I have a 88' 448. It's a pretty good tractor but after 500hrs its been a money pit about every 50hrs. I typically put 70-100 hrs on it a year depending how much I use it in the winter. I mow around 3 acres, plenty of yard/garden chores and a 600ft driveway to clear in the winter
The dealer parts are very expensive. I've resorted to many other outlets, which means I usally do some research prior to getting the parts I need to save some money.
I agree with the Kubota guy. If you can aford it, buy it. Its a much better tractor. Also the 400 series JD is much better too. They have dif-lock on the rear ends and many modern features that make them more desiable. Ingersoll rarely updates theirs.
Attaching the mower deck is a P.I.T.A. About 15-20 min. There are for hitch points that need pins & keys, not to mention the separate front mount part.
Mine has a 60" deck that cuts very good once I swaped a smaller drive pulley onto it (higher blade speed). The onan engine is the best part of the tractor. It supplies plenty of power even at 18hp.
The rest is a diary of my tractor, I know its long winded but see for yourself.
 @400 hrs had to replace the timing belts for the second time. Even when tensioned properly the mounting cover screws wear the backside of the belts through when the belt vibrates or slaps under load. Fix: Weld in carriage bolts, so the stud sticks up and slot the end of the covers. Now the covers are attached with ¼-20 nuts & washers. After 360hrs of use they haven’t needed replacing and the belts still look perfect. Ingersoll cost for timing belts $69 ea. I bought them through Grainger for $27 each, but had to wait a day for delivery.
 @450 hrs. 2 Steering tie rods. One had broken away, and one of the others was badly worn. $45?
 @500 hrs. New brake band. $35. Later on found the part in Northern tool for less than $12.
 @ 600 hrs: New mower deck linkage, all the pivot points where severely worn, causing it to rattle quite a bit. $85, some welding and time in the machine shop at work, also made stainless steel bushings for the pivot points.
 @767 hrs. Added a Parker hydraulic filter, the standard one seemed rather undersized and wasn’t eaisly retorfited to 1” return line hose because of the 3/8” npt fittings.
 @ 690 hrs: New power take of clutch (pads, springs and bearings), pads were completely worn, some of the bearings were “notchy feeling”. ($170) If my lawn didn’t need mowing immediately I would have replaced the clutch with a higher HP rated Ogura mag clutch for about the same price. But Ogura had a four-week lead-time.
 @ 720 hrs: New voltage regulator, original one was no longer charging. ($70 Ingersoll, $48 Stens @ small engine repair shop)
 @ 740hrs: New outer axle shaft and bearings on 60” mowing deck, due to a weld failure at the blade mounting to the shaft, (didn’t hit anything $135).
 @ 750 hrs: Machined a new front center axle pivot shaft and had to weld on new bushings – steering was very sloppy due to worn shaft and frame bushings. (4-5hrs of my time)
 @ 767 hrs: New hydraulic pump & coupler. Cause: over presuization of the pump caused it to stop which in turn caused the keyway to become smeared on the shaft from the engine still running. Ingersoll cost $540 for the pump & $226 for coupling set, totaling $766. I bought the standard D27 Parker pump new for $140 and swapped the rear covers. I purchased the same 099 Lovejoy coupling/insert from Northern Tool for $15.98 and paid $6.00 for shipping & handling. Totaling $162. I noticed Parker classifies this is an inexpensive pump, it’s not rated for over 3000 rpm and over 2000 psi, yet it typically operates at 3600 rpm and 2250 psi. I realize motor oil is better fluid medium than hydraulic fluid, but this is certainly not an over-specified pump like I would expect in a robust design.
 @ 767hrs: New mid lift cylinder. The mounting pin was pushed out through the housing sleeve. Cause: Over presuizatoin of the lift circuit – due to rubber particulate build up in the relief valve which prevented it from relieving any pressure. A filter as on the new tractors would have prevented this buildup. Also the pin should be located farther up the sleeve or reinforcements welded on the backside. ($160) In my engineering opinion this component should never have to be replaced and it’s awfully expensive for such an inexpensive design.
