I had a Kubota
M4900 2wd manual shift for several years and after downsizing my property I wanted a smaller, 4wd tractor with a FEL. I bought a Kubota L2501HS in 2018. Both were excellent tractors - no significant issues. The only problem I had with the
L2501 was a serious lack of PTO horsepower. It struggled a lot pulling and powering a 5' medium duty bush hog in fairly heavy grass. I bought it because it was the perfect size for my property, it was nimble and handled like a dream, and it was a hydrostat. I looked at the other L's (3301 and 3901) but was scared of the regen systems. In hindsight, I wish I had put that aside and bought one of the other tractors. I NEVER regretted the hydrostat and will probably never own anything else.
Anyway, the last time I bush hogged my place was during the severe heat wave of August 2023. I had let the grass get too tall and me and the little Kubota struggled and grunted on every inch it cut. I told my wife I was either going to buy another tractor or sell my little piece of land that I loved. She encouraged me to go tractor shopping (It didn't take much encouragement). I went to the dealer where I bought my
L2501 first and looked at the L3902, the newest model. I was always happy with the dealer but it had changed hands a couple of years ago and it had a totally different vibe with the new owners. They seemed to adopt the John Deere sales model that I had experienced when I bought my first Kubota. The dealer down here had the attitude of: There it is, take it or leave it and don't bother me with any questions. We don't sell John Deeres. They sell themselves. Well, I had an old Deere several years ago and I agree they are good tractors but I refuse to buy from someone that acts like they are doing me a favor by selling me their product.
After getting some bad vibes from the new Kubota dealer and rejecting a ridiculously low offer for my trade I went up to a nearby Kioti/Massey Ferguson dealer. I had looked at Kiotis about 20 years ago and was really impressed with them but their short track record and a somewhat limited dealer network concerned me. Well, their dealer network just keeps on growing, their reputation keeps on getting better, regen problems seem to be very rare and most reviews are very positive. My dealer is a few miles away and seem to have a great service department. Their sales folks are real tractor people that really appreciate their customers and work hard to answer questions and concerns.
Long story but conclusion is I am the proud owner of a Kioti CK4020HST. So far I LOVE this tractor and plan on keeping it the rest of my days. The 15 hp increase feels like it has at least twice the power of the
L2501. It has the link pedal option which I didn't think I wanted but now find myself using it every day. Front and rear lift capacity on the Kubota was fine but is much higher on the Kioti. Now if I can just get use to the twin forward and reverse pedals that everyone else seems to love. After about 12 hours I'm still missing my treadle pedal.
