Kubota B3350 tractor regeneration problems

TMR · Dec 12, 2015

Just curious if there is any level of comfort that the current/new version of the B3350 should now work w/o any issues??

OR should I stay away from the extra horse power and just get a 2650. I anticipate quite moderate hours of use BUT I will want to brush hog and am very willing to purchase the B3350 for the extra 3 pt hitch HP.

I would appreciate any thoughts on the CURRENT regeneration status of NEW B3350 vin#s??? Thanks...TMR

TMR · Dec 12, 2015

Duplicate

TMR · Dec 13, 2015

Not many B3350 owners?

Perhaps the extra three point horsepower is not worth the extra $$$$s and the extra "regeneration" issues?

My thought is/was that the extra horsepower would be helpful in brush hogging thick weeds/grass as well as saplings and other ground brush. Possible use of ground engaging attachment to smooth out couple acres of field.

First tractor so a bit unsure of "needs" other than my years of reading on TBN.

Also, my use may be sporadic and may not be lots of hours...curious if the regen works better with lots of work?

Thanks...TomR

kuboman · Dec 13, 2015

I think it depends on how bad you want the hp. The emissions will at some point cause you trouble. There are no if's just when. If you plan on trading often then risk the more troublesome machine. There are plenty of good used machines without the emission garbage. For myself I have resigned myself to the used market until this mess gets sorted out. I give it a decade before it does. In the mean time the cost to the consumer will be staggering.

5030 · Dec 18, 2015

If you could only see the issues occuring with Tier 4 compliant Class 8 diesels, you'd be amazed. DPF cannisters failing, Urea injection system failures, ICU issues, the list goes on and on.

<My suggestion is purchase a Pre-Tier 4 engine and forgetaboutit.

One item owners don't realize that has to be replaced is the cannister and it won't be under warranty after the first time. The DPF canister is considered an expendable item, like an oil filter but costs a lot more.

5030 · Dec 18, 2015

If you could only see the issues occuring with Tier 4 compliant Class 8 diesels, you'd be amazed. DPF cannisters failing, Urea injection system failures, ICU issues, the list goes on and on.

<My suggestion is purchase a Pre-Tier 4 engine and forgetaboutit.

One item owners don't realize that has to be replaced is the cannister and it won't be under warranty after the first time. The DPF canister is considered an expendable item, like an oil filter but costs a lot more.

5030 · Dec 18, 2015

What is occuring is simply that in a pre-tier 4 engine, when you load the engine, the visible particulates exit the exhaust pipe (black smoke and soot). In a tier 4 compliant engine, the particulates are retained in the DPF filter and are burned at high temperature (regen) by a catalyist ( usually urea called DPF fluid). Those burned at high temperature soot particles are still retained in the substrate of the DPF filter and at some point they clog the filter media and the filter cannister has to be replaced with a new or reman one.

The burned soot particles contained in the substrate are considered a hazardous substance and have to be disposed of in an approved landfill and the cannister has to be purged of the particulates with a special (expensive) machine. The other issue we see arising is, in many cases, the cannister becomes unuseable because it's internally damaged during the regen cycles, necessitating a new cannister because the full one is no longer serviceable.

If I was to consider any Tier 4 compliant engine, I'd wait at least 5 years for the technology to catch up to the end use. It's not there today and because it isn't, you, as the consumer, get to pay for it, one way or another. JMO.

N White · Dec 27, 2015

I have a B3350 That had to have the whole system replaced at 57hrs and a month later it quit today
they keep calling it operator error but we have be doing everything that they want and the problem is still there

kuboman · Dec 27, 2015

The smaller engines are going to be plagued with problems until they come up with a different system. The small HP engines just do not generate enough heat when they are used the way most are. Hope for a delete if you want to keep it but I have my doubts that anyone will bother for such a small market.

5030 · Dec 28, 2015

kuboman said:
The smaller engines are going to be plagued with problems until they come up with a different system. The small HP engines just do not generate enough heat when they are used the way most are. Hope for a delete if you want to keep it but I have my doubts that anyone will bother for such a small market.

Exactly, puttering around with your shiny, carefully waxed little tractor won't generate enough heat for the catalyst to regen. It's not your fault or the manufacturers fault, it's the Tier 4 mandate (that I think is BS) at work. Big units that actually work (like mine) attain high enough temperatures to actually catalyize and burn off the particulates. I'd never have a Tier 4 tractor under 90 horsepower.

If you must have a little unit... Get yourself a big concrete weight and attach it to your drawbar and drag it around the backyard for a while and work the motor. It will regen then.