Superb Tractor with Excellent Fuel Consumption
Model Year: 2008
I raise black angus cows and do custom hay processing throughout the hay season. I bought this tractor 4 years ago and have never regretted it. As a matter of fact, it has been one of my better decisions since I got into farming. My tractor is a cab version with 4X4, 2 remotes, cast iron rear wheels with fluid, upgraded stereo and front end loader. Implements I use with this tractor include: New Holland 1412 Discbine, Kuhn Speedrake, John Deere 568 hay roller, Woods BW180 batwing bushhog and many other numerous smaller items. The tractor handles these implements with no problem. Out of all of this though, the thing that stands out is the fact I can roll a 70 inch, 5'2" hay roll weighing around 1700 lbs on .08 of a gallon of diesel. This thing is amazing as it relates to fuel burn. I mean, .08 of a gallon is a sip. The John Deere 568 is their largest roller and they recommend nothing less than 75 HP and the dealer was certain the Kubota would not handle it. Were they ever wrong! I have had zero issues with a lack of horsepower or stability while rolling, even on very hilly terrain. I'm sure the weight of the 4x4 helps the Kubota; however, the JD dealer knew my tractor had the 4x4 when they were saying no way. I just could not be happier. When I bought my tractor, I looked at tractors from JD, New Holland and Massey. A used JD with 2 wheel drive and 1100 hours was $15K more than my new Kubota, approximately $10K cheaper than a comparable New Holland and about $8K cheaper than a Massey. For the life of me, I could not justify the difference in price. So here I sit, 4 years and 2000 hours later and continue to feel I made the right decision. Did I say .08 of a gallon of diesel per hay roll? Everything is not perfect. The AC has not been acceptably cold since day one. Their design is bad (per the dealers mx department).The compressor is in the front of the engine, the AC lines have to run from the front of the engine, up over the top of the engine, down behind the engine and between the firewall and finally under and to the rear of the seat before it gets to the condenser. By that time, a warming effect has occurred on the chilled refrigerant. This is not a terrible situation but one that you will notice on a 95 degree day. Also, the ride is a little rough due probably to the weight of the tractor. I just slow down a little and everything is fine. Other than those two items, I just can't say a bad word about the tractor. I carry two rolls at a time out of the field and even load an eight roll EZ hay trailer which is one of the trailers that are self unloading but require you to push 7 rolls (approximately 12K lbs of hay forward while loading that 8th roll) to completely load the trailer. Again, no problems. In summary, I love my Kubota. Before you buy another tractor, at least go check out orange.
Pros: Dependable, powerful, low fuel consumption, price.
Cons: Could use a better designed AC system, a little rough riding.