Comparison Help me choose. Kubota L6060 vs Mahindra 2555

[Terry Westbrook]

I'm wanting your true thoughts. Is the Kubota worth the extra money? I like it more but we are looking at about 8.000 more than the Mahindra. Both are Cab tractors with loader.

 

[CCWKen]

In 10-15 years, you'll be able to sell the Kubota for near to what you paid for it. The Mahindra, not so much. You'll be lucky to sell it at all. Price a 10 year old Mahindra and Kubota in the same class. Also see what parts you can buy for a 10yo Mahindra, if any (besides a new seat).

 

[DavesTractor]

In 10-15 years, you'll be able to sell the Kubota for near to what you paid for it. The Mahindra, not so much. You'll be lucky to sell it at all. Price a 10 year old Mahindra and Kubota in the same class. Also see what parts you can buy for a 10yo Mahindra, if any (besides a new seat).

Ken, your world is different than the reality we see here in our area. Percentage wise, we see no less resale value in our Mahindra tractors. Maybe in an area with no Mahindra dealers and little recognition of the brand you will see a greater delta, but those areas are getting harder to find.

And we have no issues getting parts. We have sold Mahindra since 2003 and parts are quick and easy for all models we have sold. Maybe some of the very early models have some parts issues, but you can say that of Kubota as well. Mahindra does a great job with parts.

I like Kubota tractors, and they have a great dealer network and good resale. Nice machines no doubt. I have nothing but respect for Kubota. But there is a reason that Mahindra is the top seller in the world by unit count and #3 in the USA now. They are doing some things right. They have a lot of work to do to catch Kubota in the USA, but they are ever so slowly and steadily gaining market share.

 

[Paystar]

I would buy a 10 year old Kubota before I ever bought a new Mahindra, LOL.

 

[DavesTractor]

I would buy a 10 year old Kubota before I ever bought a new Mahindra, LOL.

It would probably be about the same price, so good for you. You do know that a huge amount of the smaller Mahindras sold in the USA in the last 10 years are built by Mitsubishi in Japan? The quality on those units is quite high.

 

[TripleR]

Maybe as Dave's Tractor says there is a lot of regional difference, in our area you would be lucky to sell a used Mahindra. Our only local Mahindra dealer dropped them after many years because of poor quality and too much warranty work, his words. He continues to carry LS and Gehl. The ones made by Mitsubishi are probably good tractors, but it's hard to claim you are the top seller when you don't even make many of your tractors.

Personally between the two I'd pick the L6060, of course I own an L5740, BUT I would sure look at a comparable Kioti, and LS, lot of tractor for the money.

 

[DavesTractor]

Maybe as Dave's Tractor says there is a lot of regional difference, in our area you would be lucky to sell a used Mahindra. Our only local Mahindra dealer dropped them after many years because of poor quality and too much warranty work, his words. He continues to carry LS and Gehl. The ones made by Mitsubishi are probably good tractors, but it's hard to claim you are the top seller when you don't even make many of your tractors.

Personally between the two I'd pick the L6060, of course I own an L5740, BUT I would sure look at a comparable Kioti, and LS, lot of tractor for the money.

RRR, we sell a ton of Mahindras. Yes, I am sure we are biased, aren't we all somewhat? But these are good quality machines. They aren't perfect and I like some models more than others.

If you do not have a good local dealer, that can affect local resale. If your local dealer dropped Mahindra and took on LS, I suggest it was for reasons other than quality. But since he dropped Mahindra or Mahindra dropped him, it is unlikely he has a lot of positive things to say about his former brand. This is not meant to be disparaging towards Kioti or LS, both are good brands.

In our 5 county area, we have 3 Kubota, 2 JD, 2 NH, 1 Kioti, 1 Case, 1 Massey and 1 LS dealer. Plenty of competition. Our Mahindra dealership sells 32% of all 100 HP and down tractors in that area. The remaining 68% is split between those 11 dealers. And we have been in the 25-35% market share range for years. As such, we have great resale in our area. So my perspective is different than yours.

As to Mahindra not making many of their own tractors, that is not true on a global or even a national level. For us, it is true as we sell the smaller units way more often then the larger ones. Our market in California is largely the rural lifestyler customer, 5-40 acre ranchettes. But on a global scale of the roughly 250k units Mahindra sells each year, I bet 90% come from their own factories. Of the remaining 10 percent, a lot of them are sold in North America, that is true. And you may not be aware, but Mahindra is a 1/3rd partner now in Mitsubishi Ag. Mitsu isn't just a stop gap idea to bring in some small tractors. They have invested heavily in Mitsu and it is a very good product.

 

[TripleR]

Dave, for clarification, our dealer carried Mahindra, LS and Gehl for many years, but quit selling Mahindras keeping LS and Gehl. He likes to sell machinery, but doesn't like to do much on the mechanical side and warranty work was really hurting his profits. Our John Deere, Kubota/Case, Kubota/New Holland and AGCO all have big shops and service trucks with lots of big customers to sell and service as I live in a predominantly agricultural area. Our Kioti dealer sells more lawnmowers and garden supplies than tractors, so I don't seriously consider them, but they are good tractors, my brother owns one.

As mentioned, it may well be and appears to be a regional thing as when I bought my first Kubota in 2003 it was considered an off brand for people who couldn't afford a John Deere and now I am surrounded by them as more hobby users have moved into the country.

As I mentioned, I can only report what a long term dealer and user said as I've never owned a Mahindra. We've dealt with him on equipment etc. and have no reason to call his version into question. Additionally, my brother is a mechanic and spent a lot of time looking at them before deciding to pass and I trust his opinion more than my own.

They may very well be good tractors, I'm just not willing to chance my money on them and can't recommend something I wouldn't own.

 

[Paystar]

I'm sorry, but I just couldn't live with myself sending money to Mahindra's home country.

 

[WilliamBos]

I'm sorry, but I just couldn't live with myself sending money to Mahindra's home country.

No way i support places like that either. No money from me.

 

[Luke'sScreenName]

Mahindras appear to have resale problems here too. However, if you don't plan to ever upgrade it doesn't matter. The MUCH bigger problem here is finding a dealer thay has 1. Expertise/expertice. And 2. Will still be around and selling Mahindra in 5 or 10yrs.

 

[DavesTractor]

If the issue is less of a racial issue and more of a practical issue of keeping jobs at home, I can understand that. If you wish to keep all money in the USA or in Canada or north America, I understand that as well. But then you pretty much need to stick with a narrow group of USA made John Deere tractors. John Deere is a USA based company with plants all over the world (including India for over two decades) but they do make some models in the USA. I think that is cool, but it is a small pool of tractors to pick from. And if you are not careful and pick the wrong JD, you will buy an Indian built JD.

Paystar's Kubota is from a Japanese based company obviously For years folks would not buy from Japan due to World War II. Most are over that now as time has passed and we see that the folks in Japan now have no evil intentions as was the case during WWII. The MF 1635 owned by Williams Bros is built by Iseki if I recall correctly. Massey has built tractors all over the world for decades. I guess you guys are loyal to Japan?

But we are all entitled to our opinions, and I respect folks that vote with their pocketbooks. For myself, there are some companies that I don't do business with due to moral issues. I see them involved in things I do not support. So I just don't buy from them. But I do not have issues with the Indian people. I find them gracious and hard working, and the fact that they can sell into the world market has been very good at lifting a lot of folks out of poverty.

 

[WilliamBos]

If the issue is less of a racial issue and more of a practical issue of keeping jobs at home, I can understand that. If you wish to keep all money in the USA or in Canada or north America, I understand that as well. But then you pretty much need to stick with a narrow group of USA made John Deere tractors. John Deere is a USA based company with plants all over the world (including India for over two decades) but they do make some models in the USA. I think that is cool, but it is a small pool of tractors to pick from. And if you are not careful and pick the wrong JD, you will buy an Indian built JD.

Paystar's Kubota is from a Japanese based company obviously For years folks would not buy from Japan due to World War II. Most are over that now as time has passed and we see that the folks in Japan now have no evil intentions as was the case during WWII. The MF 1635 owned by Williams Bros is built by Iseki if I recall correctly. Massey has built tractors all over the world for decades. I guess you guys are loyal to Japan?

But we are all entitled to our opinions, and I respect folks that vote with their pocketbooks. For myself, there are some companies that I don't do business with due to moral issues. I see them involved in things I do not support. So I just don't buy from them. But I do not have issues with the Indian people. I find them gracious and hard working, and the fact that they can sell into the world market has been very good at lifting a lot of folks out of poverty.

Massey's roots are here in Ontario. Daniel Massey & Alanson Harris, with Harry Ferguson from across the pond. AGCO is USA owned, and has a few plants in USA, Jackson Minnesota to name one. But their technology has come from Europe for a long time, SISU, GIMA, Vario CVT. The profits stay here in North America. This is not our first tractor, and most certanly wont be our last. When it comes to Compact diesel engines, the Japanese are second to none.

If you want cheap that may not last long, then the cheaper brand with less support will be the route for you.... Not me though.

 

[akax50]

I am on the east coast and recently purchased a Mahindra 2555. I too had misgivings about the brand and did way too much research for my own good before getting rid of my green tractor for the Mahindra. I even went as far as to contact Dave of Dave's Tractor on the west coast before buying the Mahindra. Dave took the time to discuss with me at length the specific Mahindra model that I wanted and I thankfully took his advice. Dave is as good as they come and his word is true. No regrets with the Mahindra 2555!

 

[varmint]

Here in Northern Maryland, and Southern Penn., you don't see many Mahindras, certainly not many used ones for sale. My only experience with them was looking at new ones about 10-11 years ago, and being shocked at how weathered (and poorly constructed) they looked after being on a dealer's lot for who knows how long?

In this part of the country, Kubotas hold their value very well, Deere fairly well, also, it appears. Not enough of the other brands being sold used to form an opinion. I look forward to checking out Mahindras next time I get a chance.

 

[DavesTractor]

If you want cheap that may not last long, then the cheaper brand with less support will be the route for you.... Not me though.

Not into cheap, not into poor quality, not into poor support. If you knew me personally or saw the toys in my garage, you would know that is very far from the truth! But hey, this is the internet and we really don't know much about each other so I am not offended. We can agree that quality is important and good dealer support is important.

Keep in mind some of this is regional. Massey may be really strong in your area. But in our county and the surrounding 10 counties there is but one Massey dealer, and he actually carries several brands. We just do not ever see a new Massey being sold in our area. Worst supported brand by far in our area. But I know that is not the case everywhere.

We do agree on the Japanese compact diesels, they are some of the very best engines out there. And the Japanese Massey tractors are really nice. I've had a few, and I'm not knocking them. Iseki builds good stuff, but I think we can say that about all the Japanese tractor companies. Yanmar, Kubota, Mitsubishi, Iseki - all good quality and with the exception of Kubota, all have been or are being sold in the USA under a different brand. Kubota was bold and brave when they first came to the market and sold little tractors into a market that nobody else recognized existed. They then built a good dealer network and they have been reaping the benefits ever since.

 

[DavesTractor]

Here in Northern Maryland, and Southern Penn., you don't see many Mahindras, certainly not many used ones for sale. My only experience with them was looking at new ones about 10-11 years ago, and being shocked at how weathered (and poorly constructed) they looked after being on a dealer's lot for who knows how long?

In this part of the country, Kubotas hold their value very well, Deere fairly well, also, it appears. Not enough of the other brands being sold used to form an opinion. I look forward to checking out Mahindras next time I get a chance.

Deere and Kubota both have excellent dealer networks, but that didn't happen overnight. Mahindra is growing fast, but no doubt has some big geographical gaps where they have no dealers or perhaps a weak dealer. As Mahindra matures in the USA, it gets better dealers and drops problem or underperforming dealers. And it understands the market better. But what you said about weathering is true I hate to admit. Until the mid-2000's some of the paint formulations just didn't hold up to the UV challenges, and we had premature pink tractors if they were not stored in the barn. Much better now!

 

[DK35vince]

In this part of the country, Kubotas hold their value very well, Deere fairly well, also, it appears. Not enough of the other brands being sold used to form an opinion.

You also need to know what each brand/models sold for new vs used to see if the resale is actually better or not.

 

[DavesTractor]

I am on the east coast and recently purchased a Mahindra 2555. I too had misgivings about the brand and did way too much research for my own good before getting rid of my green tractor for the Mahindra. I even went as far as to contact Dave of Dave's Tractor on the west coast before buying the Mahindra. Dave took the time to discuss with me at length the specific Mahindra model that I wanted and I thankfully took his advice. Dave is as good as they come and his word is true. No regrets with the Mahindra 2555!

Thanks!

Now I'll step out of this conversation as I don't think the original poster really wants to hear a bunch of talk from a dealer. Unbiased comments from tractor owners are valuable, even if I do not agree with some of them.

 

[mike69440]

Thanks!

Now I'll step out of this conversation as I don't think the original poster really wants to hear a bunch of talk from a dealer. Unbiased comments from tractor owners are valuable, even if I do not agree with some of them.

You seem like a good guy, I for one will let you stick around.