3550 PST Two Year Eval

[tbzep]

I found him on another forum and he finally got resolution with his tractor. It was a bad connection on a harness plug at the ECM.

Was it as simple as squirting some De-oxit on the connectors and throwing on some dielectric grease or did they have to replace the harness?

 

[mcfarmall]

Was it as simple as squirting some De-oxit on the connectors and throwing on some dielectric grease or did they have to replace the harness?

If I remember correctly, the female component of the harness connector was not making good contact with the male spade lugs on the ECM. The other post was on a firewood or forestry forum that I found after doing a google search of Mahindra 3550 problems. Sorry I can't be much more specific than that.

 

[JerryK]

If I remember correctly, the female component of the harness connector was not making good contact with the male spade lugs on the ECM. The other post was on a firewood or forestry forum that I found after doing a google search of Mahindra 3550 problems. Sorry I can't be much more specific than that.

More female problems, the story of my life.......... [ sniff, sniff-sniff ]

 

[kgoeke]

1. Whatever was used to lube the shuttle lever hates cold weather. When it's below freezing, I can barely move it...to the point I'm worried about breaking something. I've lubed it with oil when above freezing, hoping that it would wash away whatever is getting so stiff. No joy so far. It's like butter when the temps are above freezing.

2. Those light pods mounted on the ROPS are targets for tree limbs. They stay busted. I've epoxied them back together only to get 'em smacked down again. Buying new pods is out of the question. Evidently they are made of platinum instead of plastic. I've come to the point that I'm just going to remove the lights compeletely this spring. I've been thinking about adding LED's to the inside of the FEL (for protection) and cross the beams (not Proton Pack streams, so I think it's safe) to get some peripheral lighting.


I have a 2012 5035 and have had both of these issues. My PST lever is a bear in the cold. I guess Mahindra did not do anything to address that when they went to the 3550. If anyone has a solution to this I would be all ears.

Zip ties work pretty well to hold the broken light pods onto the ROPS. If you use black ones you can hardly tell they are there.

The other issue I have had was with the joystick for the FEL. Plastic part internally that slides inside the housing to actuate the cables to control the valve broke off and lost tilt and lower functions. Had to replace the entire joystick at $475 plus labor. Local dealer said it was a pretty common issue. I might suggest removing the boot and spraying a lubricant on these parts to help increase their life.

 

[swampy6]

Concerning the lube in cold weather, try Fluid Film. I have the 4540 Mahindra and I used the Fluid Film on the parking brake which was hard to work but not since I sprayed it.

The Fluid Film is good for many uses on your tractor, I think that we picked ours up at Lowes.

 

[jmh1783]

Nice review. I'm at a year and a half on my 2555 and have some similar comments. I like my R4s. They are a compromise. I've been able to grind out a stump next to the house without leaving a permanent record of my passing in the lawn. However in the snow I've had to resort to 4wd and diff lock at times to get up the gravel driveway from the barn.

My rear tires are loaded but I dont't try to pick up much without something on the back. My best choice is a 7 foot finish mower that weights 850 lbs but it it's length is a problem in tight spaces. I have plans to make a concrete ballast.

I hear you on sitting up high. Since I'm not working crops I'd prefer if the entire tractor were closer to the ground. It would help stability on hills.

Seat height is a problem for me. I'm a big guy but even with the seat all the way back, my legs still felt cramped like I was sitting a a short stool. I added a pair of 2x4s as spacers for the seat bolts (longer bolts) which helps.

I also worry about all the stuff hanging around under the tractor. I don't work in the woods much but when I do I have to be very careful. There was a thread here where a guy had the underside of his tractor armored. Looked pretty cool but I can't really justify that.

Thumbs up on Mahindra's tier IV solution. I always run it above 2000 and at full pto when using an implement so that it can do its job. It seems pretty reasonable on diesel.

Good luck with your 3550!

 

[MatHaas]

Thanks for the review and glad to hear everything is working relatively well.

I just purchased a 2017 3550 PST myself (8 hrs so far) after doing a good amount of research and looking at other manufacturers comparable models.

I'm in the process of fabricating the subframe mount for a bradco 509 backhoe and looking forward to putting it to some serious use. Then I'll do an introduction write up and show some pics.

I will say the only real gripe i have so far is the range selection. Sometimes its a little finicky to get in to low, and like aforementioned, medium and high separation is not well differentiated (as opposed to the 4 speed trans, which is a nice, notchy selection, which i love).

I change ranges with the clutch depressed, shuttle in neutral, trans in neutral, and then work the range lever. I've found if it doesn't go right in, something subtle like putting the trans in 1st then trying the range box again gets it to go in (getting things to slightly move in the gear boxes so it lines up nicely). Some old/junky transfer cases on trucks/suvs are the same way.

I plan to inspect the linkage geometry of the range lever to the range box to see if something can be improved. Who knows. Just as long as it doesn't grind. I drove a used 3550 PST with 104 hrs that hated to have the range box shifted, and ground, which i think was partially from poor operation. But i have my fingers crossed on my unit.

Best of luck with your rig!

-Haas

 

[Deleted member 314313]

Good review. Thanks. Like the OP I have spent most my time on classic Iron too.
50+ Acres half woodland. Have 129hrs on the 2016 3550 PST T4 MFWD. w/loader. INDUS tires are loaded. No traction problems.
Light pod mounting location needs to change. Limbs love them here too.
Working on a skid plate. Around 49+ hrs backed over a privet hedge "spear" which found it's way to the only double right angle on the fuel tank and promptly poked a hole in it. Had tank replaced along with the 50hr service. Apparently they didn't bleed the air from the fuel lines, didn't change the Hydraulic and Trans suction oil filter during the 50hrs service. Dealer claimed they changed it to the 100hr service, and they apparently didn't torque the front tire lug bolts to spec. after removal. The ECU or ECM got a brain fart, it had to be reflashed. Other day front tire fell off, the one they didn't torque stripping the hub spindle threads and wallowed the wheel rim. Mahindra is fixing it. Got to say this tractor is by far the one of the best working tractors I have had the pleasure of owning and operating. It's a beast. I still love classic Iron, however I can accomplish so much more in far less time with this Big Red monster. Glad I got it.

 

[deserteagle71]

I've actually had it just a bit over two years, but here's the skinny on my 3550 PST. I am not seeking solutions to my issues. It's just an honest review of a modern tractor after spending my whole life on classic iron.


8. How the heck have I lived and worked for so long with FEL-less tractors? That thing is so versatile it ain't funny. Rescue a stuck heifer, dress a deer, pull up posts, clear thickets, trim trees, (shhhh, don't tell OSHA). You name it...and then there's the traditional dirt moving and hay spear stuff.

9. All the modern tractors have you sitting on top, more or less on a platform. With my old 8N and 861, you straddled the drive train, lowered your CG, use your legs to absorb some shock when needed, and allowed you to keep your head from being the main target for every human hating tree limb on the planet. I'm not fond of sitting way up on top of the tractor.

I hear you on the front end loader. Seems like I find something every day I have to use it for. When I bought my Kubota this past winter my intentions were to sell the old John Deere. But I remove the FEL from the Kubota when mowing - visibility problems, and the ground is just so uneven - so I kept the John Deere and use its FEL.

Regarding sitting on a "platform" - I mow about 50 acres of desert every summer, sometimes more than once. The terrain is so rough (mainly due to ground squirrel mounds/burrows) that the tractor is constantly tossing around. There's times when the ground just collapses (burrows under the ground) under the tires on one side or the other that the tractor drops so far it feels like its going to roll. On the John Deere I mowed standing up and used my knees as a suspension component - just as a motorcross rider does. On the Kubota, I'm sitting in a cab way up high and the side-to-side motions going over rough ground are greatly amplified. No room to stand up. I hold on to the arm rests for dear life! I had expected that the much larger diameter tires on the Kubota would ride smoother over the terrain than did the John Deere but that has not proven to be the case. Sitting down low straddling the tractor makes a big difference! Still, I would not trade that cab for the world now! No more dust, no more biting bugs.

Excellent review of the Mahindra, by the way. I looked seriously at buying one but the nearest dealer was a couple hundred miles away.