Carver web site down?

[keyman1808]

I agree totaly. I operate my very own Buisness the same way on a word and a handshake. Sometimes you get burned but most times you make a customer for life. It is a shame they are gone I like doing buisness with people like that. I guess I will look for another dealer when I am ready to buy this spring.

 

[manganos]

I'm sad to see Carver gone too but I will tell you I had a great experience buying from Rick Wallace (Wallace Tractor). Pretty much a handshake deal

 

[LBrown59]

I do really love the little BX23. Plenty of power and will work great for my uses with the 60" MM mower and FEL. Craig Sanford also was able to find me a 4' Bushhog for only $300. To show how far they went when I picked up the BX23 they noticed the float funtion would not stay in float unless held by your hand. The previous owner removed the indent ball. They fixed it on the spot by replacing the valve with a new one. I was very impressed since it was a 2004 model being sold as is. Craig offered me lunch, gave me a few Kubota hats, and made sure I knew that they stood behind my new-to-me BX23.

I like the trailer .
What are you pulling it with.

 

[brin]

So many times on TBN you see a post with someone asking advice on what to buy...Blue, Green, Orange, Red - etc. and many post to buy from a good dealer you trust and feel good about.

This is where I disagree for this very reason, when I bought my NH, I bought it from a great dealer only a few miles away and 2 yrs. after I bought they dropped NH and went with JD and now the closest NH dealer is miles away and I don't trust them. So I would say buy a tractor for the quality of the tractor and price and find a local independant mechanic if you must at a later point but to buy a tractor based solely on a dealer just is not wise in this day and time..Things change. I would still buy the New Holland though.

 

[harpoonalt]

Sad to hear about Carver's but should be a lesson to us all. If you have a great dealer near you, who treats you right and offers you a fair price then please don't beat him to death on price. If they can come within $500 of your best price, that money buys you good service and keeps a dealer in business. I could save some money by dealing far away, but if my local dealer goes out, where do I go for service or parts. By all means avoid dealers who have crappy service and sales, they deserve to go out of business. But shopping by price alone will force a lot of good dealers to go out. Just like tipping in a restraunt, reward good or great service with a little extra dough.

 

[veresjwv]

Sad to hear about Carver's but should be a lesson to us all. If you have a great dealer near you, who treats you right and offers you a fair price then please don't beat him to death on price. If they can come within $500 of your best price, that money buys you good service and keeps a dealer in business. I could save some money by dealing far away, but if my local dealer goes out, where do I go for service or parts. By all means avoid dealers who have crappy service and sales, they deserve to go out of business. But shopping by price alone will force a lot of good dealers to go out. Just like tipping in a restraunt, reward good or great service with a little extra dough.

Sorry but I have to disagree with this way of thinking.... In an ideal world it would be great but...... After owning a business for 15 years I found customer service means a great deal but when it comes to price (especially in this day and age) most people could care less about keeping their "local guy" in business. Also I guess that I am fortunate in that I have three local Kubota dealers and isn't it funny how when I priced my Kubota all three where very close to each other and ALOT higher then the dealers a couple of hours away.
Also if we were to adhere to this type of "support your local dealer by giving them what ever price they would like to charge" instead of 500 more how about 1000 or 2000 more? Competition is what keeps the prices down and makes your local dealer provide the great service!!
If you don't believe me...take a drive to your "Local" Walmart and see how many people are supporting the smaller business in your town that charge a little more for their products then Walmart does.
Just had to get that off my chest!!!!

 

[manganos]

I always try to support the lil' guy. I bought my first Kubota from a local guy and he was great when selling it to me but the support after the sale sucked to say the least. Then when I wanted to go bigger I went to Steve Carver and he was great during and after the sale.


I just bought my Mahindra from Wallace tractor up in PA and had it delivered down here to VA. He was THOUSANDS and I mean more then 3 cheaper then my "local" guy and offered me better financing and the local guy wanted $250 to deliver my tractor even though he drives by my house to get to his house.

Point in case we can't always "support the little guy".

 

[Barlow Equipment]

I always hate to see a dealer go down, especially one that is of the "mom and pop" variety. We operate on a handshake as well and will continue to do so. By doing so, it puts the pressure on us to make sure the tractor is right when it gets to the customer. I have never been burned doing this...that fact alone makes me feel pretty good about humanity.

In many cases, the overhead of trying to start a new business or buy an existing one in a down economy is too much to bear. If the employee did indeed steal at Carver's, that certainly didn't help.

In this season of thanks, I am thankful for all of our customers who have trusted us both locally and long-distance over the years. I am also proud that I am able to work alongside my Dad who started the business 35 years ago. Sorry to be mushy, but 'tis the season.

 

[RTJ49]

Hi Brady.
If you feel like being mushy, that's cool. You have earned it. I did not buy from you, but you treated me well. You helped with my many questions, when you could have laughed. You returned all calls. I narrowed my choice to a pair of out of state dealers. Both had great prices, and reputations. One was much closer than Barlows. Both were so much better than any local K dealers.

Raymond Jordan
BX 25

 

[Charlesaf3]

A note on the above - if you are interested in paying way more for a kubota, buy it in Massachusetts.

That's why outof state dealers do so well selling into mass...

 

[medicshawn]

People keep using the figure 500. I went to my local dealer first then called Brady to see what he could do. His first offer without knowing what my local quote was was a difference of 4500 dollars. He was also very resonable on adding accessories. It would have been easier to deal locally, but as long as there is such a difference among dealers people will continue to buy from great distances.

On a side note alot of times when you find a great deal on something customer service suffers. Not the case with Brady. He is responsive to calls and emails. We made a deal over the phone and everything was exactly as promised. I had some warranty issues after I received the tractor. He shipped me the replacement parts in a timely manner. So other that opening a dealer closer to my house I couldn't ask for anything more from a dealer...

I also talked to Carver when shopping things didn't work out but they also seemed good to deal with to bad they closed up shop.

 

[Willl]

but as long as there is such a difference among dealers people will continue to buy from great distances.

Including overseas.

 

[CHDinCT]

I too had contacted Carver's when I was looking for my BX last year. Their prices were well below what I was being quoted locally but they would not deliver to CT at that time (looks like that changed - maybe they were getting a lot of inquiries from the NE?). I think they said they'd go as far as northern VA. I briefly considered renting a trailer and driving to NC to pick up a BX, but decided that it was too much hassle and would eat up a chunk of my savings. I will say that my dealings with them were very pleasant and professional.

 

[crazyal]

A note on the above - if you are interested in paying way more for a kubota, buy it in Massachusetts.

That's why outof state dealers do so well selling into mass...

I would expand that to most of New England. I can't say every dealer up here but of the ones I've priced I've only gotten 3% to 4% knocked off list.

 

[vic654]

I couldn't agree more about the NE area dealers.I was looking to move out of my bx to a grand L cab but i couldnt get any of them to move any more than 5-6% off msrp.I then started looking at JD and i was able to get 15% off my 3720 cab and i made the deal.I had good luck with my kubota but the dealers made me look elsewhere.

 

[manganos]

I also hear that Kubota is VERY hard to work with as far as dealers are concerned. I hear if they catch ya selling another "Orange" tractor they will yank your franchise

 

[MessickFarmEqu]

I also hear that Kubota is VERY hard to work with as far as dealers are concerned. I hear if they catch ya selling another "Orange" tractor they will yank your franchise

That statement is outright laughable. Anyone who said that has not worked with very many manufacturers. Kubota is without a doubt the easist company that we work with (expect for maybe Stihl, they've got their act together also).

 

[Spudland_Dave]

I couldn't agree more about the NE area dealers.I was looking to move out of my bx to a grand L cab but i couldnt get any of them to move any more than 5-6% off msrp.I then started looking at JD and i was able to get 15% off my 3720 cab and i made the deal.I had good luck with my kubota but the dealers made me look elsewhere.

I agree with the NE Dealers being high, but I think its also a "regional" thing...
from where I'm typing this eMail now...no exxageration.. I can drive to the following dealers within 30 minutes
-2 JD Dealers
-Kubota
-Mahindra
-CaseIH
-Yanmar/CubCadet
-Massey

Also a stone's throw away (closer to the house) would be yet another JD Dealer and another Kubota dealer....

Long story short, the compeition in my little area is pretty good...and I think all the dealers with the above brands realize it and price accordingly...I cant say one dealer is WAYY much more money then another.

In my Parent's neck of the woods the dealerships are somewhat more limited and the pricing is a bit much more...

 

[keyman1808]

I dont know about the rest of the guys from MA and surrounding areas but the warranty service really bites. I understand that if I dont want to bring it in myself that I will have to pay the transport fee but to then charge me to fix the hydraulic leak coming from under the tractor while its still covered is just outrageous. But what can you do they got you by the B@##s.

 

[sw03]

I too had contacted Carver's when I was looking for my BX last year. Their prices were well below what I was being quoted locally but they would not deliver to CT at that time (looks like that changed - maybe they were getting a lot of inquiries from the NE?). I think they said they'd go as far as northern VA. I briefly considered renting a trailer and driving to NC to pick up a BX, but decided that it was too much hassle and would eat up a chunk of my savings. I will say that my dealings with them were very pleasant and professional.

Back in 2004 I think, I tried to buy another BX and they would not sell it too me. They said it was per Kubota rules via phone/online...So I looked at another deal in NY (love them). Not my home state too.

So, it is not the best but there CS sucked.