Buying Advice Chinese yes or no.

[Mr Coutts]

Im in the market for a tractor, and the chinese tractors are so cheap at the moment,been looking at tractors with about 30 to 45 hp,must have a 4in1 bucket a slasher, I have 15 acres of nearly flat land in nsw Australia.

 

[Fluid]

I'm not telling you what tractor to buy, but all you have to do is look at and read some forums and pay attention to the posts and you will see which tractors are having or will have troubles. You can any day and read posts of folks that bought new or used tractor and see by the things they ask about like "why is my tractor doing this or that" and 9 times out 10 it will be low hour tractor thats have a problem. The chinese tractors are cheap and you get what you pay for. There is a saying "You can go broke saving a buck". I wish you good luck.

 

[doxford jim]

If you are handy with tools and can do your own repairs, the Chinese tractors can be a good buy. You need to do your research as there are some fly by night operators.
Check out this thread and you might get a better idea. Quite a few of the contributors are like yourself, Aussies, so their comments would be of some help to you.

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/chinese-tractors/246163-what-buy.html

Hope it is of some help for you.

In my opinion, I would look at either Dong Feng or Foton brands,

 

[Mr Coutts]

Thanks guy I am taking it in and doxford have been looking at the Dong Feng they look good,and Fluid i here you, but i really need to save a lot of bucks.lol

 

[kenmac]

Go to the Chinese section and read...I think you can make your own decision after reading several post in that section... They are cheap for a reason..

 

[alchemysa]

The Chinese stuff often looks good but they seem to have an aversion to using good quality metal, good quality rubber, and tightening up the nuts. That said, i'm a sucker for cheap Chinese electric or petrol tools because I don't expect much and I'm pretty handy with a spanner. I'd be very wary of Chinese tractor though. I'd REALLY read up a lot and talk to owners in your area. A tractor, unlike say a cheap chinese chainsaw, is not something you want sitting in your shed in pieces until you get around to fixing it.

 

[GManBart]

Fluid i here you, but i really need to save a lot of bucks.lol

Then why are you asking?

If you're trying to save money, nearly the worst thing you can do is buy a cheap machine that will almost certainly have problems. Having questionable parts support will only make that worse when you have to pay someone to custom make a part you can't get. Buy the best quality machine you can, and your overall costs will be lower over time.

 

[doxford jim]

They said the same thing about both the Korean and Japanese made cars back in the 60's and 70's. Now look at the market - the Japanese are in the lead and the Koreans a close second (I am ignoring the European brands deliberately). The major US car companies are still in trouble over their sales practices and policies, where as the foreign companies have done very well.

I wanted a new tractor - not one that someone else had manage to damage . I didn't want to buy someone else's problems in the major brands. New was much too expensive for me in the major brands - three to four times as expensive.

For me, the Jinma has worked out fine - my only regret is having not bought a tractor with a cab (I have an open station one). Digging snow at -20C without the benefit of a heated cab is somewhat painful.

As long as a person buys with their eyes open, does a lot of research and is mechanically inclined, a Chinese tractor can be a good buy. And for the record, it has been easier for me to buy parts for the Chinese tractor I own (haven't had to buy too many parts) than it was to buy parts for the 1959 MF65 tractor that I owned for several years.

Don't disregard the Chinese because of "rumours" - do some research. You will find all tractors have problems. Currently there are brand new John Deere 55** series tractors (big bucks) with brake problems that John Deere seems to want to do nothing about.

Which is better US made John Deere or Chinese made Foton, Dong Feng, Jinma etc.

 

[swines]

They said the same thing about both the Korean and Japanese made cars back in the 60's and 70's. Now look at the market - the Japanese are in the lead and the Koreans a close second (I am ignoring the European brands deliberately). The major US car companies are still in trouble over their sales practices and policies, where as the foreign companies have done very well.

Your perception is not reality. As you can see, the Japanese are not "in the lead" and the Koreans are not a "close second" - at least in the United States automobile market.

2014 US Car Sales by Manufacturer Market Share:

17.8% - General Motors
15.3% - Ford
13.9% - Toyota
12.5% - Chrysler
9.3% - Nissan
8.7% - Honda
4.2% - Hyundai
3.5% - Kia

The remainder of the manufacturers are single digits - some less than 1% of the market.

I wanted a new tractor - not one that someone else had manage to damage . I didn't want to buy someone else's problems in the major brands. New was much too expensive for me in the major brands - three to four times as expensive.

For me, the Jinma has worked out fine - my only regret is having not bought a tractor with a cab (I have an open station one). Digging snow at -20C without the benefit of a heated cab is somewhat painful.

As long as a person buys with their eyes open, does a lot of research and is mechanically inclined, a Chinese tractor can be a good buy. And for the record, it has been easier for me to buy parts for the Chinese tractor I own (haven't had to buy too many parts) than it was to buy parts for the 1959 MF65 tractor that I owned for several years.

Don't disregard the Chinese because of "rumours" - do some research. You will find all tractors have problems. Currently there are brand new John Deere 55** series tractors (big bucks) with brake problems that John Deere seems to want to do nothing about.

Which is better US made John Deere or Chinese made Foton, Dong Feng, Jinma etc.

I won't comment on the remainder of your post - but, your "facts" are equally suspect, and are really more personal opinion than information that can be backed up with hard numbers.

 

[doxford jim]

Ouch - sorry if I offended . You are entitled to your opinion just as I am to mine.
My comments are no less relevant than the others in this post, so please don't go off the deep end.
From your posting history there isn't much you agree on at all.

 

[GManBart]

Your perception is not reality. As you can see, the Japanese are not "in the lead" and the Koreans are not a "close second" - at least in the United States automobile market.

2014 US Car Sales by Manufacturer Market Share:

17.8% - General Motors
15.3% - Ford
13.9% - Toyota
12.5% - Chrysler
9.3% - Nissan
8.7% - Honda
4.2% - Hyundai
3.5% - Kia

The remainder of the manufacturers are single digits - some less than 1% of the market.


I won't comment on the remainder of your post - but, your "facts" are equally suspect, and are really more personal opinion than information that can be backed up with hard numbers.

To be fair, sales numbers don't necessarily equate to quality. If you take "in the lead" to mean the highest quality, Japanese and Korean companies generally are ranked higher than the U.S. brands when you look at things like the J.D. Powers, etc.

 

[kenmac]

I remember (as a kid) the Japanese tools ,etc was junk.. Their quality today (I believe) is 2nd to none.. Chinese stuff today is for the most part junk.. Their tractors are not of good quality. The steel hardening process is not very good and it shows up in chewed up gears, etc,... 1 day the Chinese (like japan) will get there. Just not today.

Chinese quality isn't close to any of the others.

Chinese tractor owners always claim.. All models have problems... This is true, but compare the ## if the other tractors sold to the Chinese tractors sold...


As I said.. they are cheap for a reason..

 

[Steppenwolfe]

Rule # 1 : You get what you pay for...
Rule # 2 : You can pay now, or pay later
Rule # 3 : Cheap isn't optional equipment

 

[poosniffer]

Rule # 1 : You get what you pay for...
Rule # 2 : You can pay now, or pay later
Rule # 3 : Cheap isn't optional equipment

^^^^^^ Best advice so far.Not a lot of quality to be had from Chinese products.

 

[vtsnowedin]

For me, the Jinma has worked out fine - my only regret is having not bought a tractor with a cab (I have an open station one). Digging snow at -20C without the benefit of a heated cab is somewhat painful.

Currently there are brand new John Deere 55** series tractors (big bucks) with brake problems that John Deere seems to want to do nothing about.

Which is better US made John Deere or Chinese made Foton, Dong Feng, Jinma etc.

You need a soft cab for that tractor. Does anyone make one to fit your model? Hummm that might be a problem that buying closer to home would solve.

I don't have any brake problems but others on a recent production have . I expect JD will sort it out before long and is just keeping quiet about it until they find the right fix.

 

[k0ua]

What I find interesting and don't have an answer for is why most Chinese tractor owners in the USA seem to like their tractors, but a lot of the Chinese tractor owners in Australia seem to hate theirs. Most of the horror stories seem to come from Australia, and may be related to dealer assembly and prep or the lack thereof. I cant speak from authority about the strength of the Chinese tractors, but it "seems" that several models seem to have weak front axle components. But again lots of people here will tell you they are happy with their Chinese tractor.

 

[vtsnowedin]

Well if you really want a tractor built in China you could always buy a John Deere built in one of their seven Chinese factories.
It is most certainly an over simplification to lump all Chinese produced tractors together. There are dozens of Chinese firms building tractors and other AG equipment and in that group there is bound to be the good , the bad and the ugly. The problem then becomes finding out which factories are making the highest quality products and sort out those making castings from pot metal.
They are developing there AG sector very fast and the government is pushing things forward which probably is where some of the problems lie.
While they sort that out I'm going to stick with Green as they have the ability to coordinate an Indian casting holding American machined gears over a Chinese axle.!

 

[k0ua]

Well if you really want a tractor built in China you could always buy a John Deere built in one of their seven Chinese factories.
It is most certainly an over simplification to lump all Chinese produced tractors together. There are dozens of Chinese firms building tractors and other AG equipment and in that group there is bound to be the good , the bad and the ugly. The problem then becomes finding out which factories are making the highest quality products and sort out those making castings from pot metal.
They are developing there AG sector very fast and the government is pushing things forward which probably is where some of the problems lie.
While they sort that out I'm going to stick with Green as they have the ability to coordinate an Indian casting holding American machined gears over a Chinese axle.!

These are good points.

 

[Baby Grand]

If you buy from a company that builds to western standards, ASM, AISI, ASTM, ANSI, ASME, AWS, etc., then you have a good chance at buying quality, provided they are rigorous in their inspection of & enforcement of those quality requirements. Established eastern & western companies that source to China have some degree of oversight on what they will and will not accept from the factory, and that's part of what you pay for when you buy from an established make. When you buy direct from China, I'm really not sure what you get. There will be Chinese companies that figure out what the Japanese did after WWII - that they have a quality perception problem in western markets and the way to address that is to adopt western quality standards ... or equivalent eastern standards ... and be rigorous in their enforcement. A reputation for quality is like any other reputation - hard to establish and easy to lose.

It sounds like there are some Chinese brands that are already committed to this path to quality, and if I were in the market for a Chinese tractor I'd be reading everything I could about the different brands, here on TBN, and taking careful notes.

 

[jix]

I do not own a Chinese tractor. I did own a Chinese ATV snowblower (GIO). No parts, no service no reliability. Soft bearings, soft bolts, soft roller chain, poor engine, weak clutch, Poor wiring. Every thing was shoddy. I sold it and bought a KUBOTA. MUCH HAPPIER! The Chinese blower broke down each time I tried to use it. I no longer will by any Chinese product including pet food, shrimp, or farmed fish..or anything canned.... and furniture made from Chinese elm is pretty bad too. Have had no luck with Chinese electronics, either.
Chinese steel is extremely weak, soft or very brittle. No I am not against a bargain...unless it isn't.