3550 PST Two Year Eval

[tbzep]

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.

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.

3. Temperature gauge quit working. I'll get around to troubleshooting it one of these days.

4. My OBD scan tool will not reset the maintenance indicator. I'm tired of seeing the little wrench flashing.

5. R4 tires are fun in the heaved winter mud and manure. I pretty much drive sideways on mild slopes with or without a bale of hay.

6. 4WD is a must when putting out large round bales. I don't have room in the barn to maneuver with the bush hog attached, and have near zero traction with the rear tires without its added weight. I'm pretty much in front wheel drive. And to think, the biggest reason I got the Mahindra was because it was considerably heavier than anything else in it's class and price range. I'd hate to see what those other light-weights would be like!

7. I've commented before that transmission/hydraulic filter maintenance is not the easiest to fool with. Thankfully, it doesn't have to be done often.

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.

10. Modern tractors (I sat on many brands/models before buying) are designed for somebody with legs about a foot shorter than mine. To steer comfortably and still have my feet at the pedals, I have to scoot the seat up and my knees are dang near under my armpits. To have comfortable legs, I have to scoot the seat back and lean forward like riding a Harley with ape hangers. I can't have it both ways. And, yes, the steering column is tilted as far back as I can get it. :/

11. When I crawl under the tractor there are hoses and crap sticking out everywhere. I'm amazed that I haven't torn something loose in the 2+ years of ownership. Crawl under an old classic Ford tractor and you see nothing but cast iron and big ole' bolt heads! Now that's a tractor that's ready for rough action! Bury it past the belly pan? No problem. Drag it out and get back to work! I'm betting other classic iron with green, red, or orange paint is the same way. Do that on a modern tractor and you'll probably be fixing stuff for a week before you can work it again.

12. I'm pleasantly surprised the DEF-less tier IV is still running clean and strong. While the barn isn't air tight, it is stuffy enough that I won't stay in there with the gas burner more than a couple minutes before it lets me know I'm stupid for being in there. The Mahindra burns so clean that I really have to pay attention to how long I'm in there with it because I don't notice the exhaust at all.

13. Coons love to walk on my tractor. Thankfully, they use the hay bales for bathrooms. I've got to get that trap set.

 

[jb1390]

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.

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.

3. Temperature gauge quit working. I'll get around to troubleshooting it one of these days.

4. My OBD scan tool will not reset the maintenance indicator. I'm tired of seeing the little wrench flashing.

5. R4 tires are fun in the heaved winter mud and manure. I pretty much drive sideways on mild slopes with or without a bale of hay.

6. 4WD is a must when putting out large round bales. I don't have room in the barn to maneuver with the bush hog attached, and have near zero traction with the rear tires without its added weight. I'm pretty much in front wheel drive. And to think, the biggest reason I got the Mahindra was because it was considerably heavier than anything else in it's class and price range. I'd hate to see what those other light-weights would be like!

7. I've commented before that transmission/hydraulic filter maintenance is not the easiest to fool with. Thankfully, it doesn't have to be done often.

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.

10. Modern tractors (I sat on many brands/models before buying) are designed for somebody with legs about a foot shorter than mine. To steer comfortably and still have my feet at the pedals, I have to scoot the seat up and my knees are dang near under my armpits. To have comfortable legs, I have to scoot the seat back and lean forward like riding a Harley with ape hangers. I can't have it both ways. And, yes, the steering column is tilted as far back as I can get it. :/

11. When I crawl under the tractor there are hoses and crap sticking out everywhere. I'm amazed that I haven't torn something loose in the 2+ years of ownership. Crawl under an old classic Ford tractor and you see nothing but cast iron and big ole' bolt heads! Now that's a tractor that's ready for rough action! Bury it past the belly pan? No problem. Drag it out and get back to work! I'm betting other classic iron with green, red, or orange paint is the same way. Do that on a modern tractor and you'll probably be fixing stuff for a week before you can work it again.

12. I'm pleasantly surprised the DEF-less tier IV is still running clean and strong. While the barn isn't air tight, it is stuffy enough that I won't stay in there with the gas burner more than a couple minutes before it lets me know I'm stupid for being in there. The Mahindra burns so clean that I really have to pay attention to how long I'm in there with it because I don't notice the exhaust at all.

13. Coons love to walk on my tractor. Thankfully, they use the hay bales for bathrooms. I've got to get that trap set.

One of these days I intend to do a thread with mods I've done to my 3550. I added a skid plate underneath mine - I too found some fragile parts under there. Luckily I got the plate in there before I broke anything that cost money to repair. I feel much more comfortable in the woods and over rocks with that plate installed. I'v also upgraded the lights. The original ones were only good as bug magnets, and blinding you if you looked behind you.....New ones are on the side of the loader, and underneath the sun shade in the front, and back.

You can reset the maintenance light with a fuse. It's really easy.

That would drive me nuts with the shuttle shift. Hope you can get that one solved at some point.

 

[OLV1071571]

Glad its still working out well for you. I have a 1 year old 3540 PST and its been great. Same complaints about back end lifting up but I suppose I will have that until I load the tires or get something heavier than my rear blade. The only complaint i would have would be around having refinements done in the loader hydraulics and range selection. The loader just doesn't have the finesse that i have experienced on some JD or Kubota tractors. My tractor just seems "sticky" ( everything is greased up and maintained. Its been like this since i got it). The range selection is not so clear when switching from High to Medium. The detentes could be a bit more intentional if that makes sense.

Anyways, I am glad i bought the 3540 and its pretty much met every need i have on the farm.

 

[mcfarmall]

Glad to hear the review(s). I'm leaning toward the 3550 PST when I pull the trigger so any reports, good or bad, are of interest to me.

 

[tbzep]

Glad to hear the review(s). I'm leaning toward the 3550 PST when I pull the trigger so any reports, good or bad, are of interest to me.

There is a long running thread on a 3550 that was a lemon. Some folks have added issues they've had with it on that thread.

 

[e5wd6114]

Best solution for the rear weight is load the tires with beet juice, add wheel weights and make your own compact weight box (weight behind the rear axle helps lift weight off the front axle, think seesaw). The front axles on 4wd tractors aren't designed to take the full torque and power of the tractor ( most are 40%-50%) so getting the *** down is essential for your front axle's longevity.

 

[jeff9366]

"Under the Mahindra there are hoses and crap sticking out everywhere. I'm amazed that I haven't torn something loose in the 2+ years of ownership.

Crawl under an old classic Ford tractor and you see nothing but cast iron and big ole' bolt heads!"



I like your perspective on your contemporary Mahindra relative to old Fords.

 

[redobbin]

Like most mechanized tools/toys it is always good to see the plain truth about them. I have had my 4035 HST for just over five years. It has performed very well and always accomplished every task I have handed except one stump that will be dealt with this spring.
I have changed over the type of grease I use for some areas that has a wider temperature range and been very pleased. Also experienced the issues with the lights mounted on the outside of the ROPS, shattering one of them. It has been replaced and I am trimming up the tree limbs in and along the meadow.
My tires are loaded so I have not had an issue with the rear lifting other than one time when unloading a pallet of rock from a flatbed.
Still amazes me every time I push a large tree over and then work it up in the ground and just backfill where the stump was.
I have found many of the elctrical connections neeed to be cleaned and tightened up almost from day one. Most of them are done at this point. Working to determine if my intake heater relay timer is dead (terribly expensive in my mind).
Clean, tighten and lube - just normal things. I could see a skid plate as a beneficial addition.
Only real gripe is the paint fades badly - it is a constant battle.

 

[tbzep]

My tires are loaded so I have not had an issue with the rear lifting other than one time when unloading a pallet of rock from a flatbed.

My tires are loaded too.
BTW, they don't lift off the ground with the bale, there is just so much weight transfer that they have no traction at all.

 

[mcfarmall]

There is a long running thread on a 3550 that was a lemon. Some folks have added issues they've had with it on that thread.

I've been following the issues with gasifier. 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. Dealer was able to fix it and his 3550 has been running fine and keeping him happy since.

Any mechanical piece of equipment is going to have problems and to me the biggest decision factor is what kind of support (or lack thereof) will I get from the dealer after the sale.

 

[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.