Hydraulic fluid use kubota or something else?

[BI2650]

Kubota Hydraulic fluid is costly is it not wise to use a cheaper brand? I'm sure kubota is not making there own.

 

[RjCorazza]

Kubota Hydraulic fluid is costly is it not wise to use a cheaper brand? I'm sure kubota is not making there own.

Opinions vary, but I use OEM in my (3) Kubota machines.
I believe Kubota UDT and sUDT/2 are made to Kubota specifications by Valvoline, but I could be wrong. The problem with trans / hydraulic fluid is that there aren't industry wide standards, like API standards for engine oil. 3rd party manufacturers use terminology like "compatible with" or "suitable for use in", which may or may not be true -
That said, plenty of users here on TBN use 3rd party UTF's... It's just not for me.

 

[4570Man]

Sure you can use a different brand of hydraulic oil and it would work. But any quality hydraulic oil is still going to be $80-100 a bucket. It’s worth it to me to buy the Kubota oil.

 

[diesel85]

I was tempted to sort out a cheaper SUDT2 fluid for my BX many years ago. But honestly, I don't want to play games with it and spend thousands of dollars on replacing the hydraulic pump and the tractor being out of service for something I decided was a good idea to skimp out on.

 

[Carl_NH]

SUDT is all I use - 7.5 gal is $200 every 300 hours plus filters is about a $1 an hour is worth it.

 

[Mtsoxfan]

When I had my used NH, I used a cheaper alternative. I'm ok with that. My new Kioti, will only get OEM. not sure if there is an issue, how much proving I'd have to do with cheaper brand, and hopefully using OEM parts etc. proves positive in grey areas of coverage.

 

[Shawn T. W.]

Last 5 gallon buckets I bought were about $150 ... Like said, it's not really much per year for the amount most people use them ... IIRC mine is change filters every 200 hours, change fluid every 400 hours ... Mine takes 13 gallons ...

 

[bdhsfz6]

I'm sure there are many cheaper oil substitutes for SUDT that would work fine, but as said above, why take a chance?
How many times do you change the oil over the life of the tractor, and how much are you really going to save using cheaper oil?

Why chance it?

 

[Ed ke6bnl]

Iam bad, but I use Tractor Supply Premium Universal Hydraulic Oil in my b7800 since I got it used with no oil in it for the past 3 years, no issues. but thats me.

 

[Mtsoxfan]

Last 5 gallon buckets I bought were about $150 ... Like said, it's not really much per year for the amount most people use them ... IIRC mine is change filters every 200 hours, change fluid every 400 hours ... Mine takes 13 gallons ...

And the difference between OEM and less expensive brings the costs more in perspective. $100 vs $150 not that big a deal for peace of mind, possible performance.

 

[EscapedSuburbia]

The owners manual for my Kubota specifies UDT-2. Unlike motor oil which calls out the SAE/API standards it should meet, the manual doesn't say what ISO/DIN/ASTM or other specifications the hydraulic oil needs to meet. I normally don't use OEM fluids, but in this case I wouldn't know what to buy that is a safe alternative to UDT-2.

 

[big bubba]

finding a cheaper alternative to Kubota oem hyd fluid & filters?
penny wise, pound foolish

 

[Roadworthy]

I have the hydrostatic transmission so the choice is obvious - follow manufacturer recommendations and use SUDT2. If I had a manual transmission I would probably be more willing to go generic but given the thousands of dollars at stake I'm not about to gamble to save tens of dollars.

 

[sandman2234]

I have the hydrostatic transmission so the choice is obvious - follow manufacturer recommendations and use SUDT2. If I had a manual transmission I would probably be more willing to go generic but given the thousands of dollars at stake I'm not about to gamble to save tens of dollars.

I have a manual transmission in my Kubota M7040 but also have the shuttle shift, which is why I spend the money on the SUDT2 fluid.
David from jax

 

[big bubba]

I have a manual transmission in my Kubota M7040 but also have the shuttle shift, which is why I spend the money on the SUDT2 fluid.
David from jax

given our MXX40 tractors are tier2, K UDT fluid is sufficient, the semi synthetic UDT2 is not required for either shuttle or hyd shift on those models as recommended by my dealership parts guy. But either way, you're covered.
i feel fortunate not to be bound by Tier 4 sensor and computer technology.

 

[SDT]

Opinions vary, but I use OEM in my (3) Kubota machines.
I believe Kubota UDT and sUDT/2 are made to Kubota specifications by Valvoline, but I could be wrong. The problem with trans / hydraulic fluid is that there aren't industry wide standards, like API standards for engine oil. 3rd party manufacturers use terminology like "compatible with" or "suitable for use in", which may or may not be true -
That said, plenty of users here on TBN use 3rd party UTF's... It's just not for me.

Yes, Kubota hydraulic oils are made to Kubota specifications by Valvoline. Not sure, but probably engine oils as well.

Like most, I use Kubota oils in my machines but any quality lubricants that meet the appropriate Kubota specs will suffice.

 

[SDT]

I have the hydrostatic transmission so the choice is obvious - follow manufacturer recommendations and use SUDT2. If I had a manual transmission I would probably be more willing to go generic but given the thousands of dollars at stake I'm not about to gamble to save tens of dollars.

Bingo.

Might substitute another quality oil in a separate hydraulic system but will never do so in a HST transmission.

 

[sandman2234]

given our MXX40 tractors are tier2, K UDT fluid is sufficient, the semi synthetic UDT2 is not required for either shuttle or hyd shift on those models as recommended by my dealership parts guy. But either way, you're covered.
i feel fortunate not to be bound by Tier 4 sensor and computer technology.

One of the reasons I bought this Kubota was because it was before all that mess!
David from jax

 

[big bubba]

yup, we lucked out. i'll be selling mine soon @922 hrs, should move quickly given the maintenance record

 

[Captain Dirty]

If you go through enough of the many threads on OEM vs generic fluids, you will find a comment that Super UDT "whines less in my Kubota," that to my mind indicates a performance difference. As mentioned there are no industry standards, just manufacturers' standards for hydraulic fluids. Kubota may give the alphabet soup of their specifications, but the additives Valvoline puts in Kubota fluids is proprietary information and closely guarded. The assurances generic manufacturers give are suspect. One of those threads mentioned earlier revealed that the John Deere spec often cited is a decades old spec that is meaningless in a HST.

That said, the Yankee in me spends $30 - $40 (they recently raised prices, but Kubota raises prices too.) for an analysis of my fluid by
Blackstone Labs just before a filter change is due. I trust them and am still (750+ hrs) running the original oil (with top-ups owing to filter and attachment changes) without problems. YMMV.