Kubota

Updated on 06/28/2018: When I did get my mower back, it was filthy dirty from being power washed. To the point that many of the decals are peeled loose, and gravel in some of the drink holder and small storage areas. I had this "feeling", so decided to mow immediately upon getting home. During the mow, I felt two instances where the mower felt labored, as though I had entered high grass, although that was not the case. Towards the end of the mow, I notice a circular metal disc laying on the ground...red hot... We have problems.

The bearings in one of the pulleys fried, and I'm convinced it was from dirty water from the power washer rusting the bearing combined with sitting for a month at the stealership. There was NO way I was going back to that place, being to be treated that way and waiting for another month. I took the mower to a local repair shop. I called the dealer and told him my concerns, and he told me to bring it in, and they'd "expedite" the service... Gee... Maybe half a month. No way. I wanted him to pay for my repair... Which turned out to be one day and $80, which he declined. I would have taken it to a different Kubota dealer... Just not that place ever again.

I also called Kubota customer service and relayed the story, and they claimed the stealer provided me with a route to have it repaired... I'm sure at top dollar too. When you enter a Kubota dealership, note the cleanliness, the courtesy of staff, and a modern computerized method of handling customers. Piles of papers on desks, boxes everywhere, and employees sitting around chatting or eating lunch are bad signs. Miscin Brothers in Standish, Michigan should be given WIDE berth. Oh, and the full tank of gas that the mower arrived at the shop with was GONE! It never ends with this place...

My experience with the new Kubota’s should be a warning to consumers to look for a tractor company who cares enough about their customers to have a “technical services” to negotiate problems and stand behind their products. After 20 years of total Kubota satisfaction, I find it disappointing that I would ever say this: STAY AWAY FROM KUBOTA! I am unfamiliar with other tractor companies. Maybe they operate under the same conditions. If they all do, then I will buy used tractors from now on and simply cross my fingers and hope for the best.

Seat mount retainer pin keeps getting lost and the seat wants to come off. This is so simple so I can only guess that the back and forth sway I put it through over uneven terrain works the pin out through friction. I replaced the pin with a bent pin clipped around itself and haven't had any more problems. Bottom line, bad pin design. <$1.

I bent the tie rod. My fault I got hung up on a stump. I was glad the tie rod bent (like a horseshoe) because it prevented front end damage since I didn't know it was hung up. I suppose it could have been made with stronger metal, but like I said, it probably would have broken something more important. The local Creel dealer kind of screwed up by sending me the wrong side (adjustable instead of fixed) and I ordered new dust caps, which were unnecessary, because the dealer didn't know they were included. But the dealer got me the part in three days and offered to take the dust caps back. <$100.

Hydraulic lines: I have popped two and started a leak in another. The leak in the loader line is probably my fault. I lift a lot of very heavy stuff. I am not out the weighting the trees, but they are very heavy. I'm pretty sure I put too much pressure on the lines. A line for the backhoe stabilizer sprung a leak. On the day it happened, I pulled so hard with the backhoe I tilted the tractor over a few times. And that has happened often. "It's a tractor stupid, not a bulldozer." So probably my fault too.

The line that I could complain about, and I think Kubota should look at, is the main line for the backhoe hydraulics. I seem to remember it got slightly damaged removing and reattaching the backhoe by getting pinched in the process. This is exactly where it sprung a leak. Design wise, there should be a modification that prevents this from happening since you can't see it while hooking the backhoe back up. Next time I have it off, I will be looking for a way to prevent this. Bottom line >$100 to replace all three lines and have them delivered to my house.

I did have one line come loose! Lost lots of hydraulic fluid before I knew it was loose. $50 in fluid and a lost 1/2 day dealing with it, but no long term damage I know of at this point. Dealer problem (not Creel)? Maybe. I am considering an old microscope trick of putting a line of nail polish on the connectors to keep them from vibrating loose.

Design issue: It is stupidly hard to relieve the hydraulic pressure on the lines that feed the grapple when you need to re-attach it. I have resorted to just bringing it home, futzing around with the controls, and then it will connect again. There should be some kind of hydraulic pressure relief button for the front end hydraulic attachments.

Design issue: the rollover protective structures (ROPS) set bolts. I keep my Kubota in a normal residential garage. That means I have to lower the ROPS every time I store it. It is a real pain because of the cable that keeps the bold with the ROPS. I understand the necessity, but it needs some kind of swivel. I'm tempted (though I never do) to NOT engage the ROPS because of what a pain it is to deal with the ROPS bolts. I haven't thought of a solution.

All in all, I can't really complain. It has been a workhorse. Maybe when I get 200+ hours on it I will feel differently or more things will break, but based on my HARD use, if >$200 in parts and >$200 on fluids and maintenance is all I have to pay and I get my land cleared, I have more than justified the cost of the tractor. I'm just one guy, a school teacher who uses the tractor hard on the weekends, but my Kubota has been good to me so far.

August 11, 2017 I was mowing. Suddenly the engine just quit, like I had turned it off. There was nothing, no reading on the instrument panel. The only lights coming on were the battery check light and the glow plug light. Called dealer, spoke to the Service Manager. The tractor was left outside (I park it in my garage). August 14, 2017 Dealer came and picked up the tractor. August 31, 2017 Service Manager called, tractor coming back tomorrow. September 01, 2017 Service Manager called, tractor failed again while being loaded on the roll off. September 21, 2017 Dealer delivered tractor back to my home. September 22, 2017 Took tractor out to mow, failed, same problem, soon after starting to mow. I called the Service Manager. Tractor was again left outside. September 25, 2017 Dealer came and picked up the tractor.

October 09, 2017 I called Dealer, spoke to Service Manager. He did not have time to talk and said he would call back the next day. October 16, 2017 Service Manager returned my call... a week after he said he would call the "next day". Said the only thing they could figure out that "might" be the problem is the instrument panel was bad. That was a $345.40 part. He did not know how long it would take to get the part. I gave him the "OK". October 30, 2017 I called Service Manager to check on any progress. He said the instrument panel had not arrived yet. November 07, 2017 Dealer delivered tractor back to my home. December 04, 2017 Took tractor out for the first time since being delivered, mowed approximately one to one and a half hours. Tractor ran as it should.

December 05, 2017 Took tractor out to finish mowing, approximately one half hour later it once again failed. I called the Service Manager. I left the tractor outside. December 06, 2017 I went out that night and replaced the fuse that keeps blowing because we were supposed to have freezing rain. Drove it back to the house and parked it in the garage. December 13, 2017 Dealer came and picked up the tractor. I am glad I decided to install a good fuse! When the driver came, and then when I spoke to the Service Manager right after it failed, I informed them I was putting no more money into the tractor for the same failure!

December 14, 2017 Thinking "fresh eyes" might pick up on something, or perhaps they had encountered this problem, I drove to another dealer, with all the paperwork, and asked that dealer if he could think of why this tractor was blowing this particular fuse. He said it looked like the other dealer had pretty much done everything he could think of. He mentioned the Rep. was in the back of the shop. Rather than the Rep coming out to speak to me, he went back and talked to him. When he returned he said the Rep told him that he knew of my tractor's problem and he planned on going to the dealership the following week... the week of December 18, 2017.

February 14, 2018 I had heard nothing from the Dealer, or the Service Manager. I opted at that point to called Kubota's Customer Service, rather than calling the Dealership... again. After I spoke to her, she said she would "reach out to the Dealership and the Rep." I told her it was up to the dealer, or Kubota, to cover the expenses because I had already paid for having work done for the same problem, that I am retired, on a limited income and no one seemed to be able to figure out what is wrong with the tractor.

February 15, 2018 Service Manager called me and his first words were... "I am so glad you called Kubota because it really lit a fire under the Rep!" (Does that mean that the Rep went down the week of December 18th and then did nothing... or that the Rep never went down at all???). The Rep did tell the Service Manager to go ahead and replace a part (the Service Manager told me later he is not a mechanic and so really doesn't know how to work on a tractor, hence the reason he didn't know the name of the part...). He hesitated because he wanted to know who was going to pay for the labor... the Rep said Kubota would pick up the repair through their "Goodwill" program... so they got right on it! February 22, 2018 Dealer delivered my tractor back to my home.

March 22, 2018 I took the tractor out for the first time since being returned, mowed for one and one half hours... and the tractor once again failed! I called the Service Manager. He said he didn't know when they could pick it up "next week". I drove into town to Home Depot, bought some fuses, installed the blown fuse, drove it to the house and parked it in the garage. March 30, 2018 I called Kubota's Customer Service again. She said all she could do is "reach out" to the Dealership and the Rep... It is now one week and three days... and the tractor is still in my garage and no one has called.

So, since August 11, 2017 until March 22, 2018 (Nine months) this tractor has been in the shop five times for the very same issue! I have paid the Dealership a total of $815.74, and the Service Manager, when I called him on March 22, is now talking changing out the wiring harness. I had that done when the tractor was four months old when rats ate the insulation off the wiring (because I was parking it in the barn...) and my choices of repair were... have their mechanic wrap all the wires (he was really good at that I was told...), or replace the wire harness for $1700 and they would work with me on payment. It was still under warranty then so I opted for the correct thing to do, replace the wiring harness. I would have anyway since I prefer a job be done right.

Problem = Consistently blowing 5 Amp fuse for the OPC. A 10 Amp had been put in by the person picking up the tractor on the fourth trip because their roll off was down, he had to use a flatbed trailer and the tractor was down among the trees so I had to be able to drive the tractor. The 10 Amp was still in the slot when I drove it the next time. It also blew the 10 Amp! I reinstalled a 5 Amp this last time so I could drive it to the garage. I will not just use the tractor and replace fuses as they blow... There will come a time when the entire wiring system would probably be fried, then I can hear them now. "You should have known better. You knew there was a short somewhere." I am not going down that rabbit hole!

OVERVIEW: Number of breakdowns = Six (for exact same problem). Out-of-commission = 9 months. Hours of use when home = Approx. 4 hours. Total paid for same repair = $815.74. Status of tractor as of April 01, 2017 = Failed. Payments have been faithfully paid, number left till payoff = 12 months (out of a five year contract). I LOVE my tractor! I just want it FIXED and I PROMISE I will never bother the Dealership again. I am disappointed to the extreme with the Dealership. I am also disappointed with Kubota. But I learned one thing. All Kubota dealerships are independents... therefore how easy it is for Kubota to not get involved. And the Kubota Rep? According to the Customer Service... they only talk to Kubota and the dealership. That, truthfully, I can understand. Makes sense. Would I ever buy another Kubota product? Sure I would, just not from that dealership. But hey, at my age, this will be the only tractor I will ever own.

Well, wait... If this doesn't get fixed, I just might have a green and yellow... or a red... tractor parked in my garage. But I truly want MY tractor. Presently, I do not know when I will hear from the Dealership. I keep trying to be very positive but the picture is getting dimmer by the day and it is difficult to keep from thinking that I will be "stuck" with a tractor that has a serious problem, I have one more year to pay... which I have never missed a payment, nor have I made a late payment... and then I am truly on my own.

Tomorrow will see me composing a letter to Kubota Corporate. It IS a good brand! Their products are excellent! And I really do love my tractor, unfortunately right now all it is doing is taking up space in my garage and I really miss being out on it. I have jobs that were planned to be done over the winter... that didn't happen. Now I cannot even mow my own property, I have five acres, just under four of which I mow... I shall remain optimistic that the Dealership and Kubota will make this right, but I am finished with being jerked around. Let's get this taken care of and not just "run it out" until I have paid for the tractor and then it's... "Who? Do we know you?"

"If you go by the dealer I purchased the unit from Mid-Florida Tractor & Equipment all his tractors sit outside in the open I had bought a year end unit so I was told making its time outside lengthy. Also every dealer I go past has their units sit outside in the open. I believe your representative needs to rethink his response to my inquiry about assistance on the replacement of this seat as this unit was only left outside by your dealer and is currently sitting in our garage with no seat and the time for using it with our bush hog is coming up soon. By the way this has really tarnished my faith in the Kubota brand and customer service."

My dislikes about the unit are the front tires that needed constant air until I decided to remove them and add tire sealant around the rim bead and it seems to work great. Don't know how hard it will be to remove the tires once they need replacement. Also, my right rear tail light has a bad socket which needs replacement. I'm not bringing it in for that. I will order a new fixture and replace it (Some day). Didn't work since the day I bought it and the bulb is good. Tried fixing the contacts in the socket, but can only make it work intermittently. They won't give me a free fixture unless I bring the unit into them for repairs. Yea! OK! They can go screw!

My unit has been good and reliable to me. But my front end will need alignment. I'll get to it when I get a chance. Unit was not perfect and when I got it home, and the engine temperature didn't work as soon as I got it home, Found the sending unit wire disconnected. This tells me that the dealer didn't thoroughly check the unit out before calling me that it was ready for pick up. As you can see, I installed a cutting edge as I scrape my driveway asphalt for snow removal. Should last a lifetime without ever flipping. Although it adds over 90 pounds to bucket, I can still lift a heaping bucket load of 3/4 clean stone. I still love my machine with the little flaws it has.

I understand some of the mechanical complaints that some people have, and no doubt that these dealers don't keep their word with the sales pitch when selling you the unit. It's all dealers that do this! It is frustrating. As a heavy equipment mechanic, this didn't bother me because I know how to repair the units and made sure that I ordered a full service manual with the unit as part of the deal. I did get the service manual, but of course the salesman lied to me by stating that he would "Kick it in" for free as part of the deal. I wanted the manual in case I ever ran into a technical problem, so I sucked it up and purchased the manual for an additional $200 upon picking up the machine. What a scam!!!! Oh yea! He did give me a free Kubota T-shirt. That made me a little happy! Lol... Don't forget to keep your machine serviced and it should last forever if used for home use like I do!!! Good luck!!!!

In their haste to refurbish and ship this unit they replaced the outlet hose and power beyond pipe fitting. The fitting was only installed hand-tight. In the first week of using the tractor I noticed hydraulic fluid leaking from this fitting. Within 1 year of receiving the tractor there was a noticeable reduction in power. With the bucket full of topsoil the tractor was unable to move in the forward direction. I notified Kahn who sent a service person to my residence to inspect. The serviceman noticed that there was missing hardware in the tractors linkage. He made the repairs on site. Since taking receipt of the machine it has been garaged and has never been left outside overnight. Yet the machine was delivered with a rusted muffler, dry-rotted o-rings, rusted universal joints, and peeling paint.

My suspicions were further raised when I received a letter from Kubota informing me that the model number on my original sales paperwork does not match what was shipped. I notified the Customer Service Manager of this and he never followed up with the seller and never provided a reason for this negligence. I purchased the BX25 with a mower deck and requested a mulch kit. The machine was not delivered with the parts removed from the original mower deck (blades, chute). I had to request them.

I initially contacted Kubota customer service in November 2017. I was contacted by Kubota customer service and conversations continued into early December 2017. The Service Manager refused to return my calls. I finally made contact with the Service Manager on 01/29/18 who indicated that holidays kept him from returning my call. After a short conversation it was apparent that Kubota does not stand by their products. This was further confirmed when the Customer Service Manager hung up on me.

I own a fence company in Angleton Texas, and not only have they not done what they said that they would do, they have reneged on the loaner tractor, and they were fully aware that I was buying the tractor for my business. I talked to Corporate, and they said that Bobby Ford should loan me a tractor, but they have no control over what each dealer does. Ain't that just special??? I will never buy another Kubota, and as soon as this one is fixed it's going up for sale. We can't even keep the turn signal lenses on it. I thought that this was an off road vehicle, not a parking lot only model?

In October I was still dealing with the issue and ended up with the mower totally not starting. I called them and they said they found the part on the manager's desk... Said they must have forgotten to call. So they came and got the machine. Over a week later I still had not heard from them so I stopped by the dealer. Only then was I told they lost the part in the 4 days it took for them to pick up the machine and had to order another so they could fix the problem. I finally got the mower back and was able to use it for one cut. A few weeks ago I got the mower started and ran it for not even 5 minutes and the issue was happening again. I managed to do most of my work with it but then it cut off and I had to get help pushing the mower back to the driveway because it just would not start. All this with only 110 hours on the mower.

Another week has passed and I called the dealer. They said they are waiting for a new wiring harness. They found a place in the wiring where they were smashed and look to be soldered back together. Kubota was saying the owner must have done this... The service tech said he had to remove the tank to even find this issue and he states he told Kubota there was no way the owner would have or could have done this to the wires. How scary is it that I was riding around on a machine where the gas tank is under the operator seat and there are smashed and soldered wires under it? Totally a safety issue to have wires under a tank and have them soldered. Now here I sit with a 4K dollar loan on a junk machine.

Never buy a Kubota Tractor or you will be ripped off!!! We also have a 3360 and we are selling this piece of junk at an auction for whatever it brings. We feel Kubota has ripped us off for about $40,000 on these 2 tractors. Want to share this... NEVER BUY A KUBOTA TRACTOR!!! We also had a R1100 ATV and dealer ripped us off for $1150. For air conditioning compressor. Although the machine had 300 hours!!!