Branson Warranty Woes

[rgbryant]

I purchased a Branson 3620H from a Branson dealer near Nashville Tn in March of 2022 and took delivery in April of 2022 after having hydraulic connections added to the front loader. I took it to the farm and at 15 hours started having problems. No power exceppt oin low gear (A). Called the dealer and the mechanic informed me it was most likely the powder coating on the rear axle was too thick This was a known problem with Branson. Delivered it to dealer (150 miles from the farm) and at this point it had 28 hours on it. After a couple of weeks they said it was ready for pickup. Problem was the fuel pump had been bad and it was replaced. I picked it up and took it home. The problem persisted. I called and the mechanic said that it needed to run for an hour to clear the re-gen. So, now it has 30 hours on the meter, and I took it back. Weeks pass and they finally determine that the main hydraulic pump is bad, and I will not see it for a couple of more months. At this point it is December, and I have had my tractor less time than the SHOP! I gave the dealer $30,000 for a tractor with 2 implements, and $5,500 for a trailer. This is a lot of money for me, and I have nothing to show for it. We have had to pay over $6,000 for another individual to do some road clearing and gravel spreading on the farm because my brand new tractor was not working. Now, its late January and Im still waiting. I have spoken with Branson in Georgia multiple times. The part was shipped last week, and the dealer is working on it. I have zero faith in my purchase, and am dissatisfied with the lack of help from my dealer. I asked for a replacement, no chance. All I get is a reassurance that it is all under warranty. Well whoop de doo! Customer service is dead. What recourse do I have? I am angry and frustrated.

 

[K5lwq]

Sorry for your troubles. Basically at this point all you can do is wait. However, I am not sure of the diagnosis being accurate. But without knowing more details it is hard to say just something does not sound right. Especially the part about codes needing cleared as that tractor is a mechanical injected engine and does not care about the codes.

 

[workinonit]

Lots of things wrong with this purchase so that's all I will say about it. I don't know anything about Branson tractors except what I read on here which is that folks buy them for simplicity, lack of electronics and the ease of working on them. That being said and a dealer worth a poop, this shouldn't even be an issue. Sorry for your troubles and frustration, I would be pissed too.

 

[QRTRHRS]

I don't recall all of the details but a friend used the so called lemon laws to get a dealer to take back a tractor a few years ago. In his case there was a major casting defect that was causing clutch issues. Same deal though, the tractor was in the shop more than on his property. Worth looking into.

 

[5030]

Should have bought something else. I always maintain that a poor dealer always leaves a bad taste in your mouth. There is a Branson dealer up town. I never even go there. Nothing there interests me and he has a bad reputation.

 

[Slowpoke Slim]

I purchased a Branson 3620H from a Branson dealer near Nashville Tn in March of 2022 and took delivery in April of 2022 after having hydraulic connections added to the front loader. I took it to the farm and at 15 hours started having problems. No power exceppt oin low gear (A). Called the dealer and the mechanic informed me it was most likely the powder coating on the rear axle was too thick This was a known problem with Branson. Delivered it to dealer (150 miles from the farm) and at this point it had 28 hours on it. After a couple of weeks they said it was ready for pickup. Problem was the fuel pump had been bad and it was replaced. I picked it up and took it home. The problem persisted. I called and the mechanic said that it needed to run for an hour to clear the re-gen. So, now it has 30 hours on the meter, and I took it back. Weeks pass and they finally determine that the main hydraulic pump is bad, and I will not see it for a couple of more months. At this point it is December, and I have had my tractor less time than the SHOP! I gave the dealer $30,000 for a tractor with 2 implements, and $5,500 for a trailer. This is a lot of money for me, and I have nothing to show for it. We have had to pay over $6,000 for another individual to do some road clearing and gravel spreading on the farm because my brand new tractor was not working. Now, its late January and Im still waiting. I have spoken with Branson in Georgia multiple times. The part was shipped last week, and the dealer is working on it. I have zero faith in my purchase, and am dissatisfied with the lack of help from my dealer. I asked for a replacement, no chance. All I get is a reassurance that it is all under warranty. Well whoop de doo! Customer service is dead. What recourse do I have? I am angry and frustrated.

Sorry to hear about your troubles. That stinks.

But this:

Called the dealer and the mechanic informed me it was most likely the powder coating on the rear axle was too thick This was a known problem with Branson.

That's about the dumbest thing I've ever heard. The guy has to be joking. Not really a circumstance for him to be a wize-@ss about. If that's the "mechanic", I wouldn't want him touching my tractor. I wonder if corporate would be interested in his attitude? I would agree that sounds like a horrible dealer. I thought only The Greene Ones treated their customers that way. (Kidding, of course) Is there any traction when you call corporate? Maybe see if a different dealer can take your case?

Was the emissions regen light flashing or steady on when you were trying to operate it? If not, I doubt it "just needs a regen". I wonder if they pooched something while they had your hydraulics apart? If "Powder Coat Guy" was the one doing the original work, I would double down on the notion of taking it somewhere else.

Good luck to you.

 

[rgbryant]

Update.
Branson (now TYM) took tractor to Georgia in January. They picked it up (in pieces) from dealer. This was due to my meeting with dealership owner and yelling at him. The threat of a lawsuit probably helped. Took a while, but they delivered my tractor to another dealership near me in Murfreesboro Tn. I picked it up two days ago and plan to run it hard when the monsoon rains stop, hopefully tomorrow. First time I’d seen my tractor in almost 5 months. I am a very disappointed customer and believe that the only person worth 10cents at TYM/Branson is the service rep in GA. Let the buyer beware.

 

[scootr]

Glad you got something done... I'd be tempted to sell that tractor and buy a different brand.

 

[TimberFarm]

Sounds like TYM stepped up to the plate and I would think the dealer they took it too would have a good reputation or else TYM wouldn't stick their neck on the line like they did.
Now that they physically are involved due to taking it in and then sending it back out makes them have skin in the game.

Keep us posted.

 

[ljjhouser]

I was confused at the "Powder Coat" defect. Wonder what the dealer mechanic procedure is to fix that??? Wonder where he got "Powder Coat" specs?? I am sorry you had all the trouble. Seems like sometime if the dealer is worthwhile, then likewise is the tractor. If the dealer is not worthy of the product, then the tractor may become a bad experience. I have an excellent dealer. I am fortunate.

I would also be tempted to sell the tractor and look into another brand (meaning dealer). Use it as needed now, keep it clean, sell it and reinvest. I have an orange tractor. But I also have faith from what I have read in Kioti, LS, New Holland and some others. I also like green, but the dealers in my area are not interested in the CUT market. They are better suited to large farming operations. And I understand - that is where the money really is.

Keep us posted as you run the tractor. Let us know if it is really fixed and if you feel better about the purchase. Best Wishes.