gc2600 repair options

[ozley]

I'll give some props here to KingsEquip. They were not named, but came forward in a very public way with information, explanation, etc. It appears as it qualified individuals/companies were involved, ensuring the repair was high quality. I might of asked for something in writing guaranteeing the quality of the repair, such that if the frame were to bend/break at the weld location in the future (past the standard warranty period), the repair costs would be covered. Details. Things went bad when they (admittedly) did not contact the customer about the repair method, and I can understand being angry about this. Thinking about it more though, if the repair is being paid for under warranty, you don't always have a choice...MF approves the repair method (and cost) , not the customer. But again, the customer should have been given the opportunity to approve of the repair method, or argue for something different. MF may have said no to the more expensive option, but you never got to that point.

Did MF approved the way the repair was done by cutting the frame.

 

[Fiziksgeek]

I took the excerpt from KingsEquip post to mean that Massey agreed to pay for the parts and labor for the proposed repair method. Good question though, and would be a game changer if KingEquip was billing Massey for the proper repair and then taking shortcuts, and pocketing the difference...

Did MF approved the way the repair was done by cutting the frame.

It was quite clear to us what had happened to the tractor but we went to battle for the customer and Agco agreed to order the parts needed, repair the unit and it would be covered.

 

[novagc]

I said I wouldn't reply to this thread but I feel it's important to explain, in no way do I think kings equipment was trying to deceive me or anyone, I honestly believe they thought and do think the job was done very well,
From the time I started this thread to not it was to gather information about the procedure, I do nort have enough experience in welding to say it's good or not, but I do know the over all situation is extremely frustrating, and I needed more input to help me form a more accurate opinion. Either good or bad,
I understand why they would do the repair this way, I also think they did have my best intentions in mind
But I think the whole situation could of been handled better by all parties involved, the part I have trouble with is after the fact, trying to get a professional opinion, some thing to make me feel better, I wasn't looking for an excuse to cause a problem, but one to help me get the tractor home it's been in the shop for 3.5 weeks

please don't confuse my disappointment for anger, because at the end of the day it's just a tractor, it's just money it is not a hurt loved one, so the world will keep turning and I just have a few decisions to make about it...
Thank you to all those who replied

 

[AxleHub]

I said I wouldn't reply to this thread but I feel it's important to explain, in no way do I think kings equipment was trying to deceive me or anyone, I honestly believe they thought and do think the job was done very well,
From the time I started this thread to not it was to gather information about the procedure, I do nort have enough experience in welding to say it's good or not, but I do know the over all situation is extremely frustrating, and I needed more input to help me form a more accurate opinion. Either good or bad,
I understand why they would do the repair this way, I also think they did have my best intentions in mind
But I think the whole situation could of been handled better by all parties involved, the part I have trouble with is after the fact, trying to get a professional opinion, some thing to make me feel better, I wasn't looking for an excuse to cause a problem, but one to help me get the tractor home it's been in the shop for 3.5 weeks

please don't confuse my disappointment for anger, because at the end of the day it's just a tractor, it's just money it is not a hurt loved one, so the world will keep turning and I just have a few decisions to make about it...
Thank you to all those who replied

Greetings Novac,

Well said on your part. However, painful experiences without new learning or awareness is not a good thing. Thats exactly why I asked your dealers (by my recent post) . . what have they learned or what would they do differently. Same is true for you. "Improving" and new learning is what turns experience into wisdom and helps eliminate replication of negative incidents.

 

[KingsEquip]

Greetings KingsEquip,

You don't know me and I don't know you. I've spent more than 3 decades as a dealer of technology equipment and consulting efforts with customers. I'm also a Massey tractor (GC1715) owner.

I've noted you spent considerable effort to detail and explain your technical efforts to us and also your current effort to communicate with your customer.

But its my experience that while technical skills is an important part of a good business effort . . several other skills are equally important in order to have the opportunities to apply those technical skills.

In your recent post you indicate your partnering dealer agreed with all your efforts in this situation. That sounds fine . . however if I were a new prospect familiar with the situation . . I'd want to

1. ask all three involved parties (you, other dealer, and customer) . . what do each of you think you could have done better to have avoided this situation to start with?

2. What would you plan on doing in the future (dealer1 and dealer2) to improve and avoid a reoccurance with another customer ?

If I were a prospect and I liked Massey product I'd like to think this type of thing had some learning lessons and improvements that can or have already been made by customer, dealer1, and dealer2.

I might have ideas . . but that isn't the point. What are yours?

Thank you for your response.

1. The only thing we feel we should have done was to discuss with the customer our method for repairing his tractor. We should have laid out the options of A) 30 hours of labour vs B) 5 hours of labour. But at this point, we still did not know if warranty would be approved based on the repair needed. So, yes, we should have laid the options out. But we still stand by what we did to repair it and feel strongly that we would repair another unit the same way if ever needed.

2. I think number 1 pretty well answers number 2 as well. If not, send me another question and I will answer the best I feel I can.

Thanks.

 

[KingsEquip]

Did MF approved the way the repair was done by cutting the frame.

Massey Ferguson approved to fix the job based on our wording of what may have happened. This was after we had already disassembled the tractor the way we saw fit. Remember at the time of deciding to disassemble or not, there was no guarantees on whether it would be covered or not. It was not until it was apart and pictures sent to MF that we got the word that it would be covered. I believe if we had of presented the case in a different scenario, than it would have been rejected. We may not even see this thread if that were the case, because than we would be praised for saving 25 hours of labour (or whatever the math equals)...

 

[KingsEquip]

I took the excerpt from KingsEquip post to mean that Massey agreed to pay for the parts and labor for the proposed repair method. Good question though, and would be a game changer if KingEquip was billing Massey for the proper repair and then taking shortcuts, and pocketing the difference...

The warranty scenario was presented to Agco with the favoritism to the customer to help him out. In all rights, it is obvious to us that it most likely was not a part failure but an operator error. The customer told us the wheels were not turning when rear diff lock engaged. We can only trust the operator. The parts may say and show different. However, we presented the case to MF based on what the customer told us.

MF's warranty is different than most. I do not directly see the bills or settlements so I can only say what I have been told. MF does not flat rate jobs like most manufacturers. They work with the dealer to replace the cost that the warranty job costs the dealer. So the 5 or so hours of labour that it took us to do the job were charged on the workorder and than sent to MF. We should be reimbursed accordingly.

 

[KingsEquip]

I said I wouldn't reply to this thread but I feel it's important to explain, in no way do I think kings equipment was trying to deceive me or anyone, I honestly believe they thought and do think the job was done very well,
From the time I started this thread to not it was to gather information about the procedure, I do nort have enough experience in welding to say it's good or not, but I do know the over all situation is extremely frustrating, and I needed more input to help me form a more accurate opinion. Either good or bad,
I understand why they would do the repair this way, I also think they did have my best intentions in mind
But I think the whole situation could of been handled better by all parties involved, the part I have trouble with is after the fact, trying to get a professional opinion, some thing to make me feel better, I wasn't looking for an excuse to cause a problem, but one to help me get the tractor home it's been in the shop for 3.5 weeks

please don't confuse my disappointment for anger, because at the end of the day it's just a tractor, it's just money it is not a hurt loved one, so the world will keep turning and I just have a few decisions to make about it...
Thank you to all those who replied

The only issue we had is that we felt we were being run down with our quality of work. We decided to repair the unit the way we saw fit. If we had another case, we would do the same. Maybe we should have asked your opinion first. We were trying to help you out in case the warranty was not covered. We also felt like the complete details of the repair and timeline was not made clear to the general public to talk on. Therefore, their opinions could be swayed based on the fact that they did not know everything was going on.

I thought our opinion would be professional enough to reason with why we did the job this way. We did have other professional opinions including the hired licensed welder, the local welding shop and afterwards the agreement with your original dealer. I assume now, this should be enough professional opinion.

Your tractor will be delivered tomorrow to your doorstep. Our shop is small, and we are busy. We have been backed up for the last month with retails, pdi's and our customer's work. Not to say you aren't our customer, but your tractor did not come from us. When a customer who has purchased 6 tractors from us and relies on them daily for dairy or orchard income, they do get pushed to the top of the waiting list. We do have other customer's, which we have sold to, that are still waiting on repairs out in the field and in the shop. Last week alone, 4 retails were delivered which had waited weeks/months for their units. You and your tractor aren't an ant to us, but neither are you the king. We tried to fit you in as soon as possible. It did take a week plus for parts to even arrive too.

Hopefully you will be happy with the final product and don't have any further issues. If your frame has issues in the future, please contact us directly via phone instead of an online forum and we will take care of it at no charge. If you trade it in elsewhere, than that is fine too. I will wish you good luck with the other good dealers in the area. I am sure every dealer has made these same type of choices. Only some come out to the public.

I hope that we have not seemed to slander the customer or MF or any parties involved. We have tried to be as level headed and honest as possible. We stand by our decision to repair the unit this way, and would repair another one the same way if needed.

Thanks again for all opinions. It is nice to have a normal feeling conversation online compared to just a bunch of bickering and whining.

 

[AxleHub]

MF's warranty is different than most. I do not directly see the bills or settlements so I can only say what I have been told. MF does not flat rate jobs like most manufacturers. They work with the dealer to replace the cost that the warranty job costs the dealer. So the 5 or so hours of labour that it took us to do the job were charged on the workorder and than sent to MF. We should be reimbursed accordingly.

If the normal MF approved method of warranty work on this activity is 30 hours labor and your submission is for 5 labor hours . . . Isn't that going to be a glaring contradiction and create MF questions etc. Etc.

 

[Gator6x4]

If the normal MF approved method of warranty work on this activity is 30 hours labor and your submission is for 5 labor hours . . . Isn't that going to be a glaring contradiction and create MF questions etc. Etc.

Maybe MF will look at the repair photos and change the repair procedure for a defect such as the one experienced. I thought the repair looked excellent and stronger than original. I really liked the plate in my opinion a very neat and professional repair. I do think if a discussion had occurred prior to the repair outlining the repair procedure a different outcome would have been realized.