Tractor Life Expectancy?

[slowrev]

Time is also a factor, especially with O-rings and such. Hours are not the only consideration.

Ben

 

[ccsial]

Maybe he meant about 1200 hours until some sort of repair is needed. Obviously a statment like that is extremely generalized. The farmers around here consider 1200 hours just broken in good.

My 1910 went from new to 1100 hours (about 15 years) with zero problems and then a seal blew in the fuel injector pump. I fixed that, put new injectors in as well and it runs like new again. I'm sure it will outlive me.

 

[BadDog]

Life expectancy of a tractor depends 100% on the owner.

I have a Craftsman ride-on mower with more than 1200 hours! It still runs fine... it's not as shiny as it once was, but so what.

Wheelhorse tractors from the 50's are still in use today... I have a brand new one and it is basically identical to the ones built back then other than an updated engine. The thing is a gorilla for its size.

My NH TC55DA is two years old now with about 500 hours on it and I've beat the living **** out of it, but I maintain it well.

I bet all three will outlive me.

 

[pennwalk]

<font color="blue"> "keep in mind, the average life expectancy of a tractor is 1200 engine hours" </font>
Maybe this is the begining of a new marketing plan. If JD can just get us used to the idea boy will they sell alot of tractors. In fact I'm going right out and buy JD stock. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Chris

 

[ccsial]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( <font color="blue"> </font> Maybe this is the begining of a new marketing plan. )</font> <font color="black"> </font>

You could be more right then you think.

 

[IslandTractor]

If true, and if the American tractor buying public is really ready to treat tractors like cars, there are going to be some great deals on used tractors out there. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif Unfortunately (or not), I doubt it. Advertisers do not always succeed in making fools of us.

 

[Farwell]

Maybe JD plans on making their equipment fall apart after 1200 hours.
My 1965 JD 2010 has its problems but it has around 5000 hours on the meter and I think the meter was not hooked up for a few years.
The price dealers are getting for equipment these days and if it only lasted 1200 hours, I have a feeling that those dealers would soon be going out of business.
Farwell

 

[wolc123]

You and/or the RFD guys are off by a factor of ten. This is a unfortunate but common mistake in the computer age. On average, a properly maintained AG tractor with a diesel engine can be expected to go around 12,000 (three zero's), hours between engine overhauls. Since the fuel itself is a good lubricant they can last significantly longer than those equipped with gas engines. To be safe, I always replace my diesel machines at around 8000 hours and do not use gas. Back when I used gas machines, I would replace at around 6000 hours. A tractor with 1,200 hours is really just broken in.

 

[Jrrcorp]

I had a MF dealer tell me the same thing two years ago abount my Kubota. 1200 hours is the average life exceptancy he said. Good thing he isn't a doctor!

 

[ToadHill]

I did a vlave job on my old MF85 at 12,000 hrs. Used it for 4 more years before I traded it.

 

[rk246]

My Kubota only lasts 1200 hours, the dealer is getting it back, through his front door....

 

[IslandTractor]

Did you mean to say: "If" my Kubota.....

/forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

 

[Soundguy]

Gosh.. I love 'experts' that pull non-facts out of thin air.

I consider 1200 hours, on an otherwise non-abused machine.. just good and broke in. and anything 700 hours or less.. plain out low hours.

I see ag tractor in use all the time with 4000+ hours on them. My 1952 8n came with a damaged proof meter that stopped inthe 5xxx hour range...year? decades? ago...

Soundguy

 

[rk246]

Yeah, IF, I don't see it happening though, not with all the people that are running them so hard and putting 1000's of hours on... My FIL has a couple thousand hours on his New holland, does absolutely no maintenance ( I have thought about calling the tractor services division and turning him in for abuse) and his keeps running. He did have to put a new fuel filter in the other day....

 

[IslandTractor]

Despite the lavish attention that folks on this forum pay to their tractors (If you want to see the real diehards, check out the fuel and oil section /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif), I suspect these machines will last almost as long with minimal maintenance as with ideal maintenance. So long as you don't run the oil sump dry and put back the pieces that drop off occasionally, I think tractors are likely to go many thousands of hours before some irrepairable problem arises. Look at how may gas lawn mower engines continue to run for years and years despite virutally no maintenance. Tractor diesels should be able to do even better. I know some will holler and scream at this notion but so long as you keep oil in the sump and don't feed it bad fuel, there is little that is likely to go wrong. I'm not advocating abuse, just pointing out that tractors are fairly tolerant of general neglect.

 

[CarlGlas]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Twelve THOUSAND hours isn't even a whole lot....there are airplanes with 100,000 hours on them and I would consider a tractor to be more solidly built than an airplane. )</font>


Well, if there were a federal agency that mandated the maintenance, and performed inspections on tractors like they do airplanes, they would probably get more hours too. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

MF has a 1500 hour warranty on their sub-compact engines and a 3000 hour warranty on the larger tractor engines, so I guess they at least expect them to last that long.

However, the least expensive and most important maintenance we can do on any engine is to change the fluids and filters on a regular basis or sooner if needed.

 

[brewdog]

I've had two different dealers tell me that if a tractor is maintained right, 10,000 hours isn't unrealistic at all for a diesel engine. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

 

[NHeuro]

A friend of me is using a LANDINI MISTRAL, he has 2000 h now and without any problems, the engine is like new

 

[Ledgemere Farm]

1200 hours? Maybe 12 THOUSAND. otherwise, we would have had to take almost all our machines down back and shoot them by now.

 

[CT_Tree_Guy]

<font color="blue">I suspect these machines will last almost as long with minimal maintenance as with ideal maintenance </font>

I suspect they won't.

<font color="blue"> tractors are fairly tolerant of general neglect. </font>

You can't fool physics and chemistry.