LG = Montana = New Holland ??

[jc7622]

I saw the Montana tractors at the farm show this weekend in OKC. I have since done some research on them and LG. The LG brand tractors appear to be identical to the Montanas.

Something else I came across was a picture (attached) of an older LG L65 that is identical to a New Holland TN65D. Can someone please explain this New Holland connection. Does New Holland re-brand LG tractors or was LG licensed to build NH's overseas?

Also, I have heard discussion that LG plans to enter the US market. Would this not be a plus to those who are purchasing Montana tractors because it would help to increase parts availibility and service since Montanas are basically LG's with grren body panels.

 

[Dargo]

I thought I read somewhere that LG changed their name to LS. /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif No kidding. I'm sure I read that somewhere; don't know if it's true, but I recall reading that.

 

[Bob_Skurka]

LG Montana tractors are already here in the US. LG is the company that makes them, Montana is their brand name. So the tractors that are here have both the LG and the Montana names on them.

They are not related to New Holland. LG simply copied the New Holland appearance. There are some Chinese made tractor that look like New Hollands also. The similarity is only in appearance. As you inspect the details they are different machines.

Now to complicate all of that, LG is changing its name to LS so if I understand it correctly, soon we will see LS Montana tractors that will be identical to LG Montana tractors.

You may also want to look at Long Agribusiness's tractors. LG manufactuers at least some of the FarmTrac or LandTrac tractors for Long.

LG Montana is very new in the US market. They probably have less than a 1% marketshare, but they are growing.

 

[SHIFTY]

Bob
LG or now LS does make some of the larger Utility tractor for NH for the European market I believe 75 hp+

 

[MessickFarmEqu]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">(
LG Montana is very new in the US market. They probably have less than a 1% marketshare, but they are growing.

)</font>

From the pictures that I saw online of their facilities I am pretty certian that our store has more inventory. Just making a wild guess at their sales numbers I would guess they sell under 2000 tractors a year. Mahindra is the largest of the 2nd tier companies at about 8500 a year, for comparison Kubota moves over 100,000 a year.

 

[Maka]

Hello Neil. I posted the pictures and unfortunatley since the place had so many tractors and the facility so big I could not get high enough to get pictures that would actually show off large the operation is both in tractor numbers and size. Oh, and in the very near future you will see more larger scale growth in the operations end of things. Your store is quit small in comparision.

I assure you that what you saw was such a small part of what is there. I will aslo assure you that sales are well over the numbers you guys seem to think.

I also think the Mahindra and Kubota numbers you quote are off a bit. In any case, keep watching as Kubota and NH prices keep rising because the Japanese market can't produce the quality for the prices they used to the Korean companies will continue to steal market share because they have the ability to keep producing excellent products at better prices.

Thanks Maka.

 

[MessickFarmEqu]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">(
I also think the Mahindra and Kubota numbers you quote are off a bit. )</font>

Thats actualy public record, take a look at their quaterly stock reports.

 

[Maka]

Hello Neil. My contention is your comparison of Mahindra to Kubota. Tractor sales of under 40hp in the U.S. is under 100,000 units. The comparison you made seems to be Kubotas general sales to Mahindras U.S. sales and that is where I believe your numbers are skewed.

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Mahindra is the largest of the 2nd tier companies at about 8500 a year, for comparison Kubota moves over 100,000 a year. )</font>

You are making a comparison that is not fair. I would agree that from what I have seen that Mahindra is 8500 in the U.S. and about 85,000 world wide.

I will go out and say that there is no way that Kubota is selling 100,000 tractors in the USA so your comparisons numbers are not really fair. Would you agree?

Thanks,
Maka

 

[Bob_Skurka]

<font color="red"> Tractor sales of under 40hp in the U.S. is under 100,000 units. </font>


Not wanting to get in the middle of a fight, but there have been links to some sort of industry report that is published either monthly or quarterly. It shows tractor sales of various sizes and types of tractors. Last time I looked at it, the number of tractors (CUTs) sold in the USA seemed to be roughly 225,000 units per year, if I understood the numbers correctly? Now I admit I don't know that I understood the report correctly, but the report has been linked at least a couple times by people here on TBN.

As you guys are dealers, and I am just a guy with tractors in the garage, I'm sure you have access to more numbers than I do, and I'm sure you can better understand the reports. But still, I think the under 100,000 number is way off based on what I saw.


EDIT : Ok, well I just dug up the AEM U.S. Ag Flash Report for March 2005. Based on historical data, there are something like 235,000 tractors sold in the US each year of all sizes (IF I understood the report correctly) so my above information is not completely correct but was not too bad for a guy who's memory is slipping. However, of the total, there appears to be, about 140,000 UNDER 40hp tractors sold each year if I extrapolated the 2004 data correctly. So Maka's numbers appear to be a bit on the low side. Now, that doesn't validate Neil's number either. However, as Kubota sells many tractors ABOVE the 40hp range, it certainly might be possible that Kubota could sell 100,000 units. That would give Kubota roughly a 42.5% market share, and it has been rumored that Kubota's market share actually could have been as high as 50%. So I don't have the answer, and the report I saw is a bit light on details

 

[Maka]

Hello Bob,

No fight going on. Just discussion. I think the AEM report is probably what has been referenced. I just to a look and total tractors under 100hp is at someting like 97,000 + total a year. Maybe I am wrong and not reading it correctly. I have been wrong in the past and if I am then I want to apologize to Neil.

I just think it was a comparison that may be a bit off. No doubt in anyones mind the success of Kubota. They are fine tractors with the reservation that they are just too much money for what you get in my humble opinion.

Thanks,
Maka