Dealer I'm getting a little disappointed with Kubota Dealers

   / I'm getting a little disappointed with Kubota Dealers #1  

Lt CHEG

Platinum Member
Joined
Sep 23, 2009
Messages
553
Location
Upstate NY
Tractor
New Holland T5.120
I'm looking for a tractor in the 40 to 50 horsepower range, 4x4 with a FEL, and a heated and air conditioned cab is a must. I've looked at pretty much all the major brands now as they are all fairly well represented in my area. The thing that really is starting to bother me is that every one of the dealers that only carry Kubota does nothing but knock the other brands. Today I was explaining that I'd looked at New Holland, Case/IH, John Deere, Massey Ferguson and looked at Kubota non cab units. The dealer had to say that NH and Case were just complete garbage, that MF is being sued by the government and doesn't make a good tractor anyway and that JD doesn't make anything themselves anymore so they're crap too. This is the 3rd Kubota dealer that I had been to that only carries Kubota that talked down about other tractors. Now the Case/IH dealer I went to also carried Kubota and they were happy to sell either brand and were quick to offer that all the brands that I was looking at made good tractors and that they all had strengths and weaknesses. This is how the other non Kubota dealers behaved as well. The behavior of the aforementioned Kubota dealers really turns me off. I can understand selling the benefits of the brand that you deal in and pointing out the weaknesses of other brands but to outright dismiss other tractor companies as making crap is not acceptable in my opinion.

Personally I'm starting to feel that Kubota probably puts together the overall best package for the price point but there are things that I don't like about them. I also find things about other brands that I don't like. I'm really in a toss up now as to what I'm going to end up with and am really not in any hurry. I just wanted to share some of my recent experiences in tractor shopping. Some things are very personal to a tractor and certainly have an influence, such as placement of controls, etc. I feel in the end that since the pricing is comparable for apples to apples in all of the brands that I've looked at (I'm looking at high end units not stripped down basic models) that I'm probably going to just end up buying based on price and financing along with what control layout overall feels the best to me.
 
   / I'm getting a little disappointed with Kubota Dealers #2  
It's too bad that a dealer thinks he can make a sale by trashing his competition. I have an '04 Case DX45 that I bought new and an '07 Kubota L39 I bought used. When we got the Case, we looked at all the brands. We narrowed it down to the Case or NH because of the layout of the controls and 'comfort' of the tractor. Chose the Case over the NH because of the dealer. I have been very happy with the tractor.

When I needed to replace my '58 IH 350 Utility TLB, I look at the JD 110 TLB and Kubota L39. I liked the JD better except for the flip over seat. In the end I got the Kubota because I found one in good shape at a good price. I could not find a JD 110 in my area that was not all beat to heck. So far I am happy with the Kubota, but the Case is still a more 'comfortable' tractor.
 
   / I'm getting a little disappointed with Kubota Dealers #3  
Apparently I have been lucky in that the dealers that I bought my Kubota and John Deere from did not run the other tractors down. The John Deere salesman pointed out the placement of the tie rods on the John Deere as offering more protection than a Kubota, but to me this seemed legitimate and he didn't run down the quality of any other tractors nor did my Kubota salesman.

There really is a difference in quality/design in some tractors/models, so you really need to consider quality. I own a Massey Ferguson and Case that have not held up well with frequent trips to the shop. They are both geared tractors and I haven't had any trouble with the drive trains, but it seems as though something is always going wrong with them. The Highway Department tried the Massey Fergusons out for a couple of years and then traded them off for John Deeres which have held up well. The vast majority of farmers in my area have traded their Case/IH for the various big John Deeres.

I have looked at all of them and my next utility tractor will in all likelihood be a Kubota, John Deere prices around here are higher and I don't see any better quality.

Others may have had different results, so I would sure keep checking around and visiting other forums.
 
   / I'm getting a little disappointed with Kubota Dealers #4  
Do them a favor and tell them that you can't stand salesmen that run down other brands before they ever start running the other brands down. I agree with you, I don't care for that attitude either. I don't want to know how lousy some other brand is that they don't sell, I want to know how good the brand is that you do sell. Lots of those kind of folks lurking around here as well.


Apparently I have been lucky in that the dealers that I bought my Kubota and John Deere from did not run the other tractors down. The John Deere salesman pointed out the placement of the tie rods on the John Deere as offering more protection than a Kubota, but to me this seemed legitimate and he didn't run down the quality of any other tractors nor did my Kubota salesman.

There really is a difference in quality/design in some tractors/models, so you really need to consider quality. I own a Massey Ferguson and Case that have not held up well with frequent trips to the shop. They are both geared tractors and I haven't had any trouble with the drive trains, but it seems as though something is always going wrong with them. The Highway Department tried the Massey Fergusons out for a couple of years and then traded them off for John Deeres which have held up well. The vast majority of farmers in my area have traded their Case/IH for the various big John Deeres.

I have looked at all of them and my next utility tractor will in all likelihood be a Kubota, John Deere prices around here are higher and I don't see any better quality.

Others may have had different results, so I would sure keep checking around and visiting other forums.
 
   / I'm getting a little disappointed with Kubota Dealers #5  
I'm looking for a tractor in the 40 to 50 horsepower range, 4x4 with a FEL, and a heated and air conditioned cab is a must. I've looked at pretty much all the major brands now as they are all fairly well represented in my area. The thing that really is starting to bother me is that every one of the dealers that only carry Kubota does nothing but knock the other brands. Today I was explaining that I'd looked at New Holland, Case/IH, John Deere, Massey Ferguson and looked at Kubota non cab units. The dealer had to say that NH and Case were just complete garbage, that MF is being sued by the government and doesn't make a good tractor anyway and that JD doesn't make anything themselves anymore so they're crap too. This is the 3rd Kubota dealer that I had been to that only carries Kubota that talked down about other tractors. Now the Case/IH dealer I went to also carried Kubota and they were happy to sell either brand and were quick to offer that all the brands that I was looking at made good tractors and that they all had strengths and weaknesses. This is how the other non Kubota dealers behaved as well. The behavior of the aforementioned Kubota dealers really turns me off. I can understand selling the benefits of the brand that you deal in and pointing out the weaknesses of other brands but to outright dismiss other tractor companies as making crap is not acceptable in my opinion.

Personally I'm starting to feel that Kubota probably puts together the overall best package for the price point but there are things that I don't like about them. I also find things about other brands that I don't like. I'm really in a toss up now as to what I'm going to end up with and am really not in any hurry. I just wanted to share some of my recent experiences in tractor shopping. Some things are very personal to a tractor and certainly have an influence, such as placement of controls, etc. I feel in the end that since the pricing is comparable for apples to apples in all of the brands that I've looked at (I'm looking at high end units not stripped down basic models) that I'm probably going to just end up buying based on price and financing along with what control layout overall feels the best to me.

So you feel empty inside....maybe you just need a hug?
 
   / I'm getting a little disappointed with Kubota Dealers #6  
lt cheg- have you shopped online and looked at the models online and then go to the dealer to try them on for size ? I know it's hard, but with enconomy and all, they must be bucking hard for a sell. I would just look around the lot with what they have and try them on for size. then pull trigger on something you like, not the sales person. When I went shopping, I went to a few dealers and found first few not wanting to take the time to talk. The dealer I bought from actaully took the time to listen to what I had to say and then showed my options. Then I reported to SWMBO and gave her the report and we went back to dealer I liked. I don't have time to listen to bashing and I just tell them off when they try.
 
   / I'm getting a little disappointed with Kubota Dealers #7  
A while back there was a thread that dealt with this very subject. If you search for "Super Dealer" you will find it. I don't know where you are in NY but I have had great dealings with the dealers in the Albany area and also the Western NY.
 
   / I'm getting a little disappointed with Kubota Dealers
  • Thread Starter
#8  
A while back there was a thread that dealt with this very subject. If you search for "Super Dealer" you will find it. I don't know where you are in NY but I have had great dealings with the dealers in the Albany area and also the Western NY.

I am in the Albany area and all of my searching has been within about 30 miles of where I live in Rensselaer County. I've found several dealers to be excellent to deal with, attentive, patient, knowledgeable and eager to help out. Specifically I've been most impressed with Capital Tractor and Salem Farm Supply, Salem Farm Supply being the Case/IH AND Kubota dealership. Since I've never bought a tractor before though, I've been trying to do as I read in this forum and buy the dealer first and then the tractor. So when I get a dealer that just says all NH tractors are crap without any further explanation I feel hard pressed to want to start a business relationship with that person and ultimately trust him to keep my interests in mind. Now the MF dealer mentioned things like, "I think we have the best overall value, if not the lowest price. We use more steel in our tractors than other brands, etc. etc. With a Kubota you may not like having the brake pedals on the same side of the cab as the hydro pedal." He gave a benefit of his tractor over another brand without saying that the other brand is crap. That indicates that he is interested in me making an informed purchase instead of just rushing me through a sale. Same thing with Capital Tractor and Salem Farm Supply, they explained the strengths of their tractors over their competitors without resorting to name calling.

As for trying out tractors, it's one of the reasons why I've been to a number of dealerships. It seems like the vast majority of CUT's sold are still open station units and I am only looking for a cab model. Since a cab model often has a different feel than its open station brother I want to try the actual tractor that I'm going to buy and that's why I go to a number of different dealers to try them all. For example one dealer had a JD 3720 cab model but not a 4320 cab model, while another had a 4520 cab model but not a 3720 cab model so I went to both places to try them out. I feel very strongly that what will probably make up my mind on what tractor to buy is the placement of controls on one model vs. another. I'll probably end up with the one that has the most controls in the place where they feel "just right" to me. I've actually made up a spreadsheet of all the tractors that I've considered and included their relevant stats (HP, FEL capacity, hydraulic output, etc.) and prices. Upon evaluating the spreadsheet there just doesn't seem to be one tractor that stand out as doing everything the best or even one that is just such a better value than the rest. So it leaves me with the onerous task of trying them all out to see which one feels "just right".

Oh, and I don't feel empty inside if a dealer doesn't give me a hug, although I do still place a bit of weight behind a man who will look me square in the eye when he shakes my hand. I just don't care for someone who makes a claim but has no factual basis to back it up. As a cop I've got a pretty finely tuned BS detector and when it starts going off, I wonder how good a dealer is going to be down the road.
 
   / I'm getting a little disappointed with Kubota Dealers #9  
I think you need to change the title to "I'm getting a little disappointed with my Kubota dealers". You haven't telked to all of them. I believe there are as many good Kubota dealers as any other brand and I think there are as many bad Kubota dealers as any other brand. Same with car dealers or any business selling high ticket items. Some idiots believe you sell by convincing the customer that everything is bad but what they sell which is insulting to any customer. I guess this is another reason Barlows and Messicks are selling so many tractors around the country. Customers dissatisfied with their local dealer for different reasons. When these sorry dealerships close, who's fault is it? Their own.
 
   / I'm getting a little disappointed with Kubota Dealers
  • Thread Starter
#10  
I think you need to change the title to "I'm getting a little disappointed with my Kubota dealers". You haven't telked to all of them. I believe there are as many good Kubota dealers as any other brand and I think there are as many bad Kubota dealers as any other brand. Same with car dealers or any business selling high ticket items. Some idiots believe you sell by convincing the customer that everything is bad but what they sell which is insulting to any customer. I guess this is another reason Barlows and Messicks are selling so many tractors around the country. Customers dissatisfied with their local dealer for different reasons. When these sorry dealerships close, who's fault is it? Their own.

Excellent point. In fact Salem Farm Supply which sells Case/IH and Kubota was excellent to deal with, so it's certainly not all Kubota dealers. The dealers that I've been unimpressed with are the 2 who sell only Kubota.

Also an excellent point about Barlows and Messicks. I've been in touch with Barlows about some pricing and Brady Barlow was very curteous and friendly, as well as having an excellent price. Although I like to support my local economy when I can if out of area dealers like Barlows and Messicks continue to price their units 10% below local dealers, then there's a very good chance that I'll be taking a long drive in the not too distant future to do business with them. 10% is a chunk of money on an almost $40k tractor.
 

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