Comparing the orange forums to the green forums.

   / Comparing the orange forums to the green forums. #1  

Snatchface

Bronze Member
Joined
May 6, 2005
Messages
59
Location
VT
Tractor
Kubota BX24
Now I have never owned a greenie but in making my decision to buy a BX24 I read through several pages of posts in all of the different brands of tractors i had available to buy locally. I noticed at the time that in the Kubota forums people were generally pleased and the discussions revolved around what things they were doing to upgrade their tractors and their projects. In the Deere forums it was predominantly complaints about things broken or not working properly. Just tried it again tonight to see if I could pick up any new interesting topics and again, predominantly complaints. I can't see how this wouldn't reflect upon a serious quality issue.
 
   / Comparing the orange forums to the green forums. #2  
JD has such a powerful brand legacy and following. It attracts some buyers because they feel safe with the purchase and expect more people to agree they made the 'right' choice.

It will take quite a while for people too notice, if there quality is faltering, that JD is not maybe the best choice.

I'm not saying Kubota is any better since mine is back in the shop after one week of ownership and 5 hrs of run time.

I was just leary of the buying JD just because everyone else has.
 
   / Comparing the orange forums to the green forums. #3  
And if you venture over to the NH forum, you'll probably find the least amount of "brand cheerleading" of the "big three". A good percentage of the "estate owners" may have never heard of New Holland compact tractors before they went tractor shopping... (I knew the name, but not that they made compacts).
 
   / Comparing the orange forums to the green forums. #4  
ejnichol said:
JD has such a powerful brand legacy and following. It attracts some buyers because they feel safe with the purchase and expect more people to agree they made the 'right' choice.

Deere's greatest product is their brand and marketing. Thats what they do best.
 
   / Comparing the orange forums to the green forums. #5  
ejnichol said:
JD has such a powerful brand legacy and following. It attracts some buyers because they feel safe with the purchase and expect more people to agree they made the 'right' choice. ... I was just leary of the buying JD just because everyone else has.
You hit the nail on the head. It's like Hondas. Hondas are fine cars, don't get me wrong, but I've always said "Hondas are cars for people that don't know anything about cars", because (a) everybody they know has one and (b)they're perceived to be a good car. (You can also substitute Toyota for Honda in the above). Lemmings, if you will.

A Jehovah's Witness rolled up on me one day last year when I was outside washing the Kubota and made some comment like "couldn't get the John Deere eh", to which I replied "well if I wanted to pay anywhere from $3K to $5K more for roughly the same Japanese tractor and implements painted green instead of orange, sure. At least Kubota isn't trying to fool anybody with paint and stickers." I think he left without even giving me a Watchtower.
When you really compare what you're getting, Kubota seems to be the better value, and that's what I look for...value.
 
   / Comparing the orange forums to the green forums. #6  
Deere makes a good product and has an excellent support network. I've had 2 Deeres and both have been reliable machines. I see few tractors at my dealer that are there for other then normal maintenance.

I suggest Snatchface's original post has little objective validity. What kind of comparison did he do...for how long? How many posts did he review...were they duplicates? I've no idea...neither does he, I suspect.

All machines break sometime or another...and TBN is a great forum to share subjective information (which may or may not be accurate...basically, all any of us can do is offer opinions on what might be wrong.

And MessickFarmEqu...you're a competitor to Deere...you sell Kubota and NH. Frankly, your opinion on Deere may be more due to sales tactics then any actual knowledge. That's kind of shifty to post, isn't it?
 
   / Comparing the orange forums to the green forums. #7  
DiezNutz said:
You hit the nail on the head. It's like Hondas. Hondas are fine cars, don't get me wrong, but I've always said "Hondas are cars for people that don't know anything about cars", because (a) everybody they know has one and (b)they're perceived to be a good car. (You can also substitute Toyota for Honda in the above). Lemmings, if you will.
....


Huh??? Hondas and Toyotas are perceived to be a good car because they are good cars - at or near the top of most customer satisfaction surveys, reliablity, safety, fuel economy etc. measures. They do command a small premium (usually less than 10%) vs. a comparable domesetic vehicle.

I've had a Subaru, a Ford Truck, A volvo, a Mercedes (used), and 3 Hondas. The European cars weren't all that reliable and cost a small fortune to repair. In 200,000 combined miles, I've had 3 unexpected repairs (1 for each car) of to the Hondas. 1 was covered under warranty the others were reasonable cost - the Ford service certainly wasn't any less expensive.

I would say "Hondas are cars for people that don't know anything about cars", because you don't have to know anything about cars - just gas & go.:D

Of course I'm biased and I do know something about cars (degree in automotive engineering):rolleyes:
 
   / Comparing the orange forums to the green forums. #8  
Greetings;

I am new member and new to Kubota and surf the archives here extensively to get familair with my not so new tractor which is a late '8o's B7100 HST. I also have a Ford Jubilee, another vintage heavily built machine. What occurs to me are 2 main perspectives. Although newer tractors have more features,better ergonomics and ofter higher power they are not necessarily "better". Whether they be orange, green or blue, the manufacturerers have gone a long ways down the slippery slope of trying to offer more for less and have ended up delivering less for more. To a large degree the consumer has driven this dynamic. For me, give me old and stout over glitter any day.

Lastly, I've noticed many posts by members complaining about dealers and reps. The problem doesn't seem to be that a machine failed (although there does seem to be a growing number of irritating manufacturing oversights), the problem appears to rest with the dealer's wilingness to deal with it in a timely and fair manner. My guess is that if you have a legimate beef with a dealership and you take it to the top, things with change over time. Word eventually filters up and when Kubota finally realises that poor representation in the field is costing them sales they will have to respond.

Cheers, Erik
 
   / Comparing the orange forums to the green forums. #9  
RoyJackson said:
...

And MessickFarmEqu...you're a competitor to Deere...you sell Kubota and NH. Frankly, your opinion on Deere may be more due to sales tactics then any actual knowledge. That's kind of shifty to post, isn't it?

How is that shifty? He is right by the way - Deere's greatest product is their brand. It is up there with Coca Cola as one of the most recognizable brands in the world. In order for Deere to get that brand recognition, they have built many fine products over the years. In order to maintain that brand they will have to continue to innovate & build quality products.

I've seen the same attitude in the Deere forums. Because of Deere's reputation (in addition to their technology - E hydro etc.), they command a premium in price vs. the competition. It seems that when the buyer of a Deere has an issue, they tend to get more "upset" because they know darn well they paid extra for the Deere. They paid more because with the expectation that they wouldn't have a problem in the first place, or if they did it would be resolved quickly.
 
   / Comparing the orange forums to the green forums. #10  
I can't see that this thread has any merit at all. Comes across as a puff out your chest, look down your nose at others, just to get comments, nothing at all to do with "owning and operating".
 
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