DO NOT BUY TC40/45

[Dougster]

Doug- I was only trying to make some humor about Internet abbreviations, a little too dry I guess. I just was reusing your own words of LC threads being "long" and "controversial" at times. No disrespect meant; I read these things too because I'm also currently in the market for a heavy use machine as well.

Hi Harold - I didn't really take it as disrespect... although I didn't take it as humor either. I just took it as a plain and simple comment... an observation with some definite truth to it. These do end up being long threads and all the other adjectives thrown in there... but for a good reason. Folks are interested and lots of folks even have a genuine stake... or at least some very strong opinions... about the brand and model series being discussed as well as the topic of dealer vs. manufacturer responsibility. We all come away taking something different from these discussions... for me it is clearly the business aspect: what machines work reliably in that kind of rigorous service and how well they are supported by both the dealer and the manufacturer when problems arise.

No harm or dissing intended... honest.

Dougster

 

[Z-Michigan]

Given the number of posts, apparently I am not alone in my interest in these sorts of threads.

Dougster

Nope, lots of us are very interested. I'm not currently in business in this area but the thought has crossed my mind a few times.

On a different note, when I was tractor shopping 6 months ago, the local NH/Kubota dealer, which is the only nearby NH dealer but one of four nearby Kubota dealers, was steering me away from a TC45 even though it was higher priced than the botas I was looking at, and they had some aging (but new) TC's on the lot that I would have thought they'd want to get rid of. They didn't say anything bad about it, just were suggesting the botas. This place is a full line dealer for Kubota and NH, selling everything from garden tractors and zero-turns up to 300+hp row crop tractors and combines. Very interesting...

 

[MtnViewRanch]

Nope, lots of us are very interested. I'm not currently in business in this area but the thought has crossed my mind a few times.

On a different note, when I was tractor shopping 6 months ago, the local NH/Kubota dealer, which is the only nearby NH dealer but one of four nearby Kubota dealers, was steering me away from a TC45 even though it was higher priced than the botas I was looking at, and they had some aging (but new) TC's on the lot that I would have thought they'd want to get rid of. They didn't say anything bad about it, just were suggesting the botas. This place is a full line dealer for Kubota and NH, selling everything from garden tractors and zero-turns up to 300+hp row crop tractors and combines. Very interesting...

My local New Holland- Kubota dealer is the same, tends to push the Botas. I think that they may make more money on the Botas, but I don't really know.

 

[Farmwithjunk]

My local New Holland- Kubota dealer is the same, tends to push the Botas. I think that they may make more money on the Botas, but I don't really know.

A Massey Ferguson dealer I trade with is doing much the same thing. They now handle Branson tractors also. He's really pushing the branson line and putting the Massey's on the back lot. He told me it had to do with Bransons "floor plan" vs. Massey's dealer incentive program. He could afford to let the Masseys sit longer than the Bransons and still make just as much per unit, where the Bransons needed to move with-in a couple months of their arrival to make his full cut.

 

[jinman]

I took it out (big job, two mowers, two crews) and it went til exactly noon and it broke again. Same PTO switch. I call the dealer, even he's upset at this point. He says "we don't have any switch's"
I say, sure you do, that loaner without a FEL i ahd the other day is sitting there. How about if I send my wife down to get it and we'll switch it out. They agree, they strip it, I send the wife down (she can't mow anyway, what difference does it make), 30 minutes, about 20+ miles to get it. She gets it, switches it out
It runs for an hour and does the same thing.
Dead in the field. There are no more PTO switches in Denver (all 3 dealers) (obviously it's only MY problem), and every TC on their lot has been stripped from switches, they can't even sell one.

Wow! The same switch three times? On two tractors? What are the odds of this? How is it that we aren't hearing of many other people with the same problem? Surely there would other dealers/customers experiencing the same problems. I'm not there and I should not be too quick to judge, but every ounce of troubleshooting experience in my blood says that the failed switch is the symptom rather than the real problem. I think Brian is the victim of bad setup or bad repair technique. This is just too big of a coincidence for me to accept at face value. I think something's awry more than this switch...just a gut feelin'.

 

[dynasim]

One of my jobs is to give people advice on how to fix/prevent recurring problems with industrial equipment. The repair, and subsequent billing event, on Brian's TN, the repair of the wiring harness on the TC, the replacement of the transmission housing on the TC, the repair of the replacement of the transmission housing, and the repair of the "new" TC45, were all failures.

The lack of attention and service to what was clearly a cascading failure is mind boggling. If I was Brian, after receipt of the new TC45 cab, I would not return to that dealer for any item under any circumstances. I personally don't think the dealer allowed him to get a fair shake on the TC45, and think that he ought to keep it and try it out. Debugged, these are great tractors. Ask anyone who has one that works(which is almost all of the owners).

What is interesting about this sort of thing is that human nature would tend to "give the guy(the dealer) a chance". A company I worked for did that(under the same sort of circumstances) when it was clear to me that the supplier was incompetent(and I told them so, in those words). The consequences almost sunk the relatively large company.

Recurring failure of a safety switch on a PTO(when that sort of problem has not been reported around here) is clearly a repair/misdiagnosis issue.

Brian, good luck.

Chris

 

[MikePA]

How is it that we aren't hearing of many other people with the same problem? Surely there would other dealers/customers experiencing the same problems.

That's the piece of information we're missing. Are there other people/dealers having the same problem? If it were widespread, e.g., a bad batch of switches from a supplier, you'd think NH would have sent out a service alert and Brian's dealer would have known about it and known cannibalizing other tractors wont solve the problem.

 

[Robert_in_NY]

A Massey Ferguson dealer I trade with is doing much the same thing. They now handle Branson tractors also. He's really pushing the branson line and putting the Massey's on the back lot. He told me it had to do with Bransons "floor plan" vs. Massey's dealer incentive program. He could afford to let the Masseys sit longer than the Bransons and still make just as much per unit, where the Bransons needed to move with-in a couple months of their arrival to make his full cut.

I think Mahindra does the same thing as Branson. The local Mahindra dealer here doesn't carry much inventory (tractor wise) as he tells us that if he has them on the lot for any amount of time then he starts loosing money. At first I thought he was just trying to cover for not having a good inventory but I guess not if this is somewhat common now with these newer lines.

It does not seem like a good practice though as dealers won't put tractors on their lot for people to see if they stand the chance of loosing money if it don't sell right away. The Mahindra dealer had one tractor on the lot when I went by the other day. The most new tractors I have ever seen on his lot at one time was 8 and 3 of them were sold before they were even ordered so they were only there a few days.

 

[schmism]

Well...that's a slight stretch. I think you are wrong, Steve. The relief valve for at TC33D is SBA322840759, or SBA322840130. The one on all Class IIIs is SBA322840773. I believe yours is set for less pressure. All Class III tractors have the same relief valve, but your Class II is different.

ah well nuts, I was shure ive seen that exact thing quoted a number of times when others have complained about there big beafy TC40/45 not pulling worth a ***

 

[Robert_in_NY]

They were referring to the TC35 which is a class III machine

 

[schmism]

They were referring to the TC35 which is a class III machine

so they would put the bypass valve from the class 2 in just ONE class 3.... youd think they would build the same chassy and just drop a diffrent motor in it... but what do i know

 

[Ford850]

Wow! The same switch three times? On two tractors? What are the odds of this? How is it that we aren't hearing of many other people with the same problem? Surely there would other dealers/customers experiencing the same problems. I'm not there and I should not be too quick to judge, but every ounce of troubleshooting experience in my blood says that the failed switch is the symptom rather than the real problem. I think Brian is the victim of bad setup or bad repair technique. This is just too big of a coincidence for me to accept at face value. I think something's awry more than this switch...just a gut feelin'.

I agree it sounds like the switch is a sympton. If I read that right, Brian got a brand new loaner and the switch went bad, they replaced it with the switch off his original new tractor and that switch went bad, so they replaced it with the switch off ANOTHER loaner. 3 switches all failing on the same tractor? If they all came from the parts dept I'd say it was a bad batch, but they came off 3 differnet machines. The dealer is not looking for the cause of the problem.

 

[hazmat]

so they would put the bypass valve from the class 2 in just ONE class 3.... youd think they would build the same chassy and just drop a diffrent motor in it... but what do i know

Nope the same valve in the 35, 40 & 45 HP class III boomers. Thus Jinman can't make use of his extra 10 HP (as far as drawbar pull is concerned).

 

[Robert_in_NY]

so they would put the bypass valve from the class 2 in just ONE class 3.... youd think they would build the same chassy and just drop a diffrent motor in it... but what do i know

As Hazmat explained, the bypass valve is the same in all class threes so the TC 40/45 has no more pulling power then the TC35. That is what everyone has been talking about before that I think you were originally referring to. You just mixed the TC33 up with the TC35.

 

[jsborn]

No disrespect intended but I sure am glad I live in Georgia and Lone Cowboy lives in Colorado cause what ever he has may be contagious and I sure don't want to catch it. Although I have been trying to dig about 500 feet of trench with a rental trencher for over a week now and so far I have gotten 100 done. But on the bright side I do get to rest driving back and forth to the rental center for repair.

Maybe Colorado is closer than I thought?

Good luck and keep us posted.

 

[Chuck_Lind]

"LC" stands for the Lone Cowboy. Brian starts some of the longest, most interesting, most controversial threads revolving around use of tractors in a small business environment.

Dougster

Thank you, Dougster, for the information. Just read the following post by "LC"...this poor guy needs a "tractor-fix"..if there is such a thing.

Should we start a tractor group therapy session? If I were in LC's situation...I would cash-out and move to a small island in the Bahamas and never come back.

 

[Dougster]

If I were in LC's situation...I would cash-out and move to a small island in the Bahamas and never come back.

I personally prefer the French West Indies... ...but it's the same basic idea!

Far more realistically for my dwindling bank account, I plan to move to a large, rural property way up North in the land of "Live Free or Die" and never come back... but I think they still need and use tractors up there!

Dougster

 

[Bob_Young]

As to the NH/Kub dealers pushing customers toward Kubota, that happened to me as well. Asked the previous owner of the dealership about it (We're friends; he'd turned the business over to his sons). He said that people who buy Kubotas are rarely seen again until they want to buy another Kubota. That happened to me also.

Can't remember many 'L & C' threads like this over in the Kubota forum. Last one was the famous L2800 ratcheting PTO clutch thread. Don't know of any other.
Bob

/Bolts for the door.

 

[MtnViewRanch]

Can't remember many 'L & C' threads like this over in the Kubota forum. Last one was the famous L2800 ratcheting PTO clutch thread. Don't know of any other.
Bob

/Bolts for the door.

9 pages concerning "Important information for all new M series owners" seems that Kubota sent tractors out without dash warning lights working and bad loader hydraulics. ALL makes have their problems, none are exempt.

 

[8561]

Not to lift the thread, but the predominant dealer in my part of the world (I think he owns 5 or 6 dealerships) is also both Kubota and New Holland. The very first trip I took to look, I wanted to learn all I could about all brands to make as educated a decision as I could. I have an uncle that used to sell New Holland farm equipment, so I went with a positive impression of NH. When I arrived, I was escorted to the Kubotas for the standard sales pitch. After a good long listen, I said "OK, now talk to me about the New Holland." He told me I was crazy to look at NH, and that I would not be nearly as happy. Mind you, I was looking in the 24HP range which meant that the TC24 was a very viable option for me. I made him explain some things to me about them, but he was reluctant.

A few weeks later, I was at a large fair where this same dealer had a tent display. Talked to a different salesman. He told me if I bought the NH I would be sorry and he wouldn't let me blame him. I ended up buying the Kubota, but from a different dealer many miles away. I had no respect for the first dealer, because I knew then and I know now that the TC was a good tractor that would have made me just as happy.