I was kind of in the same boat. I had a Kubota
L5030 cab. Good tractor but it had A/C issues for a few years with nobody able to fix them. I started looking for good used tractors, but I couldn’t find much. When I did, they wanted almost new prices. So I started shopping new.
I visited Kubota, JD, Kioti, LS, Massey, Case, and New Holland dealers...and several dealers of the same brand. They are all within 45 mins or so of me. I was amazed how some couldn’t care less that I walked through their door. After driving most of them (most dealers were really low on inventory), I settled on the JD. I was looking at the 4052R, but the dealer made me a deal on a 4066R. I got it with loader, 2 remotes and a third function, and I really like it so far. I’ve had it about a month with about 25 hours on it.
Here’s the things I’m not wild about. Most importantly, I’m not crazy about the joystick handle. Their ergonomic design fits my hand well, but it hits my remote lever when trying to raise and dump. I’ll have to find a solution to that problem. The 3 point lever is small and takes some getting used to. It’s probably small because of the joystick design. There’s no easy place to put a toolbox either. I don’t need much, but I like to carry a few things with me. It came with a quick hitch that was useless for me because of the varying size of attachments I have, so it has a Pat’s system on it now. And the radio isn’t great. You’d think for that amount of money they’d have more than 2 crappy speakers.
I love the auto throttle, and it has good power to the ground. So far, I’m pretty satisfied. And I love having cold air in this southeast MO hear and humidity!!
