Kubota or Massey

[burkehill]

I am wringing my hands over whether to buy a Kubota L5040, or a Massey Ferguson 1552. Does anyone have any information that might sway me one way or the other? Price is the same, and both dealers are very helpful.

 

[Opti-Mist]

Kubota has always gotten good marks for reliability and durability. I can't say the same for the other make.

 

[wallace]

If financing is involved how can you beat the Massey 0% for 72 months
What trans are you looking at?

 

[shakin]

which bota dealer are you talking with union farm from what i have heard of is easier to get along with. is the massey dealer in bangor. have you talked to bruce at bruce's tractor sales in old town. he dosen't have those brands but he does have some good one's. remember bota's are good but they are not the only good and reliable one's on the market. i have a montana great little machine no issues as of yet. snoop around on all of the brand specific forums and read up lots of god stuff here. just remember to filter out the posts that are just people letting off steam and rarely hold little value.

 

[burkehill]

Looking at the GST transmission in the Kubota, and the 12x12 in the Massey. Union is by far the best value and service around here. They are further away, but worth the drive to avoid Dorrs. And Northwood in Bangor is the Massey dealer. I have always had good experiences with them.

 

[shakin]

massey's are iseki's right. i personally have heard nothing bad about them. on a second note a friend bought a l3240 from union and they are great to deal with both in price and customer support. sounds like you have a tought decision to make. obvisouly the massey is probably cheaper.

 

[burkehill]

Massey is a little bit cheaper, but not by a whole lot. Mainly, the Kubota has more PTO Hp, and the Massey has more hydraulic ability. Both dealers are nice to deal with, and they both deliver. I trust the Kubota more in terms of them standing behind the machine. But the MF dealer is closer, and has been very helpful, both now and in the past, even when I wasn't buying anything from them.

 

[MtnViewRanch]

Massey is a little bit cheaper, but not by a whole lot. Mainly, the Kubota has more PTO Hp, and the Massey has more hydraulic ability. Both dealers are nice to deal with, and they both deliver. I trust the Kubota more in terms of them standing behind the machine. But the MF dealer is closer, and has been very helpful, both now and in the past, even when I wasn't buying anything from them.

Just wondering why you think that Kubota is going to stand behind their product any better than Massey? If it were me, I would get the one that fit me (comfort & ergonomics) the best.

 

[burkehill]

Well, for a few reasons. First off, because Kubota manufactures their own machines, and MF has Iseki make quite a bit of them. Also there are many more Kubotas on (off) the road here, so it seems that there is more chance of future support. And, I just sold my last tractor, a MF 1045. It was a great machine, but I had to get rid of it because MF had them made by Toyosha at that point, and Toyosha is no longer supplying parts for them. The last time that I needed to replace a wheel seal, it took me 7 months to get the seal, and it was one of two left in the country. Then something went out in the transmission, and I lost low range. It wasn't even worth breaking the tractor to find out exactly what it was, because none of the transmission parts are available at all. I managed to find one of the transmission gears leftover on the shelf at a dealer in Texas, and that was it. So that has left a little bit of a bitter taste in my wallet, and makes me wonder if twenty years down the line there will be the same problem between Iseki and MF. Or some variant thereof.

 

[Cat_Driver]

Kubota hands down. I've owned two of them and still have an 80's model. These things are built like tanks. I needed a part for my 80's Kubota and they said no problem when do you want it. That impressed me. I can't get that service from Ford.