Authorized Kubota Warranty Service Provider? Part 1 of 3

[DonaldP]

Part ONE of Two - (or 3 ?)

I had read some interesting comments in the LS Thread here about the responsibilities of a Tractor or Equipment Dealership and how the roles between a dealership and the manufacturer (in this case Kubota) might play out in various situations where liability or responsibility might be included. Some of these areas I am sure are closely strung, while others maintain a great deal of "healthy and safe" flexibility and distance (for legal or other reasons).

The genesis of this review for me stems from a situation that came about within 8 months after the purchase of a brand new off the lot Kubota L3560 LE with BH92 Backhoe, LA805 Loader, Kubota Third Function, LandPride 72" Grapple, and various other amenities ($52,000, with $2000 down) financed via Kubota Credit Corp at 0% for 7 years ($603/month). That purchase was in July 2020 just before Covid hit hard and changed the supply system we were all so used to.

I, like many many others out there am a newbie to the Tractor world. Yes I have a degree in engineering, about 10 years of study and experience in Auto Mechanics, Auto Body & Paint, Diesel Mechanics, statics, materials science, Pneumatics, Hydraulics, and a few other disciplines including general contracting, customer service, building and equipment maintenance, and running a successful computer business for 20 years. Like I said... I'm sure there are lots of folks out there with much much more general experience with things than I, and remember, I'm a newbie here, so please be gentle.

In this arena, I may be a bit undereducated (after all, I'm relatively young Engineer with little experience under my belt... there are a lot of much more wise and knowledgeable folks out there older than my minimal 64 years on the planet). But still, I'm somewhat confused on what I should expect from a farm equipment dealership. I though I might ask some of you more educated and experienced users how to change my behavior to better stay in line with the expectations of what a Farm Equipment Dealership is expecting of ME, not the other way around.

Yes, as you can tell, I've already done a bit of soul searching, so I kind of feel I have a solid footing to start looking at how to change my behavior to suit a Kubota Dealership, or at least my NEXT Kubota Dealership as I've been "fired" as a customer from this one. (see attached letter from Kubota Dealership )

In fact, I'm sure this input could help me deal more professionally with anyone that I might interface with when I purchase anything, regardless as to whether it's adding another property to my portfolio, another Truck or Car, another Tractor, a Refrigerator or a can of Paint from Home Depot ... But I digress.

I'm sure by now you realize this is an idiom of sorts, pointed at the gist of absurdity that seems to follow me in this situation I've created for myself.

So now, the rest of the story...

I was a single Farm Supply/Equip Dealer customer of 15 Years, but all of that came to an abrupt end by Kubota when I was told by the Dealership that Kubota had advised them to refer my business to another Kubota Dealer for future Service and Warranty work (according to the Dealer Documentation attached) How could this happen? Read on...

The Kubota was my first piece of real equipment that could do sizable work on our homestead. I used the Kubota after its purchase, for the Fall of 2020 for a number of things. Excavation, a driveway, clearing a large amount of deadfall on our property, and some snow removal for a relatively short driveway of about 200ft. I also used it to support cutting and splitting of firewood for heating of our home. I bought a set of forks from Titan, a forklift work basket for trimming trees, a post hole auger (used), and a back blade (used).

During one fall day i was pulling brush and I ended up losing about 5 gallons of oil when a branch caught the hose for the Backhoe and it twisted loose on the rear of the tractor. The hose didn't break and I was able to reattach it properly with a stout wrench. That oil was pressured washed off and I was able to pick up (free of charge) from the Dealer 4 or 5 gallons of oil for me to get the tractor running again. I tightened up the fitting and everything was good. They ordered a new hose just in case and said they could put it on when I came back for the 50 hour service.

Further down the road at about 50 hours I had a couple of other issues for the dealer to look at, and they brought the Kubota Service rep in on, as I believe it is normal procedure for some warranty repairs.

Basic door lock issues, noises, turn signal issues, a tire hitting the frame on a right turn but not left turn (They said they might need to make an adjustment or order a new Lower FEL support), squeaking brake pedal, and a scratch or dent on the hood that wasn't there when I had applied the Ceramic coating to the hood and fender areas previous to the last dealer visit.... oh, and play in the quick connect assembly on the loader, all of which the Kubota Service Rep said they would replace for me (Including the hood). During that visit they did attempt to address the issue with the tire hitting the frame. The tractor was dropped off as I purchased it, with 805 Loader, and BH92 Backhoe because I didn't know any better.

When I picked up the tractor there was an area of the Lower right FEL that had been cut off with a grinder and the area was painted up, with overspray hitting the various cables and hoses on the Third function Valve near the lower FEL support and right side entrance step.

I immediately had someone at the dealership look at the repair before I left the Dealership, and then sent the photos of this funky repair to Kubota and the dealership letting them know that I should have been notified if they were going to cut anything off of my tractor and that I should have at least been notified that this was done before or at the time I picked up my equipment, but that nothing was said to me at all until I discovered it. The tech came out before i left and also said that he had gone ahead and put new seals into the BH92 Backhoe as they were leaking when he looked...

I had no known or unknown issues with the BH92 Backhoe in the 50 hours I had been using the tractor, and it never came off. the only issues were operator issues. No leaks, no loss of oil... nothing. But now I'm being told that he had to spend 4 or more hours tearing the BH92 loader valve apart for leaking seals in a 50 hour tractor with less than 10 hours on the Backhoe?

"Not to worry he said with a smile, Kubota is covering it!!" That didn't make me feel any better. That's now 2 items on my equipment that were done without my approval or knowledge ... The cut Lower FEL Bracket/Support, and the rebuild of a 10 hour leaking BH92 control valve that that I never had a single issue with. I let the service department manager know that I would expect that anything done to my equipment while in their hands from now on would need to be approved by me from that point forward, that this was my equipment and not theirs to do with as they please. Pretty harsh, I know!

I was initially told that a new lower FEL support bracket was replaced from another 805 Loader kit on site, but that it didn't make a difference in the contact with the tire, so the Kubota Service Rep was called in to advise. Then I was told by the Dealership that the Kubota Service Rep actually requested that the FEL support be cut to prevent the contact with the lower FEL support bracket. Kubota service (1-800 number) showed in their records that the lower FEL was supposed to be ordered and replaced period. They were concerned when they heard that the lower FEL bracket was not replaced yet. They didn't know why the bracket was cut and then left on the equipment.

After some pressure from me about the issues of the cut FEL and how the issue shouldn't have been resolved by cutting, I was finally told by the Dealer that it was actually done because they couldn't let the tractor leave the lot in a situation where there could be more damage to the equipment due to that issue.

(There were 50 hours of use on the unit in this condition at this time with no impending failure other than a slight rubbing of the outermost 1/4" of the tire tread in a tight turn on the lower FEL. It was not an emergency or safety issue requiring cutting the FEL and then painting it and not informing me it was either going to be, or was done). The 50 hour service was taken care of by the Kubota Service Rep at no charge to me. That was a positive gesture from Kubota due to the issue of the lower FEL Bracket.

See my next post for the rest of the story... part two of maybe 3!!

 

[sea2summit]

I'd need a better picture but if someone did that with a grinder, I probably want to hire them.

You say it was a 50 hr service but they say a 300 hr, how many hours on the tach? I'm confused there. Tractor looks like it's in really good condition for 50+hrs.

I'm also shocked they gave you 4-5 gallons of hydraulic fluid for a leak. Leaks are very common in the first 10 hrs, especially on BH, four of four tractors for me have had a minor to major leak in the first 10 hrs, but I've never dumped more than a gallon or so out of any single leak.

I'm kind of on their side that after you leave the lot it's kind of your problem. Obviously this is a fairly messy situation on the surface, more to the story I'm sure.

 

[murphy1244]

You leave the lot it's kind of your problem????
That tractor and implements was 52 big ones, there should be not a thing wrong with it!!
Really get a new dealer.

 

[sea2summit]

You leave the lot it's kind of your problem????
That tractor and implements was 52 big ones, there should be not a thing wrong with it!!
Really get a new dealer.

Tractor has almost 300 hours on it when it leaves the lot.

 

[murphy1244]

The second time, first time had 50 hours. Kubota is sold as a premium tractor at a premium price. I expect better from them.

 

[DonaldP]

I'd need a better picture but if someone did that with a grinder, I probably want to hire them.

You say it was a 50 hr service but they say a 300 hr, how many hours on the tach? I'm confused there. Tractor looks like it's in really good condition for 50+hrs.

I'm also shocked they gave you 4-5 gallons of hydraulic fluid for a leak. Leaks are very common in the first 10 hrs, especially on BH, four of four tractors for me have had a minor to major leak in the first 10 hrs, but I've never dumped more than a gallon or so out of any single leak.

I'm kind of on their side that after you leave the lot it's kind of your problem. Obviously this is a fairly messy situation on the surface, more to the story I'm sure.

There were 3 services in all during this 50, 200, and a 300

 

[DonaldP]

The leak was major. I lost 8 gallons in the 1 or so minutes before I realized that the stuff falling on my tractor wasn't rain!

 

[DonaldP]

Tractor has almost 300 hours on it when it leaves the lot.

This Tractor had 6 hours on it when it left the lot new.

 

[DonaldP]

I'd need a better picture but if someone did that with a grinder, I probably want to hire them.

You say it was a 50 hr service but they say a 300 hr, how many hours on the tach? I'm confused there. Tractor looks like it's in really good condition for 50+hrs.

I'm also shocked they gave you 4-5 gallons of hydraulic fluid for a leak. Leaks are very common in the first 10 hrs, especially on BH, four of four tractors for me have had a minor to major leak in the first 10 hrs, but I've never dumped more than a gallon or so out of any single leak.

I'm kind of on their side that after you leave the lot it's kind of your problem. Obviously this is a fairly messy situation on the surface, more to the story I'm sure.

That's true. But these things were pointed out to the dealership while the tractor was still on their lot at the time I picked it up. Photos were 90% taken while the tractor was still on the lot after the services..

 

[DonaldP]

You leave the lot it's kind of your problem????
That tractor and implements was 52 big ones, there should be not a thing wrong with it!!
Really get a new dealer.

Thank you for your input. As far as anything wrong with the tractor there isn't really much besides the basic things Ive discussed. but still your point is there was a lot of money put into this machine (or will be) and for that even though Kubota is stepping up as well as they can, the Dealership side is lacking. I suppose that's the crux of the issue here. A Dealer that you thought was a keeper might eventually turn out not to be.