Mahindra: Nothing but problems

[DutchHenryBrown]

Gosh I would be on the phone to the dealer and be asking for HELP with the problems. I had a pinched o-ring on my Mahindra first or second day out? I called the selling dealer they picked the tractor up that afternoon and had it back to me the next day.

 

[s219]

Less than a year ago I unwittingly purchased a Mahindra 4035 HST which has proceeded to have nothing but problems. The hydraulic line leaks because the main return from the loader was kinked and leaking. Next the fuel line started leaking. Now the electrical system is on the fritz and keeps blowing the starter relay fuse. Further the big hunk of useless red steel died in the middle of the street when I was plowing and I had to push it into a driveway.

Mahindra customer service has acknowledged my emails, but they have taken no action after a week.

The tractor has 41 hours on it and I'm kicking myself in the butt for being so gullible for buying this hunk of junk. Buy red save green. that's crap. By red see red because you'll be mad at yourself and embarassed for being so stupid as to buy an off brand tractor.

Rush Limbaugh should be ashamed for advertising this piece of junk.

Let me tell you, if you want a headach and for the tractor to stop working before your finished with it, go ahead and get a Mahindra. The fit and finsih of these tractor is absolutely unacceptable. They have hoses routed next to the exhaust manifold, wires going through the fire wall without grommets to keep then from shorting on the sharp edges and hydraulic hoses that look like they were tied in knots before they were hooked up.

I'm an engineer, and I have never seen such a poorly constructed piece of equipment.

That's unfortunate. The do make good tractors, so it sounds like you got a lemon. I hope your dealer or Mahindra steps up and makes things right. Otherwise maybe trade it in and move on with your life.

The only part I don't agree with is the Rush Limbaugh comment. I doubt he's ashamed about anything he says or does! He's been wrong about quite a few things over the years and it doesn't seem to phase him at all! I can barely tolerate listening to the guy even when I agree with him!

 

[dmize]

Hello, wow, it's hot in here...

Yes first post, hello tractor land! Thank you for most of the replies.

There are positives to the machine, obviously I bought it. I like the over all concept, it fit me well, was easy to use, but the electrical stuff took me 3 days to trace out and I want to give my feedback on their product at hour 41. Local dealer is ok, but they don't inspire confidence in a fast turn around when they don't carry fuses or getting an oil filter is some exotic order that will take 2 weeks. I don't know, am I stupid for thinking they should stock an oil filter or fuse?

How did I end up with this? Hey, you get on a shiny red tractor, big black tires, and everything works, 5 year warranty, ok what the heck, I guess I glazed over playing with the loader and BH. I did a lot of research on the specs, drove a lot of tractors and I was impressed with the robustness and again, the specs. Well 5 year powertrain warranty, then other stuff has shorter time under coverage. SO they got me.

How the heck does the gauge cluster short out and keep the entire tractor from running, yet thankfully, I discovered one can unplug it completely and magically the tractor starts. But really what the heck is that, the gauge cluster shorts out? Do I want to keep a tractor that has an issue about every 10 hours? Seems like a reasonable question. Should I push through this and hope nothing else happens as the 2nd year of the everything warranty expires? IDK What would you do?

I didn't think to ask for help here because I saw enough responses saying to use the search, so I did and found enough common issues with other models to figure it out, but at the expense of my time. So like a car, I do all the work myself just because it's been reinforced over the years that dealers stick it to ya. Maybe not so with tractors?

Anyway, sharing my experience with this tractor might help another with a gauge cluster short that causes the entire tractor to die all of a sudden, then great, maybe they can find my post and not take 3 days to figure it out. Hopefully someone from Mahindra will get the message and help assure good QC on the assembly line for future owners. If no one reports problems, how will they ever get fixed?

Hey! I was tracing out electrical wiring with highs in the 20's, my set works good. How about Mahindra grow a set and extend my everything warranty to 5 years, and I'll keep it another year.

I have always liked Limbaugh, but the Mahindra tractor thing has put a taint on that.

 

[crackerjack222]

Getting a bit off topic here, but I have always said that Rush manages to cram 30 minutes of good radio into a 3 hour program.

And dmize, sorry to hear about your problems with the Mahindra. Sorta confirms my aversion to certain tractors. Altho, my wife had a Cadillac that was in the shop as much as it was on the road. Just never know, it can happen with any brand.

 

[jel1988]

Never heard any word about your dealer. The dealer should take care of the issues, he is your interface with Mahindra. Most dealers bend over backwards for their customers and try and recover their costs from the manufacturer. If your dealer doesn't take care of you they don't deserve your business.

 

[Coyote machine]

Rush is an idiot.
I'd find a dealer who can send you filters and whatever you need to maintain the tractor yourself, like you've been doing. Buy a service manual from the same dealer and skip the locals for now.
MANY here on TBN do their own service and use the dealer networks for warranty mostly.
Sorry you're having numerous issues. Dash clusters are an area where a few manufacturers fall down; also relays and switches, ignition switches too.

 

[dmize]

Thanks guys. Yeah the dealer is ok. When I spoke to them about the work, I asked if they had a service manual, they said no. I said order 2...

You know, it doesn't mean they are bad, it just doesn't inspire confidence, but I don't want to throw them under the bus.

 

[s219]

What dealer is it? (I live in VA too, just curious).

 

[lantxinNETX]

Well, just over 1 year ago, I purchased a 4035HST - and have had only 2 very minor issues - both of which were covered under warranty.

Before I made my purchase, I spent a lot of time on TBN and asked some questions about the importance of the dealer from whom I purchased. Also about the positive and negatives of various brands. My tractor is kept 120 miles from my house at some property that I own. I bought it from a dealer that is located about 50 miles away from my property. There is another dealer located about 40 miles away in the other direction. Talked to both of them before I made the purchase. Have not had a need for any kind of warranty service until this last month. (In fact the only reason that I had any warranty work done at all was the fact that I was having one of the dealers install a backhoe for me.)

I have found Mahindra's customer service folks down in Houston to be very responsive. Have you tried calling them on the phone? (Of course I would have started with your dealer . . . .)

And you really think they don't have the service manual for their own use? Really? Sounds to me like their answer was "No, we don't have one on hand to sell to YOU!" The service manual was one of the first things that I ordered for myself after I got the tractor.

My 'warranty' issues? The light on the dash that indicated I had engaged the 4WD stopped working. And there was a very slight fuel leak at the fuel filter. (So small it was hard to see when the tractor was running.) Both fixed quick and easy by the dealer. The light wasn't worth dealing with. And I could have done the fuel leak repair myself.

This is the first tractor that I have ever owned - and might end up being the last too. For me the 4035HST was the perfect balance of power, size and price. Personally I could not be happier.

Hope you can get all of your problems resolved so you too can start to enjoy your tractor.

Martin

 

[Tkblacktail]

Welcome to TBN and no offense sir, but some of those deficiencies you mentioned could/should have been spotted during the course of an initial inspection when the tractor was delivered, or in the course of your before, during, or after operating inspections (as called-for in the operator's manual).

The owner-operator of any piece of equipment is an integral-member of a PM team who is inherently-charged with the responsibility (by virtue of paying for it) of inspecting the equipment regularly (scheduled, before, during, and after operations), correcting, or reporting deficiencies (beyond the operator's echelon) as soon as they are detected.

Record-keeping and dealing with the next higher echelon are also an inherent responsibility of the operator.

Granted, not everyone was hazed into PM compliance (like I was in the service), but spending two days going over my new tractor with a "fine-tooth comb" when it was delivered seemed....reasonable/prudent.unch:

You should find yourself inspecting, checking torque, and lubing fittings every ten hours of operating.....

Have you ever seen a set of perfect engineered drawings?

Let us know what you find-out from the dealer; there are a lot of very smart people in this forum. I'm sure proud-ownership will overshadow any embarrassment when you get the "bugs" worked-out.