“Buy the dealer, not the machine” is outdated

Chrisb009 · Mar 26, 2021

I run my own business locally and have several clients. Most of my clients have been with me for more than 10 years. The problem with some businesses is that they want to make a large % of profit on each sale. The same businesses typically provide poor customer service in all aspects since they are only in it for the profit motive and could care less about their employees or customers. This is what has driven businesses out of business. The typical order of precedence for me is as follows: price, customer service then service/parts. I believe you'll find many "technicians" who couldn't troubleshoot their way out of a paper bag let alone resolved a complex common rail injection issue or other emissions related issues on today's diesel engines - thus the service aspect isn't that important to me. Just my thoughts / .5 cents...

-Chris

johnco450 · Mar 26, 2021

The advice that everyone has given is very useful but every situation is different. My thinking is you get the best combination of tractor and dealer you can find. I don't think any of the tractor brands will let you down. Sometimes it comes down to the configuration. I ended up with a Kubota BX23S since they are able to package the TLB combination for a very reasonable price. That was the tractor I really wanted anyway after all the research and ended up buying at a dealer that's a good 45 minutes from me but they have an excellent reputation for everything from my little tractor to the largest farm machinery.

TBone · Mar 26, 2021

slingha said:
Ive also seen some people mention that if you purchase a tractor from a dealer that's 200 miles away with a better price that your closest dealer won't service your tractor. Im sure their agreements with their respective brand strictly forbids that(like a car dealer).

I've never had a dealer tell me they won't work on my tractor because I didn't buy it from them but I did have one to tell me "We work on our customers' tractors first, others last." I have never had a car dealer tell me that.

zzvyb6 · Mar 26, 2021

So, in 20 years, will your tractor brand even exist ? There are some 'pretty' red ones that first appeared about 15 years ago, now what ? When you have a breakdown in the field, will your dealer 200 miles away stop by to either fix it in the field or transport it back to their shop to repair it and bring it back home. On hay day when your clutch or fluid drive STB, will your overseas dealer bring another tractor to your farm so you can beat the rain ? Will your dealer airfreight ship parts from warehouses across the country directly to your place ? Will your Long March dealer let you try out the machine for 30 days to see if that model works best for you ? Mine does.

Sure, using your 'tractor' for a lawnmower or a wheel barrow doesn't need a lot servicing other that when you wax it once a week, but when your head gasket blows, or you break the transmission casting, or need a 1100 lb tire changed what and who exactly is going to fix it ? Just look thru the forum to see users over loading, overheating and generally abusing their machines. Ask them how, who, and when the machine will be back in service. I have 4 same brand dealers within 15 miles of me, 3 alternate brands to choose from, too. I get parts shipped UPS overnight to my barn. When I walk in they say "Hi Bill". For me, there's more to a purchase decision that saving 10%. I'm in it for the long run. "Each to his Fancy, as me and my Nancy, said the old woman as she kissed her cow."

Chrisb009 · Mar 26, 2021

TBone said:
I've never had a dealer tell me they won't work on my tractor because I didn't buy it from them but I did have one to tell me "We work on our customers' tractors first, others last." I have never had a car dealer tell me that.

It's typical in the RV industry to limit service to customers who purchased directly from the dealership. For those dealership's who exercise this flawed thought process they have lost my business 100%. I won't purchase anything from those dealership's to include accessories. I'll drive 250 miles before I purchase from such a dealership. I vote with my dollars and without dollars those dealerships will eventually go by the wayside through their own demise.

Chrisb009 · Mar 26, 2021

zzvyb6 said:
So, in 20 years, will your tractor brand even exist ? There are some 'pretty' red ones that first appeared about 15 years ago, now what ? When you have a breakdown in the field, will your dealer 200 miles away stop by to either fix it in the field or transport it back to their shop to repair it and bring it back home. On hay day when your clutch or fluid drive STB, will your overseas dealer bring another tractor to your farm so you can beat the rain ? Will your dealer airfreight ship parts from warehouses across the country directly to your place ? Will your Long March dealer let you try out the machine for 30 days to see if that model works best for you ? Mine does.

Sure, using your 'tractor' for a lawnmower or a wheel barrow doesn't need a lot servicing other that when you wax it once a week, but when your head gasket blows, or you break the transmission casting, or need a 1100 lb tire changed what and who exactly is going to fix it ? Just look thru the forum to see users over loading, overheating and generally abusing their machines. Ask them how, who, and when the machine will be back in service. I have 4 same brand dealers within 15 miles of me, 3 alternate brands to choose from, too. I get parts shipped UPS overnight to my barn. When I walk in they say "Hi Bill". For me, there's more to a purchase decision that saving 10%. I'm in it for the long run. "Each to his Fancy, as me and my Nancy, said the old woman as she kissed her cow."

This sounds llike a business need and not so much geared towards the compact tractor segment. I'd agree - if in business you need stable and reliable equipment. I have several friends back home, where I grew up, who farm. Those folks need the stability and reliability where as I have a much less need for those aspects. It all depends on the individual need.

acrozier · Mar 26, 2021

slingha said:
When I was looking for a new tractor I kept seeing posts that you should be less picky on brand and more picky on your dealer. This is such antiquated thinking imho.
Buy the tractor that feels good and provides the best combination of quality and price, wherever and whatever it is.
Do you buy a car that costs 2 grand more from a local dealer because he’s local? I know I don’t.

Generally, I would disagree with this statement for one primary reason. If you do your research, you will find that all the sub-100HP tractors are manufactured either in India or Korea. Most of them have the same manufacturer with some slightly different body and badging. Yes, even JD and NH are Korean tractors. They may be assembled in the US, but they are manufactured overseas. Kubota is one of the few that is manufactured elsewhere (Japan).

So lets say I narrowed my decision down to JD, NH or LS. I would pick the LS due to the dealer being closer. NH & LS are the same tractors. JDs are usually a Yanmar.

I did buy a new tractor recently. I had a Mahindra (India). Loved it, but they had gotten pricey since they are really popular now. Started looking around and compared Kubota, Kioti and Branson. I liked the Kubota, but the Branson offered more for the money. Bought the Branson and have been a happy Branson owner for 7 yrs. Dealer is local, even though I haven't really needed them. But it is nice to stop by and talk to them and get brand filters / fluids whenever needed.

hube2 · Mar 26, 2021

EddieWalker said:
Before 2012, there might be some argument that Dealer Support wasn't a big factor in what tractor to buy if you could find parts for it online and you knew how to do your own repairs. But with Tier4 smog on bigger tractors, and everything being controlled by computers on all sizes of tractors, it's becoming almost impossible to fix some things on your tractor yourself. This trend will continue and become even worse. If you have a bad dealer, you're tractor experience will be horrible. If you have a good dealer, you will be much happier when you need him.

I think that the quality of your dealer is more important now then it has ever been before.

There was a time that I would not have thought about bringing my car to a mechanic either, granted this was 30 or 40 years ago. Why, because there was nothing on the cars made at the time that I didn't have the skill to work on. I could tare down and entire engine and put it back together in my back yard and didn't even need to put the engine out of car first to do it. Today it is not the same. Hell, I can't even change the oil filter on my wife's car without a lift because the filter is actually inside of the oil pan and you can't get it high enough to get it out with just a jack.

There are things I can deal with on my tractor, but that is just routine maintenance stuff. I can also remember older tractors that were just as easy to work on as the cars. The 2 tractors my father in law had I did any work that was needed. An old Farmall H and I forget what the other one was.

Without a dealer I can trust I would likely be screwed, although I can detect when a mechanic is treating me like a mushroom, I just don't have the skill or the equipment to do everything the way I used to.

Blue Mule · Mar 26, 2021

If I had gotten my decision down to 2-3 tractors and 1 of them was going to come home with me, you better believe that the quality/friendliness of the dealerships would be a HUGE factor in which brand I'd pick.