How to spot a Viet recon tractor?

[passgas55]

If I was to go look at a Japan YM tractor from a private person and ask if his tractor is a viet recon or not and they reply they do not know, what do you look for?

[Adam23]

I would think the fact that you are looking to purchase from an individual gives you a better chance of getting a good tractor than from a dealer of Viet recons. If this guy has owned this tractor for several years and can tell you about it, then it would not matter if it was Viet recon or not. Some are good and some are not. Usually determined within a short time of owning, so it would be determined already if it is good or not. Just ask alot of questions and be wary if this guy has owned it for a very short time.

[LMTC]

The flip side of that coin is that if you do not know the individual well, they could be selling you their problems and simply not telling the truth about where they got it, how long they have had it, etc. We tell our customers that we will support the new owner if they sell their tractor (if we wouldn't we are severly limiting our customers' options) and we offer to confirm to their potential buyer that the tractor came from us. Ask the individual where they bought it....ask to see an invoice, or a copy of the invoice with the price blacked out if they choose. Or take the serial numbers (engine and chassis) and ask them if you can contact the dealer who sold it to them to confirm that the source is that dealer. If they get vague on you, I would steer clear.

As always, your best guarantee of satisfaction with your tractor ownership is a reputable dealer. If you are unsure of what you are getting and you order parts to find they just don't fit or work, you're generally just stuck with them. On the extreme bad end of the scale we (and Len Sheaffer ran into this several times) have known of a seller that was marketing repainted and rebadged Shibauras as Yanmars. Those folks got some very wrong parts when they ordered.

A few years ago we learned of a "dealer" in one of the Carolinas who was selling recons and telling buyers their tractors came from us. After the second call we contacted the dealer and advised them that we were sending these customers confirmation that the dealer was a liar, and asking them to tell all their friends and neighbors. That apparently stopped quickly. BTW, I am not aware of that dealer being in business currently, so please don't make any assumptions about any current dealer.

[Travis_R]

Both Adam and LMTC said it well........As I am sure you are aware of, I have a Viet Recon Yanmar YM2000.........You can tell that it is because of the new paint, hour meter, (extremely low hours), and most importantly, my dealer told me it was.

Now that my cooling problem is solved, I now can honestly say that I am pleased with my tractor.....I can also say that if it wasn't for my dealer, and TBN, I would be stuck with it.

When I got mine it had 8.4 hours on it..........It now has 23.2, with NO other problems......Everything is great.................But I can say that the only thing that I don't agree with is why the Vietnamese roll back the hour meters.........I don't think they should do that.

Travis R

[BruceR]

If the tractor has original paint it should be OK. Also, some of the recons used to have white stars painted on the rear of the left fender.

Bruce

[California]

If I was to go look at a Japan YM tractor from a private person and ask if his tractor is a viet recon or not and they reply they do not know, what do you look for?

Low hours, as noted. And look at the hour meter to see if it has the PTO rpm tic at the right rpm for that model.

I think 100% of them will have the fuel tank painted black. When there were a lot of Yanmars on Ebay this was a good first-glance indicator.

The OEM radiator hose has an outer braid. I've seen rebuilts with the top hose wrapped with electrical tape then painted to a glossy finish.

One clue I ran into was the fuel filter bowl. I bought one off a customer-return recon then found there was no element anywhere to fit it. The right bowl is taller than its diameter and opaque, the wrong one is transparent like glass and shorter. I've seen this shorter bowl in some dealers website photos - buyer beware!

I think the important thing is to size up the seller. If the tractor has been in use for a while without problems it doesn't matter what its origin was. Budget a few hundred $ for fixing minor stuff since nothing 30 years old will to be flawless. But if the seller is obviously trying to unload a lemon, run!

[DavesTractor]

If I was to go look at a Japan YM tractor from a private person and ask if his tractor is a viet recon or not and they reply they do not know, what do you look for?

Ask the seller how long he has had it and where he bought it. If he is vague that is a warning to be real careful. We saw a Mitsubishi recently with Iseki decals...all pretty and painted up with a zero'd hour meter. The transmission was full of water and crud, no brakes, etc. It came through an auction in the Sacramento area. Some dealer dumped some of the less desirable/troubled recons apparently. The buyer asked us to fix it, we did, but it wasn't easy getting parts for a Mitsuseki.

[Adam23]

Any update on this? Have you spoken with the seller again?

[passgas55]

Any update on this? Have you spoken with the seller again?

I did not talk to anyone yet, I wanted to know what to look far.The more information I have in hand the less mistakes I will make.This site sure gave me a lot of useful information.

[Travis_R]

I did not talk to anyone yet, I wanted to know what to look far.The more information I have in hand the less mistakes I will make.This site sure gave me a lot of useful information.

Yes, it does give a lot of useful information, but it can also leave a very bad taste in your mouth too.