kioti v kubota

Dargo · Sep 13, 2005

Have you ever compared Hyundai with Honda vehicles? I think what you are doing here is the same thing with tractors. Hyundai wanted some of Honda's market share and have been working towards that goal. I think you have the same thing with Kioti wanting some of Kubota's market share. I think there are a lot of similarities of a Korean company modeling themselves after a successful Japanese company. What is your take on how successful they are at that goal? I'd say the key to your decision would lie in that answer.

MossRoad · Sep 13, 2005

No one going to welcome this person to TBN??

Welcome to TBN! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

rico304 · Sep 13, 2005

WELCOME ROLLER!

MossRoad, I apologize for not being polite. The question was a little bit loaded and made me really focus on my wording. haha. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
Li'l ole me don't want no trouble /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

rockyridgefarm · Sep 13, 2005

Wait - You mean Kioti and Kubota are DIFFERENT companies?!!! /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

/forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

psuedofarmer · Sep 13, 2005

<font color="blue"> will also say that one of the manufacturers ought to offer their tractors in a optional Lemon Yellow color for those tractors that seem to have more than there share of manufacturing defects and problems.</font>

didn't realize Kubota had THAT many problems.. /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

own a DK55 (13 months with 400+ hrs). as others pointed out, dealer availability is crucial, as is testing comparable machines to determine which one your more comfortable with.

i settled on kioti after a few years of research. i also had the luck of having neighbors who owned each of the tractors i was looking at, so i was able to drive them around my farm in real-world applications (for my use). in the end, i created a matrix that included everything about the 2 tractors i was looking at: hydro pump capacity, etc.

the DK55 was considerably less $ than the comparable cab model 'bota.

and while i was VERY concerned about reliability, it turned out that my concerns were unfounded: no problems to report in 400+ hours of new-user abuse.

good luck.

pf

todson · Sep 15, 2005

Folks, being new, its taken me a while to navigate to where my posted appeared on this website. That found, I was delighted to see your thoughtful responses and I thank you for taking your time to write them. I took another look at both the L3400 (gear drive) and the LK 3054. I liked the Kioti dealer, he is personable and seems honest. I was impressed with his patience with other customers before it was my turn in line. I toured and liked the condition of his shop, where he was repairing a tractor. His best and final walk-out-the door price for the LK3054 with KL1231 FEL (54" bucket) and KB2365 backhoe, was $17,390 (before 7% taxes), delivered. He came down $500 from a week ago. Another Kioti dealer near Athens, GA wouldn't budge at his $18,500 best and final offer. The Kubota dealer wouldn't budge either. In fact he wouldn't get out of his office chair to give me the honor of his last-chance talk and walk around the L3400.

One thing I need advice on is tires. I have a 35-40% grade to climb to get to my "back 40". My JD Model H scrambles right up it with Ag tires which greedily bite into the soil. For the Kioti I have the option of Industrial or Ag tires. Would the Kioti with Industrial tires climb it or are these tires with flatter tread likely to slip?

Mavrik02 · Sep 15, 2005

My house is situated in the hills of western PA. I have ~20 acres of ground and only about 2 acres can be considered "flat". The industrial tires on my Kioti CK30HST do not slip (except when I am trying to push over a tree that doesn't want to fall over like I want it to). I use them on hard clay and soft forest dirt with no problem. They seem to be a very popular tire.

rtimgray · Sep 16, 2005

I've got industrial tires on my DK 45 - and I do quite a bit of work in soft fields (in restrspect, I wish I had gone with ag tires, but I liked the stance of the tractor with industrials better. Thinking about getting another set of tires/wheels so I can do that...anyway, that's niether here nor there). I think that in almost all situations, the combination of 4wd with industrials will be more than equal to the traction that you've gotten with you JD.

As another side note, my dad just bought the very same package that you are looking at last week (got it delivered the Wednesday after Labor Day). I finally got a chance to go drive it - I had never been on the 3054XS model. I gotta say, I really like it. Moving the gear shift up to the dash is a big improvement. It took a little getting used to going from the 45 to the 3054, but I just had to take smaller bites. I feel that the 3054 is an excellent tractor at an exceptional value, as long as you can deal with the kind of "no frills" appearance.
By the way, I think the price that you have been quoted is very much in line with the price he paid.

Good luck with your tractor hunt.