needed/could afford right now). We unloaded the tractor and he went over everything one more time. I might also point out that I am also about 60 miles away from his shop and he delivered for free (I thought that this was common, but I talked to other dealers and most charged for deliver, even when they were only 20-30 miles away).
In conclusion, I am extremely pleased with my purchase, and I plan on celebrating the 4th by adding some hours to my new tractor. I can't say enough good things about James and his company (he has a website currently under construction - www.littletractor.com). It was honestly the best buying experience I have ever had.
I would also like to thank the members of this club. I have been reading posts here for quite sometime and decided that Kioti "was worth the risk". I look forward to many hours begin the wheel of the tractor as we tackle my 140 acres (If I can keep the wife out of the seat). Sorry for the long post, but I had to tell someone!
Take it easy
Tim Gray
I also did some comparison shopping. I went to West Paducah Equipment and looked at the Mahindra tractors. I drove a 4110 and really liked it as well (I thougt it was very similar to the Kioti). After checking the literature, I saw that it uses the same Daedong engine that is in the DK40. The dealer was a nice guy, but has only carried Mahindras for less than a year. I would say though, that if I had not had a Kioti dealer close as well, I probably would have gone with a Mahindra.
Of course, I had to check out some big name tractors, to make sure that I was getting a good deal. I went to my local John Deere dealer and was shocked to find that a tractor the size that I was looking for with similar features (40-50 HP, 4WD, open station, synchro transmission) would be 20,000-22,000. I thanked them for their time (and proceeded to buy some parts for my '64 JD 2010 backhoe/loader - but that's another story).
I checked into the "other orange tractor" and found out that a huge dealer in western Kentucky had gone out of business. I talked to him and he just picked up the Scorpion/Millenium tractor line. However, after talking to the Scorpion importer, I just didn't quite have enough faith in a fella that couldn't keep a Kubota dealership to be around to service a Scorpion tractor. The prices were very competative, and the Kubota or JD engines are a plus, but they couldn't close the deal.
So I went to the closest Kubota dealer that was in business and looked at some tractors. Unfortunately, when I let him know what other tractors I owned (Belarus, Yanmar) and looked at (Kioti, Mahindra), he was only interested in telling me how bad each brand was. He didn't try to push any good features of the Kubota tractors (and maybe he didn't feel like he had to), but he wasted no time pointing out various issues with the other models (about Kioti he said: they are just trying to ride Kubotas coattails (paint scheme-and he could be right about that); they haven't been around too long; South Korea could be invaded by North Korea any day now. He said a couple of other things that I can't recall, but made no feature by feature comparison between Kubota and Kioti. In the end, he quoted me a price for a M4900 that was on the lot, but it was 2WD and still more expensive than the DK 45, and it would be extra for a rear work light and hydraulic remote - and it was only 2wd, so not a "oranges to oranges" comparison.
To make a long story longer, I sold my Belarus and called James Little on Tuesday morning to let him know I was ready to buy a DK 45. He told me he was sorry, but he had sold the two he had on the lot but he would get me one as soon as hew could (I was thinking probably a week). He called me back within an hour and he had a truck with 2 DK 45s, 2 DK 40s, and some smaller tractors on its was from North Carolina. He received the load yesterday morning and let me know that he hoped to have my tractor delivered later that evening. He called me several times thoughout the day, updating me on his progress and at about 3:30 PM he called and got directions to my place. He got here about 7:30 with the tractor (complete with a 6' rotary cutter and canopy, the only options/attachments I needed/could afford right now). We unloaded the tractor and he went over everything one more time. I might also point out that I am also about 60 miles away from his shop and he delivered for free (I thought that this was common, but I talked to other dealers and most charged for deliver, even when they were only 20-30 miles away).
In conclusion, I am extremely pleased with my purchase, and I plan on celebrating the 4th by adding some hours to my new tractor. I can't say enough good things about James and his company (he has a website currently under construction - www.littletractor.com). It was honestly the best buying experience I have ever had.
I would also like to thank the members of this club. I have been reading posts here for quite sometime and decided that Kioti "was worth the risk". I look forward to many hours begin the wheel of the tractor as we tackle my 140 acres (If I can keep the wife out of the seat). Sorry for the long post, but I had to tell someone!
Take it easy
Tim Gray