Kubota

I was told this exact model engine (D902) is used in gen sets and is bullet proof which I believe, but this one is certainly cursed. I am thinking the only way out might be to do a trade for a 2680 with a D1005 engine as I don't know if I can trust this one again. I understand the Kubota rep will be at the dealer next week, wonder if he has any magic? Signed, Distressed.

So Kubota replaced the entire hoe, now with 300 hrs the front tires are worn to less than 50%, the problem is the drive ratio between the front drive and the rear so badly out of proportion the front tires in four wheel drive are trying to pull the rears as the travel speed is impaired by this difference in gear ratio. Almost from day one this 3901 has had starting troubles. From one shut down to the next one or several of the micro switches in the system will not allow the machine to start. I have fifteen videos of this condition and still after all the work Kubota has done it has still got this starting issue. Unhappy with Kubota would be putting it mildly.

My new z421 only has 40 hours on it, made only 2 payments and it is in the shop already at (Kubota dealer). Going on 2 weeks and will probably be another week just to repair a belt. What good is the warranty on the mower (5 year/500 hours) if it takes this long To get your equipment back. They know how to sell them and finance them to you - but the dealer service is poor at best. I will probably need to seek a small engine repair shop out going forward and stay away from dealer at all Cost. I will buy my new tractor from another dealer and manufacturer when I purchase next year. Do your research well because the quality you expect may fall way short of expectation with Kubota. I know it did with me.

Now for the overwhelming awesome positive comments. Upon getting the BX2370 new, we had a warranty (so I am not saying I went crazy trying to get some of that warranty service... which never happened), HOWEVER... I dug with the front bucket approximately 3 1/2 feet to 4 feet in the ground over 70 feet in length!!! Then I dug a pond for the chickens and a catch basin to drain the garden better and then we filled up our fishbowl large front lawn (somebody else brought the dirt for free in numerous loads and still going strong... almost done out there).

Since the dirt came from a hospital that is being torn down there's some HUGE boulders and a lot of 6" stone averaging about 16" long (some smaller from breakage), anyway that BX2370 is no joke of a tractor. There were a couple of months in the wintertime that it was not starting until a heater was placed under tarp, but all in all, it otherwise ALWAYS starts RIGHT UP! GRRRuuummba! I even had a customer of mine (who keeps the maintenance on a church) move me and tractor over there to move a large pile of dirt to another location over 50 or more feet from the pile.

I love this Kubota. The drive-over mower attachment is not so loved though. I'm kind of old so although the mid-section mower may do a nice job, the new tractor (B2650) is ordered with a rear finish mower for it's less things to remember. Here's a true story: My mother was up from Florida during the time of the purchase of the Kubota. Our neighbor had purchased a new mower also but I can't remember the maker (not Kubota). His unit started having problems about 2 months ago.

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."