Question for RTV900 owners...

[obrith]

Kubota recently changed their new RTV900's that are coming off the production line to have a new 'feature' (I use this loosely because I feel its a downgrade!).

The new 'feature' is that they have a shock/dampener on the accelerator return, which causes the machine to slow down to a stop alot slower, rather than stop on a dime as soon as you release the petal. They added this because people complained that they didn't like the unit stopping quite so quickly when they let up their foot.

Most of my customers got used to the HST stopping quickly after driving the vehicle around our yard for a few minutes, and after taking them down a steep hill on our lot, they love it! Its quite nice that the unit <nearly> stops itself even on the steepest hills. Sure, it takes a bit to get used to, but it really was a great feature.

On the new units, the transmission is still under load from the engine and you have to actually use the brake (HARD!) to stop in the same distance. You're actually braking against the unit powering forward. I think this is a serious safety issue that Kubota is getting into. They took a unit with amazing braking power, and made it into a unit that is very hard to stop quickly.

Kubota (at this point) is taking the stance that you can stop in nearly the same distance as the old style (old style just releasing the forward petal) when you cram the brakes on the new style as hard as you can; And this is just something that you'll have to drive around enough to get used to.

I'd like to hear what current RTV users think about this new 'feature'. I've given my feedback to Kubota. I'd really like to know if I should continue to request that they change it back, or if I should drop it and let them deal with it after someone gets hurt.

For RTV users with the old style, realize that this isnt your RTV coasting forward a little further, this is your RTV not releasing your gas petal for a few extra seconds after you release it. However, for a small fee ($25-30+labor) you can get a kit installed to make your old RTV have the new 'lessened dynamic braking'.

 

[bczoom]

obrith,

Welcome to the forum.

The part you're referring to is commonly known as a "speed control assembly" or "speed lever assembly". It's changed part #'s a couple times for those that want to purchase it but I believe the current part number is K756-97420

We discussed this part in this thread. I tried the part but didn't care for it for the reason you stated as well as it made it more difficult to shift. I reverted to the older version.

Most everyone that has had the opportunity to try both versions prefered the older style. The change was a good initiative by Kubota but possibly a bad judgement.

Look here. At the very bottom is the findings on the braking and performance differences.

Many that I have talked to that have the newer version would prefer the older style. Please continue to voice that for those with the new style, owners would like to have the option to purchase a kit to revert to the original style.

 

[rtvman]

Welcome to the forum!

If what your saying is accurate then Kubota must be getting a lot of flack from new owners to make such a fundamental change like this. It must be those after-purchase surveys are coming back to their corporate offices in Japan with this "sudden stop" complaint being highlighted over and over. That's the only thing I can think of that would cause them to make this a permanent running change. I bought mine (REV 1) back in early July and for the most part have gotten use to the sudden stop. I to view it as a benefit and for me anyway, I have gotten use to it. Your points are valid and it will be a shame for new owners not to have the option to add a kit later if they choose to. Just for the record, when I filled out my survey my only complaint was the lack of accessories available and the insy-winsy-tini-wheeny on-board storage offering which of coarse I got sucked into buying. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

 

[Keybal]

Obrith:

If you read the thread that Brian (BCZoom) led you to, you will see that I also had "upgraded" to the "new and better" (sarcasm) lever assembly. I soon decided that I did not want the RTV to end up in the creek like the BX22 (a very long story for another day in a different forum) did, so it came off after a few days.

As far as I was concerned, with the original set-up, at least I knew when and how long it would take to stop.

After I installed the new lever, it was a SWAG as to when and where the RTV would stop.

It also became much more difficult to shift into a different gear. With the original set-up, you could change gears almost immediately after stopping. With the new lever installed, a 10 to 20 second wait was required to get the thing into a different gear. This statement takes into account the "hissy fits" the RTV takes sometimes when trying to change gears.

Simply stated, I prefer the original set-up much better than the "new and improved" version. /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

 

[obrith]

Thank you VERY much for the input and the other thread. This is very helpful and as I suspected it seems that everyone thinks about the same thing as I did when I sat down on a new unit. At approximately serial number 24000 Kubota started installing the "new" assembly as the stock one. We just started getting those new ones in recently, as will have alot of dealers, but some dealers probably started seeing these units as far back as early November.

I'll have another chat with the Kubota engineers and see what they say. I'll point them twards that old thread and this one.

Thanks again!

PS - about those complaints about accessories on the old thread; it wasnt just your dealer! We had alot of issues as well. When Kubota introduced the RTV they planned on a MAX capacity of 10,000 production units a year, and didnt plan to run that may for a while. There were over 16,000 units ordered before Kubota blinked an eye. The accessories seem to have caught up a bit, but expect the RTV's to still be a little hard to aquire for a while. When I place a new order for an RTV today, they tell me it wont be built for over 10-11 months. That puts them ~12 months out to get them to a dealer.... If your dealer doesnt have enough on order already for the whole year (not likely hardly any of them do) then they will be/become tight on them again.

 

[flyingn]

I love the auto stop feature. Its very usefull going down a hill loaded.. AND the brakes will last almost indefinetly.. I would remove the coast feature if I had a new one actually..

Frank

 

[Rick_Taylor]

I too have an older RTV that had the 'quick stop' option. Like others, I bought the new speed lever. I kept mine on for quite a while although I didn't like it. Last Sunday I changed it back. I couldn't get the damper spring to work without binding when mounted in the original position (hanging down). So for lack of a better idea I remounted the spring damper back in the modified position (up). What a difference! The RTV has it's original snappy acceleration back! Speed is back up also. BUT, it doesn't have QUITE the snap on deceleration it had when new. It does stop with a snap if allowed to but it's not as bad as original. So far, I have been very happy with results. I have no idea why it didn't want to work when back in the original configuration but I'm happy I stumbled onto this 'halfway' setup. Rick /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[avorancher]

I will throw my vote for the original setup also. Although I didn't like it at first, two things have happened.

1. It does loosen up. Yes, it is a fact... I used to be able to chirp the tires when decelerating but after 30 hours of use I can no longer do that. Although I have no way to measure it, I would say it loosens significantly after the first 10 hours or so.

2. The operator gets used to it and learns to feather the pedal, thus using the behavior to their advantage.

To me, it is a wonderful "feature" on my steep hills, especially with a full load. In fact, I wish I could just leave it in gear and be able to start it like my HST tractor. I don't like putting it in neutral when I'm sitting on a steep grade.

The only time I still get surprised by the quick stopping is in reverse. For some reason, I haven't been able to adapt to being thrown backwards... probably because I don't spend as much time going backwards.

 

[whoodle]

I have and like the old style except that mine shifts like crap. I have let many of my friends and relatives drive around my hilly rugged terrain, and all have adapted quickly and become proficient. THey cannot however believe how badly it shifts from fw to rvs. It is embarrasing that such a nice and expensive machine is unable to do a three point turn.

 

[Dargo]

whoodle, my RTV wouldn't shift after about 20 hours on it. It wasn't until I changed the hydro filters and refilled it with Kubota Super UDT that my shifting problems went away. I can't state how big of a difference that fluid and filter change made. I literally had to shut the RTV off to get it out of gear before I did the fluid and filter change. Now, it shifts fine with no problems.