Proud New Montana Owner

[Big_Charlie]

After looking, studying, drooling, and experiencing major tractor lust, I'm finally going to be the proud owner of a new Montana R4944HST!!! I'll post some pics just as soon as I take posession.

Anyone here who is considering Montana should ask their dealer about the new leasing program. The standard loan payments were really holding us back from buying a new tractor and forced me to trawl auctions, yard sales, and dealer lots for used machines - none of which were as functional or feature rich as the new R-series Montanas. The lease program is letting me instead get a brand new, top of the line machine with a loader, 7' finish mower, 6' rotary cutter, 6' box blade and 18' trailer for less than half the monthly payment of a standard loan - even with the 0% interest deal. It was the nail in all the other brands' coffins for me. Montana simply made it easier to buy a top quality machine from them.

 

[Maka]

Hello Charlie. I was using the 4944HST a lot yesterday and really was liking the smooth hydro drive and the lack of whine. The power is so smooth in that machine and so quiet. Please post pictures when you can.

Congrats!!!!!!

Maka

 

[Doc_Bob]

Very nice machine!
Bob

 

[jordanh]

Can you explain in more detail how the leasing works?

I know, generally, leasing is a bad deal for automobiles unless you use it very little and prefer to trade every 2 years.

What are the terms?

How much did you have to pay up front?

hour restrictions?

service requirements i.e. dealer must service vs. you service it yourself and keep records?

who is responsible for damage during the lease?

Insurance?

Guaranteed trade value at end of lease term or is that covered by the residual %?

I'm very interested in this option and have my local dealer looking into it. But I don't imagine it would work for me. I do like the idea of trading for a new tractor every 3 years if it doesn't require me to buck up a large chunk of cash at the same time I trade.

 

[Big_Charlie]

We're doing a 48 month lease. The lease includes the tractor, loader, mower, rotary cutter, box blade, and trailer for a total of around $25k. We paid about 5% up front, but you may only have to pay 2x your monthly payment. I did discover that this amount is somewhat negotiable as long as your dealer will go to the mat for you with Wells Fargo. We're recently self employed, so our situation is a little different when it comes to loans right now. We're only paying $330/month and will have 50% residual at the end of the lease. At that time we can either buy the tractor for the residual amount or turn it in and do it all over again with a new machine. Had we stretched it out another year we could have lowered the payment by $30 or so and would have had just 45% residual at the end of the lease.

Wells Fargo requires that I get insurance on the tractor and all maintenance is my responsibility, just like if I owned it outright. It comes with a 3 year warranty on the drivetrain, so it'll be pretty well covered. Under this lease I get 300 hours/year, which I won't even come close to using. It's $7/hour for excess hours. As for service, I can do all of the regular service, though I'll probably let my dealer do the hydraulic service for me and take care of the oil and lube myself.

While under standard financing I could have it paid for in 4 or 5 years instead of just half of it, we'll be in a better place to plunk down the residual amount in 4 years when the lease is up, making this the only way I was going to be getting a new tractor and all of the implements and trailer. If you can't swing the payments or don't have the cash, I HIGHLY recommend this program. It was really easy to execute with the dealer.

 

[Doc_Bob]

We're doing a 48 month lease.

What did they say about cosmetic issues? Rust? Scrapes? Dings? Who fixes them? What do they say about normal wear and tear?
Bob

 

[Dargo]

What did they say about cosmetic issues? Rust? Scrapes? Dings? Who fixes them? What do they say about normal wear and tear?
Bob

That, and some people let their tractors sit outside 24/7/365. A tractor that has always been kept in a garage or barn will have a considerably different resale value at the end of 4 years.

Please don't take my questions as any sort of jab at all; I've just never heard of leasing compact utility tractors. It may sound odd, but I've always just negotiated a price and paid for them when I bought them. However, if I were to buy a brand new non-big three brand tractor, the idea of a guaranteed residual value just may be a really appealing sales point. It would take any possible concern I may have about resale out of the equation. Good job!

 

[Big_Charlie]

Reading the fine print of the lease agreement, it says nothing specific about regular wear and tear, dents, scratches, etc., just that I will be responsible for all loss or damage to the equipment and will maintain it within the manufacturer's recommendations. There is a section stating that I must provide them access to examine the equipment at any time of their choosing - so I guess if they suspect you are abusing their property they can take it away from you and default your lease, but that would be pretty extreme. I've got a nice barn to keep it in though, so I'm not worried. You are also required to have your insurance company fax them an insurance certificate showing that it's covered.

In other news - it took me all of 5 minutes to break something. I got out to mow my pastures and immediately snapped both ends off the shear pin on the PTO input to the rotary cutter. The dealer sent two guys out right away to fix it. It turns out that there is some kind of damper on the PTO output that controls how hard the PTO starts. The factory sets it pretty high, so that's something to have your dealer check if you buy one of these. After they adjusted the damper down a few turns everything worked fine and I got started working.

I am amazed how quiet this machine is. It's far quieter than my 23HP riding lawn mower. I was riding my 17 month old son around in my lap while mowing (I know, not the safest thing to do, but I couldn't find anyone to watch him for me, and I just HAD to get out and play...err...put it through its paces...) and he nearly fell asleep - he won't ride the lawn tractor with me because it's so loud it scares him. There is none of the whine usually associated with HST's, and it's simply smooth riding and strong as an ox. The new suspension seat is a major improvement over the seats in the older Montana models and makes the ride really comfortable. I'm 300lb and there is plenty of suspension tension available to support me.

The only thing that I'm pretty sure I'm going to wish it had is adjustable link ends on the 3-point hitch. Supposedly that's something that Montana is planning to offer soon - probably a 2007 thing. Maybe a retrofit will be both available and affordable...

No pictures yet though; I figure no self respecting tractor lets pictures be taken of itself without it wearing at least a little hard earned dust.

 

[Doc_Bob]

Reading the fine print of the lease agreement, it says nothing specific about regular wear and tear, dents, scratches, etc., just that I will be responsible for all loss or damage to the equipment and will maintain it within the manufacturer's recommendations.

Hmmm, would love to know what "damage to the equipment " means. Call Montana (or write them a letter) and ask them what that means. Better to know now rather than later.
Bob

 

[Wesdor]

We have a new Montana dealer going in about 5 miles from our house. I talked with them in August and they seemed like good people. However, when I started talking price, they were about the same price as a Kubota or Deere. That suprised me, as I thought the Montana would be much less expensive.

How did your price compare to any of the big 3 manufacturers?

And congrats on the new machiine. It sounds like you will find it very useful.