Kubota dealer is really starting to piss me off

[Alan L.]

If its not a deal I'd just leave the tractor there, tell them the deal is off, get my check back, and go down the street to another color.

 

[jokergerm]

I guess I am a nice guy and like to give people the benefit of the doubt.

I know what it's like to run a business and have stupid employees so I tend to be more forgiving than I should be and its a small town I Dont want to get a bad rep over this

However I am going to put my foot down. If its not fixed and new valve working smoothly I am walking away next Friday. That gives them 8 more days to get **** figured out

 

[rScotty]

You're going to have a relationship with this dealer and Kubota in general for the whole time you own one of their products. If you're not happy with them now, it's not going to get any better. When you need warranty service, or parts, or on-site repairs, what's it going to be like then ??

Chilly, that's exactly what I thought when I bought each new tractor - roughly one a decade for the last 50 years. But looking back on those deals I now realize I was mistaken.

Tractors last a long time, the need for service of any kind is minimal, and its been my experience that tractor brands are quite a bit more durable than are tractor dealers. And the personality of each new dealership varies.

So..... going on my experience, by the time he needs service, parts, or repairs, the dealership he bought the tractor from is more than likely going to be history or under new ownership anyway. I'd go more on the reputation of the brand than the dealer.
rScotty

 

[Chilly807]

Chilly, that's exactly what I thought when I bought each new tractor - roughly one a decade for the last 50 years. But looking back on those deals I now realize I was mistaken.

Tractors last a long time, the need for service of any kind is minimal, and its been my experience that tractor brands are quite a bit more durable than are tractor dealers. And the personality of each new dealership varies.

So..... going on my experience, by the time he needs service, parts, or repairs, the dealership he bought the tractor from is more than likely going to be history or under new ownership anyway. I'd go more on the reputation of the brand than the dealer.
rScotty

I'm going to argue the point a little. Let's say the dealer has a poor record with customer satisfaction, and you're not happy with the product up front, as the joker seems to be. So, you've got two strikes against you before you even take a swing at the ball.

Now let's look at my situation. I've got a slightly less than 2 year old Kubota that's had minor issues during that time. I've had a loader cylinder seal replaced under warranty, and had the tractor split to rectify a sticking clutch spline, also under warranty. Both repairs took less than a week, the loader seal was overnight as I recall. I consider the split to be major "surgery". Both repairs were flawless.

I've been happy with this dealer from day One and I like the tractor overall, though the 3 point is a wart on it's nose. I'd buy another Kubota tomorrow, although I'd look closer at Deere and others too. Most importantly to me, based on my experience with this one, I'd try to stay with the same dealer if it was possible. Another member here, kcender, has had some issues with his tractor that both the same dealer and Kubota have worked to resolve, although I don't know if that one's finished yet.

My point is, why not give yourself the best chance in the beginning, at least start off with a dealer you trust and a machine you like? Often initial problems will crop up in the first year or two, under warranty usually. Most companies will require you to have the tractor repaired by a factory trained dealer.

The dealer you like may be gone by the time you have these issues, if you ever do, but they may still be there too. Mine's been there for over 30 years, they must be doing something right.

Sean

 

[rScotty]

I'm going to argue the point a little.

......repairs were flawless.

I've been happy with this dealer from day One Most importantly to me, based on my experience with this one, I'd try to stay with the same dealer if it was possible.

My point is, why not give yourself the best chance in the beginning, at least start off with a dealer you trust and a machine you like?

The dealer you like may be gone by the time you have these issues, if you ever do, but they may still be there too. Mine's been there for over 30 years, they must be doing something right.
Sean

Sean, I agree in that is exactly how I wish the world worked. And it is how I've treated various dealers through the years. Only to find that it is the dealer that seems to change more often than I do. So I got to thinking about what was wrong with the way I was doing business and came up with the conclusion that I am working in an out-of-date world colored more by my wishes of how it worked than how it actually does.

What I am saying is that I grew up in an era where the dealer was the most important thing, but am coming to the realization that today is the world of corporate trained mechanics, corporate procedures, corporate financing, corporate warranty, and corporate sales promotions. When I grew up, ALL of these things were handled locally by the dealer with help from the factory and his local bank but all these things were basically the local dealer's decisions to make. He bought his own tractors, floor-planned and sold them, and paid to train his own mechanics...on and on. Now these decisions are more commonly made above his level by the company that manufactures the brand that he sells.

So why should I care about the dealer other than he is the representative of corporate policy?

I didn't make the world change in this way, I just try to keep a good attitude while working with reality instead of wishes.
rScotty

 

[crazyal]

I can see both your points. Corp doesn't tell a dealer to drive out and pick up your tractor for free because it broke. Corp doesn't tell a dealer to give someone a discount at the parts counter because they've been a loyal customer.

But more and more dealers are becoming like the big box stores, sell it cheap and ship it out the door and move on to the next sale. Stock the parts Kubota thinks you should have on hand and sell them for the list price. Also sell as many lines as you can so you have all the bases covered.

Around me I have some of both. But when the bottom line price is what matters the most to some buyers it really cuts out a lot of what a good dealer can offer for after the sale support.

 

[MessickFarmEqu]

But when the bottom line price is what matters the most to some buyers it really cuts out a lot of what a good dealer can offer for after the sale support.

Amen.

 

[rScotty]

Originally Posted by crazyal
But when the bottom line price is what matters the most to some buyers it really cuts out a lot of what a good dealer can offer for after the sale support.

I disagree. A good dealer can offer the buyer a lot of things that cost him nothing but time. That's a big part of how businesses are built.
rScotty

 

[beppington]

Originally Posted by crazyal
But when the bottom line price is what matters the most to some buyers it really cuts out a lot of what a good dealer can offer for after the sale support.

I disagree. A good dealer can offer the buyer a lot of things that cost him nothing but time. That's a big part of how businesses are built.
rScotty

Time is money? Or so I have heard.

 

[rScotty]

Time is money? Or so I have heard.

I'd rather say that time is money IF you can get paid for it today. Otherwise, about the best you can do is use the time to build up value in the future.

Here's an example of the point I'm trying to make.....Suppose that I'm part of a group that evaluates interns for engineering jobs in industry. It a program where college seniors are hired for half a year at half time and half wages and given about half the responsibility for some project. The goal is to get the new grads some experience, and also to give businesses a chance to see how these prospective employees do at a real job.

It's a situation where time spent today might be valuable sometime in the future, but time spent today sure doesn't equal money today. In fact, they couldn't be much farther apart from each other. But it seems to me that the way in which an intern builds himself into a valued employee is a lot like how a small business builds itself into a bigger business.
rScotty