Branson 4220, Century C42, and Zetor C42L water pumps

[UpLateAgain]

I just wanted to pass on some info I hope might be helpful to someone with any of the tractors listed in the title.

I own a 2005 Zetor C42L tractor, which is the exact same tractor (just re-badged) as a Century C42 or a Branson 4220. Zetor started selling the tractors after making a deal with Kukje, the Korean company that manufactures a number of the Branson and Century models. However, Zetor and Kukje had a parting of the ways, so Zetor doesn't support them. In fact, if you call a Zetor dealership for parts, they're likely to tell you they never heard of the tractor and have no idea how to help you out.

Fortunately, Branson is still going strong, so I have been able to get parts when needed by ordering parts for a Branson 4220. Those three tractors use the Kukje A2000 engine. The only problem with them, is that though the tractor was extremely reasonably priced ($17k out the door with loader) and it has been a workhorse, parts costs are often through the roof, and wait times to get them unreasonable. My water pump went out, and it took nearly four months to get a replacement delivered at a total cost with shipping of $489.00. It was after I got the new water pump installed (the tractor is once again humming), that I discovered the exact same water pump is commonly available as a Chinese aftermarket part for a Cummins A2300 diesel.

You can find the pump offered on eBay, with just a few days delivery time, for between $133.00 and $148.00 (free shipping) from about ten different sources. Just put in the Chinese part number (4900469) in the search box, and up it will come. It's the same water pump as is used in any piece of equipment with a Cummins A2300 engine.... and that is a LOT of various pieces of equipment from a wide assortment of imported tractors, to fork lifts, to back hoes. So the water pump is actually widely available. Just be careful to ensure it's the part # 4900469 pump. There are several pumps that look virtually identical, but miss being able to mount by sometimes millimeters, and a lot of aftermarket sellers of the water pumps confuse them. Be sure your part is listed as 4900469.

So...... If you happen to have a Branson 4220 or 4220i, or a Century C42, or a Zetor C42L, and your water pump goes out, you can order the original manufacturer's part at $400.00 and wait months to get it, or order the Chinese after-market part 4900469 for under $150 delivered and have it in a few days to a couple of weeks or less. I ordered one to keep on the shelf as a spare from AliExpress.com for $58.50 (plus $45.42 shipping and $2.82 tax ... for a total of $109.97 delivered), and it came in an identical box as the one I ordered from Branson in two weeks instead of four months..... and the fit and finish on the pump is superb. The Branson dealer told me he thought their water pumps were probably made in China anyway, so the odds are I got the identical pump for 20% of the cost.

 

[Asteral]

thanks for this info UpLateAgain i've saved this page, as we are a large servicing dealer for branson this will be extremely helpful in the future to save some of my customers with these older models some money.

 

[Cougsfan]

Branson certainly isn't alone in having a poor parts supply system. It has became the standard model for equipment supply companies (tractors, cars, appliances, etc.) to turn their parts department into a huge profit center. Sure they have to cover wages for parts room workers, the cost of having parts storage buildings to own and maintain, and inventory costs for the parts themselves. But the mark-up they use seems to exceed their cost of doing business far more than just substantially. And the sad part is that they do such a horrible job of actually providing parts despite their outlandish costs. I suspect it is a case of the companies having far too many white shirt employees and far too few blue shirts.

 

[defranks]

I realize that this is an old post... but....
I ordered the part number you mentioned for the Cummins A2300. The pump fits perfectly but when I tried to swap the two temp sensors from the old pump to the new one I found that the threads are a different size, just a bit too small. Did you find the same thing when you swapped pumps? What did you do about replacement sensors?