Buying Advice Mahindra; Three Strikes and Their Out...Almost

[Neugene]

I'll warn you this is going to run long. I couldn't figure out how to condense it and have it make sense. As you read this keep in mind that all of these events took place in one work week.

First let me say this is not a Mahindra bashing thread. I have friends that have owned them for years and love them which is what sold me on them.

I bought my first Mahindra, a 4550, at the beginning of the third week in January. My land is hilly and steep in some spots I had a significant problem getting this tractor to go into reverse especially on some of the steeper inclines (quality control issue #1). I'm not new to tractors and know they can be finicky at times but not like this. When the dealer came to pick it up he had the same problem as well and agreed that it wasn't right. Other than the transmission/shifter problem everything worked fine but let's face it you don't pay that kind of money to just turn around and send a brand new tractor in for repair.

After a little back and forth with the dealer he took it back and sold me the on the idea of a shuttle shift so I paid the difference and bought a 5545 (tractor #2). The first time out on it I discovered the 4wd lever was jammed and wouldn't move at all. The dealer sent a mechanic out and we decided that the lever was bent where it came through the floorboard (quality control issue #2) so he used my universal adjusting tool (a 4lb. sledge hammer) and straightened the rod to the extent possible with the tools on hand. We then noticed that the 4wd lever which is activated by pulling it straight up actually had a throttle grip on it with a graphic suggesting that you activated the 4wd by rotating the lever. That was either terrible assembly and quality control practices or just plain old cheapskate cutting corners to save 35 cents. Either way it was wrong and no one caught it before I did so I'll call it quality control issue #3. After he did all he could the mechanic started the tractor to see if the 4wd would engage with the limited amount of movement we had managed to get from the control arm. As soon as the engine fired it started spitting and sputtering and I told him just to make arrangements to haul it (#2) back to the dealer as yet again I wasn't about to spend my hard earned cash on a box o' problems. (I later found out that in addition to the 4wd lever being bent, the switch that tells the control box that it is engaged was mounted improperly and would not allow the lever to traverse its full range of motion (quality control issue #4)).

After more discussion with the dealer (this guy is good at separating me from my money) I opted for a 3540 (tractor #3). I know I lost 1,200lbs. of valuable weight but my wife is keen on learning how to use the machine to move round bales and do other day to day chores, which suits me right down to the ground, and the 3540 is a cushy easy to operate machine so I figured it was a wash. That is if the foot operated clutch worked properly. With the 3540 as long as you choose the range and gear you want to work in while the power shuttle is in neutral you never have to use the foot operated clutch when shifting between forward and reverse unless you're using the FEL. Now when you're using the FEL and controlling it with your right hand while steering with your left hand, your only option to use the clutch is the foot pedal. This 3540's pedal would stick half way out and then pop the rest of the way out when ever it felt like it. It might be 2 seconds it might be 30 seconds. Either way it's a real surprise when it does finally engage especially if you have a bucket full of wet sand while working on an incline in a stand of trees. It'll get your blood pumping and that's a fact. So, I'm on the phone with the dealer again and again he sent his mechanic who by this time is a buddy of mine. It did take about a week to get the mechanic back out to look at the 3540 but that was as much my fault as it was the dealers to be honest about it. Luckily, when he got here he found a grease fitting on the clutch pedal linkage that apparently had never seen grease (quality control issue #5). It was buried so far back in the underbody of the tractor that we couldn't get to it without unstrapping the fuel tank. After adding grease to the dry fitting the clutch linkage now functions somewhat like it should.

So to make a long story long, there you have it. Three Mahindra's all from different series (3500, 4500 & 5500) and they all had issues, a total of 5 quality control issues, that kept them from functioning as intended. They were all bought from the same dealer within the same week and if the last one had been anything more than a trivial problem I'd be driving an orange or blue tractor by Monday. Don't get me wrong, all of the Mahindra's are strong,heavy built, solid, relatively inexpensive tractors.

BUT, you've got to ask yourself, other than cheaper labor costs, how can they sell a tractor that's supposedly better than their competition for substantially less money?

Personally I think I've learned the answer to that question over the course of the last week or so. If all three of these tractors had been assembled and QC'ed with a little more care I would be a happy Mahindra 4550 (tractor #1) owner and the dealer would have only had to make one delivery trip to my place.

Anyway, I thought my experience with buying a new Mahindra might be helpful/valuable to anyone that reads the forum while researching their next/first tractor. Even after all I went through to end up with a functioning tractor I can't say that I won't buy another Mahindra.

However, if I should decide to buy another one I'll leave my fine toothed comb at home and go over every detail of the new tractor with a microscope twice before it ever leaves the lot.

Good Day and Good Luck,

Chris

 

[Tomtint]

We have a Mahindra dealer not far from us here. I stopped in and took a look at them last weekend. I was not impressed with the fit and finish of them, .. Many small pieces looked to be cheaply built and welds were not impressive. Maybe they are fine tractors, I have never had one. But for me,I woulda
End the extra money for a Orange one.

 

[JerryK]

Geez guys... Mahindra's are tractors. I have two of them and they work just fine. I even passed over the orange ones to buy them.... money was not the object.

 

[Gary Fowler]

Lots of folks brag on their Mahindra tractors. The only Mahindra I ever saw in person was at the LS dealer when I was shopping for tractors and in comparison to the LS it was very poor visually and ergonomically. I passed on it in favor of the LS, besides I didn't want a pink tractor after a few years of sunshine on it.

 

[tjkubota93]

Seems like the dealer would do pre-delivery inspection to catch any issues before the customer got ahold of it.

When I worked at a Ford dealer, they paid you to go through a form and check everything on the vehicle, road test it, then set the radio presets to local stations.

If anything was found wrong with it, it was your ***** because you signed off that you inspected it.

 

[RNeumann]

Seems like the dealer would do pre-delivery inspection to catch any issues before the customer got ahold of it.

When I worked at a Ford dealer, they paid you to go through a form and check everything on the vehicle, road test it, then set the radio presets to local stations.

If anything was found wrong with it, it was your ***** because you signed off that you inspected it.

2nd this. 3 tractors built by different factories. All ended up at the same dealer and all had basic (meaning a basic road test would have found) shifting and clutch issues.

 

[s219]

While my experience has been that Mahindra is a bit lacking in fit/finish compared to other brands, that's a minor thing, and probably not related to what you're experiencing. I think in this case, the problem falls on the dealer for poor prep. Is it possible these tractors were stored outside for a long time, to the point that stuff got rusted/bound up, making lube and prep even more critical? Not trying to defend Mahindra here, but the truth is that I have seen tractors from all brands exhibit assorted behavior like this if left out in the weather without the proper TLC.

 

[BrokeFarmerJohn]

In this case after the second tractor, I would have switched dealers, no dealer should be that careless not to even test or inspect a product there delivering.

Maybe the delivery guy caught it and brought it up and they say deliver it anyway, if that's the case shame on them, the delivery guy should have operated and seen enough of them to know most of those issues weren't right and should have brought that up, after it rolls of the trailer and he goes threw the tractor with the customer it's his ear that gets filled with concern, if he intentionally drops of a faulty product hoping the customer won't notice shame on him.

I would chuck that experience as a poor dealer and delivery guy or guys.

 

[Deere Dude]

I never even touched a Mahindra, but if the fit and finish is lacking could I really expect the mechanical stuff to not be lacking? The OP should have expected to dealer to check every thing out before it was delivered because it is in the price. It is not up to the buyer to know enough to get to the intricacies of a tractor he doesn't understand. I understand the buyer beware argument but not everyone is a mechanic and should be able to count on the dealer.

 

[Oldpath05]

"First let me say this is not a Mahindra bashing thread"<<<I think this is what we need more of, it's high time that manufacturing companies get the message, stop making junk, what happen to the phrase, Quality is job one, The quality goes in before the name goes on, and the bored Maytag repair man. In other words make believe you're a Donald ***** protestor going to a DC rally, or if you are allready is one, do the same thing to Mahindra.

Looks like the OP was like me, buy a tractor then go on a tractor forum and see if someone else has issues with there new tractor and what I found is Kubota has some problems here and there, but I must say It's nothing like this Mahindra, in the past two year's, Mahindra has won the complaint prise hands down more than a Chinese tractor, hip hip hurray!! and congratulations!!.

I also think some of the blame goes to dealers for selling these tractors before making sure they work right, and to make sure a tractor works right, they should get out of the office and of their smart phone and bring these tractors up to temp, make sure all functions are working, especially if it's a Mahinda.