Warranty Claims & Reliability

[Cahaba Valley Farm]

As both a member of this site and a consumer of compact tractors and equipment, I have both raised the question and seen the same question being raised by many other consumers/members of this site when they were in the market to purchase a compact tractor or implement: How reliable is Model X of Brand X and does the manufacturer stand behind their warranty? So I have decided to start this thread for the purpose of providing every consumer now and in the future the opportunity to obtain the data, feedback and information that they are seeking so they can make a more informed purchase decision. I am therefore asking everyone here to share your experience of owning your compact tractor as it relates to reliability, to report any failures you have had with it, to detail what your experience was of filing a warranty claim and to provide feedback on how the manufacturer/dealer treated you in the process of obtaining warranty repair and service work. I welcome all to weigh in on this including dealers, service technicians, salesman, suppliers, and even manufacturers themselves.

 

[m1garand762]

I have had 1 issue with my kubota. The seat switch got messed up when towing and the seat came down too hard and broke the lever. I called my dealer at 4 pm Saturday and at 815 Monday the service truck was in my driveway free of charge even though it really wasn’t kubotas fault

 

[Roadworthy]

This is likely to become a very long thread. In the two years I've owned it my Kubota L2501 has done everything asked of it with zero downtime. The only complaint is checking the hydraulic fluid level with the little sight glass. My dealer's mechanic (at my request) queried Kubota and learned that adding John Deere dye to the hydraulic system was perfectly acceptable and would not void the warranty. Problem solved.

 

[rScotty]

Bought our Kubota new in Summer of 2008 with standard 0 percent financing for 5 years, I think. Nothing down.... although I think we did pay some sales taxes upfront.
Warranty at the time was 1 year - which didn't seem like much - so we bought another year as an extended warranty. The price for that for $1100. I think the max extended Kubota offered then was two years, but we only bought the one additional year. It seemed expensive at the time, but turned out well.

A few months after all the warranties expired the backhoe main boom hydraulic cylinder wouldn't retract all the way. It didn't have any previous problems until that day. I called the dealer who sent out a service truck with an experienced mechanic who took cylinder off. He came back a week later with a brand new one which he installed & topped up the hydraulic fluid.

Even though the warranty was expired by a few months they covered it all - close to $2500 worth of repairs. The "no charge" on the repair ticket says, "goodwill warranty".

Other than that in 13 years we have replaced a couple of hoses, a battery and a throttle cable. Just picky stuff, and nothing that has required a dealer.
We watched it turn over 1000 hours on the hourmeter last week. This tractor is worked hard in difficult soil - mostly around a hilly area and in heavy granite.

So I'd have to say that at 1000 hrs both the tractor and the dealer have beaten all my expectations. Wonderful machine. It still runs and works like new. A little sun faded, but good heavy paint is aging well. So it looks good, too. At least it does to my eyes. BTW, it lives outside with a tarp over the seat and controls.

rScotty

 

[IndyJay]

Bought our Kubota new in Summer of 2008 with standard 0 percent financing for 5 years, I think. Nothing down.... although I think we did pay some sales taxes upfront.
Warranty at the time was 1 year - which didn't seem like much - so we bought another year as an extended warranty. The price for that for $1100. I think the max extended Kubota offered then was two years, but we only bought the one additional year. It seemed expensive at the time, but turned out well.

A few months after all the warranties expired the backhoe main boom hydraulic cylinder wouldn't retract all the way. It didn't have any previous problems until that day. I called the dealer who sent out a service truck with an experienced mechanic who took cylinder off. He came back a week later with a brand new one which he installed & topped up the hydraulic fluid.

Even though the warranty was expired by a few months they covered it all - close to $2500 worth of repairs. The "no charge" on the repair ticket says, "goodwill warranty".

Other than that in 13 years we have replaced a couple of hoses, a battery and a throttle cable. Just picky stuff, and nothing that has required a dealer.
We watched it turn over 1000 hours on the hourmeter last week. This tractor is worked hard in difficult soil - mostly around a hilly area and in heavy granite.

So I'd have to say that at 1000 hrs both the tractor and the dealer have beaten all my expectations. Wonderful machine. It still runs and works like new. A little sun faded, but good heavy paint is aging well. So it looks good, too. At least it does to my eyes. BTW, it lives outside with a tarp over the seat and controls.

rScotty

"Goodwill" warranties are what keeps customers coming back for years and brings in new customers through word of mouth.
The inverse is also true to an even greater extent!

 

[Cahaba Valley Farm]

I want to share these two articles as they are both relevant to this discussion. One is a study that was conducted by Progressive Farmer last year measuring the overall experience and satisfaction tractor owners had with their equipment. The other is a dealer survey conducted by EDA which enables equipment dealers throughout North America to rate the manufacturer lines they carry in key operational categories.

Claas, Branson Top EDA Dealer-Manufacturer Survey

The Equipment Dealers Assn. (EDA) has released the results of its annual Dealer-Manufacturer Relations Survey. The survey, which enables equipment dealers throughout North America to rate the manufacturer lines they carry in key operational categories, was open from Feb. 4 through March 4, 2021.

www.farm-equipment.com

 

[coobie]

As both a member of this site and a consumer of compact tractors and equipment, I have both raised the question and seen the same question being raised by many other consumers/members of this site when they were in the market to purchase a compact tractor or implement: How reliable is Model X of Brand X and does the manufacturer stand behind their warranty? So I have decided to start this thread for the purpose of providing every consumer now and in the future the opportunity to obtain the data, feedback and information that they are seeking so they can make a more informed purchase decision. I am therefore asking everyone here to share your experience of owning your compact tractor as it relates to reliability, to report any failures you have had with it, to detail what your experience was of filing a warranty claim and to provide feedback on how the manufacturer/dealer treated you in the process of obtaining warranty repair and service work. I welcome all to weigh in on this including dealers, service technicians, salesman, suppliers, and even manufacturers themselves.

POPCORN in hand this could get interesting..

 

[jeff9366]

I have had 1 issue with my kubota. The seat switch got messed up when towing and the seat came down too hard and broke the lever. I called my dealer at 4 pm Saturday and at 815 Monday the service truck was in my driveway free of charge even though it really wasn’t kubotas fault

POST THE NAME OF THE DEALER. LET'S GIVE QUALITY DEALERS ADDITIONAL BUSINESS.

 

[rScotty]

I want to share these two articles as they are both relevant to this discussion. One is a study that was conducted by Progressive Farmer last year measuring the overall experience and satisfaction tractor owners had with their equipment. The other is a dealer survey conducted by EDA which enables equipment dealers throughout North America to rate the manufacturer lines they carry in key operational categories.

Progressive farmer was interesting - although their definition of a small tractor is under 100 hp., and a medium size tractor is between 100 and 235 hp. So that puts them in a different category than most TBN owners and posters.

However, I can't disagree with their conclusions. i.e. JD and Kubota lead in the "Small Tractor" (under 100 hp) category.

And also I agree with their comments. The third comment about the older tractors is very interesting. I hear that a lot; and my guess is that will become the popular view.

• New tractors are viewed as very expensive.

• New, tech-heavy tractors are viewed as sometimes overly complicated.

• Older tractors are often decades old but also are viewed as trusty and dependable workhorses that provide better bang for the buck.

• Dealer networks, with high standards for service are critical for new sales.

The other article - the Dealer Survey - read sort of biased to me. It has a tone that reminds me more lik an advertisement. Like someone trying to sell something.
rScotty

 

[Cahaba Valley Farm]

Progressive farmer was interesting - although their definition of a small tractor is under 100 hp., and a medium size tractor is between 100 and 235 hp. So that puts them in a different category than most TBN owners and posters.

However, I can't disagree with their conclusions. i.e. JD and Kubota lead in the "Small Tractor" (under 100 hp) category.

And also I agree with their comments. The third comment about the older tractors is very interesting. I hear that a lot; and my guess is that will become the popular view.

• New tractors are viewed as very expensive.

• New, tech-heavy tractors are viewed as sometimes overly complicated.

• Older tractors are often decades old but also are viewed as trusty and dependable workhorses that provide better bang for the buck.

• Dealer networks, with high standards for service are critical for new sales.

The other article - the Dealer Survey - read sort of biased to me. It has a tone that reminds me more lik an advertisement. Like someone trying to sell something.
rScotty

Agreed. The problem facing the consumers of this compact market segment is the high technology electronics that the federal government has pushed the tractor manufacturers into using to meet their final tier IV emissions standards. If you look at the industry as a whole, all the manufacturers have separated out all the engine electronics from the drive train and even bumper to bumper warranty, capping the warranty coverage to 5 years and will not let you purchase any additional warranty coverage. That says it all right there. They obviously know the electronic engine management system is the weak link and is the most prone to failure.