Buying Advice 40 hp-- which brand?

[GFirkus]

I came across a 2003 new holland tc45 with 880 hrs, canopy, loader, backhoe, and pallet forks. Looks like great condition from pictures. Is there any known major issues with this tractor. What痴 a decent price for the tractor in the upper Midwest?

 

[MiserableOldFart]

If you goal is something you can keep for 30 years then your best bet is to go with a brand/model that's popular and going to stick around.

Our Ford 1500 is almost 37 years old and despite being Ford/New Holland it's near impossible to find any parts from existing tractors much less new parts. 8N/TE-20/etc are easy because there's a following.

If I were you I'd probably lean towards JD, Kubota or *maybe* LS since they do NH as well.

My personal vote would be MX4800, doesn't have the bells and whistles that you see with the Grand L(which will help you when it comes to repair time) and a bit more utility oriented but similar specs. I say this as someone who just did the 40HP search and landed on a L4760.

Ah, there's the rub!! ALL the manufacturers keep models around for only a very short time. They don't want any "8n" situations where there are 20+ year old tractors of theirs with so many around that third parties can make money making and selling parts! They charge an arm and a leg for parts and make sure nobody else will ever make them. They want you trading in every 4-5 years.

I don't foresee many of the current crop of CUTs around in 30-50 years simply because the manufacturers don't want you doing that, and will make you or your heirs pay through the nose to do it. If I were looking to do what the OP wants to do, I'd probably be looking for a used Deere 110 TLB, but I'm biased toward smaller machines. And I'm still blown away that they stopped making that one.

 

[GirlWhoWantsTractor]

Good conversations going on here. The reason I want a ?0 hp is it seemed like some are on the low end of the larger frame size. I don稚 care to get to large as my property is all wooded. Maybe 2000lb is a little over kill for needed loader capacity. I figured that would cover anything I would ever need to lift around the house. Why do some of the 田heaper tractors have quite a bit higher ratings than the 渡ame brand ?

Different brands tend to have different "personalities." Some have more convenience features and electronic doo-dads but may be lighter on capacity (these tend to be a lot more expensive). Other brands are known for being simpler, but beefier and stronger. This is nice because it gives you choices.

 

[rScotty]

I came across a 2003 new holland tc45 with 880 hrs, canopy, loader, backhoe, and pallet forks. Looks like great condition from pictures. Is there any known major issues with this tractor. Whatç—´ a decent price for the tractor in the upper Midwest?

Well, if you own a '53 Allis and have been using it then you are the kind of guy that isn't scared off by niggling things like electrical fuse problems or safety switches shutting you down or filters plugging... A NH TC45 would be about the same overall machine as the JD3033 you've been renting, yes?

The only real knock on the TC45 I can see is they had a short model run - which is sort of offset by their being very popular and a lot of them sold. What does your local tractor dealer say about getting NH parts?

I did a search on the TBN New Holland site for TC45 and it brought up a formidable list of things. But as I got to looking at the types of problems people had with that model, they seemed fairly minor. Ask the seller where he goes for service. That might tell you a lot.

All in all, to this old timer iot seems worth a look. Especially so with those accessories. You can tell a whole lot about the way a person treats his equipment by the way he beats up a hoe or loader. Used machines are all about condition. I'd ask him why he is selling it, but hold off until you can sort of slip that into the conversation.
luck, rScotty

 

[GFirkus]

I came across a 2003 new holland tc45 with 880 hrs, canopy, loader, backhoe, and pallet forks. Looks like great condition from pictures. Is there any known major issues with this tractor. What痴 a decent price for the tractor in the upper Midwest?

Any ideas on a fair price for this?

 

[rScotty]

Any ideas on a fair price for this?

The more we know about the tractor the closer we can come to a fair price. Without knowing more, on a 15 year old tractor that I don't personally know & approaching 1000 hours I wouldn't offer more than 1/3 of the original price of the tractor and major attachments. If it was in excellent shedded condition from the original owner and with history and documents then I'd go in the region of half the original price.

My guess is the original price was around $30K. New Holland at the time was less expensive than other major brands.

And if it is in "used hard" or beat up condition I would simply pass.

You need some more information....
Things I'd ask: are you the original owner? If so, cCan you FAX/email me a copy of the original invoice? Which transmission does it have?
Do you keep records of when it was serviced or repaired? Does it come with the manuals? (owners, shop, & parts are often separate manuals)
Why are you selling it? Do you use it or is it loaned/or rented out? Is it an ex-rental? How does ithe engine sound? How does the tranny & gear pump sound? Power steering? Does it whine??
Does it go into & out of 4WD smoothly (most of them stick coming out). What shape are the tires & battery in?
Have you had any overheating problems?
What things are not working right? (there's always something even on new machines)
Remember to ask why he is selling it.

Personally I would never sell anything I wasn't comfortable buying at that price. And I expect the same courtesy from any rural person. Do you get that sense of fairplay from the seller?
And finally, if the person is not comfortable with answering any of these questions then I'd simply thank him and give it a pass.
rScotty