Comparison John Deere v. Kubota - small tractor

[Tenacious]

Looking from some comparison and buying advice between the John Deere E or R series versus the Kubota L series. Specifically, I am looking at Kubota L3301 or John Deere 3032E and 3033R. I am really torn between the two. any help on this would be greatly appreciated. I have a 3 acre piece of property with a two stall barn. i would be using the tractor for barn and stall maintenance, yard work, clearing junk in the wooded area, and using it for snow management of 100' driveway in the winter. Thank you in advance.

 

[GrumpyJoe]

There are vids on youtube that directly compare the two. From JD and from Kubota sides.

 

[GrumpyJoe]

Want to throw in another option for you. Check out the Mahindra 3016 vs the 3032e on you tube. Even though they dont sell the 3016 anymore you can still find them out there. Or step up to the 1533 like I have. Great tractor. Just more options for you. Looking for a tractor is half the fun.

 

[ultrarunner]

We went with the L and no regrets...

Decided because the Dealer was very helpful and nearby.

I also own a Deere and no complaints... it is just I always feel like small tractors are almost an inconvenience for my big Deere AG dealer...

 

[Shutesbury]

I'd suggest looking at the BX-25. Smaller to get into the stalls, standard backhoe will prove very useful on a regular basis.

 

[SteveM70]

I'd suggest looking at the BX-25. Smaller to get into the stalls, standard backhoe will prove very useful on a regular basis.

You haven't been here long have you? I've lurked here long enough to know that for 3 acres this could end up being Kubota M vs. JD 5 lol

 

[Wagtail]

G'day Mate and welcome to TBN from Downunder.

Enjoy the site... what do you mean by barn & stall maintenance? Are there horses/critters to consider?

 

[L39matt]

I have a 3901 and I like it a lot. It will be almost identical to the 3301 except for PTO power, I always lose traction before running out of power. I bought a Woods BH80X with a hydraulic thumb to go with it. I have cleared a good bit of brush and small trees, maintained the gravel road and driveway, dug out big rocks and a few big holes, brush hogged a little, and moved around a lot of dirt and gravel. I get a little annoyed with the fact I can only get on and off one side. Also rpms need to be about 3k for a regen which is loud and also a little annoying. It has done almost everything I have asked of it, and done it well. It's major limitations for me are with the backhoe but that would be the same on anything this size. I have almost 100 hours on it and it has regened four times, with zero warranty issues. I did have to tighten a hydraulic fitting on the loader that had a small drip at about 60 hours. Hope this helps and feel free to ask me anything else.

 

[Shutesbury]

You haven't been here long have you? I've lurked here long enough to know that for 3 acres this could end up being Kubota M vs. JD 5 lol

Ah. Six years vs 16 days. I'll step aside then.

 

[Tenacious]

I have a 3901 and I like it a lot. It will be almost identical to the 3301 except for PTO power, I always lose traction before running out of power. I bought a Woods BH80X with a hydraulic thumb to go with it. I have cleared a good bit of brush and small trees, maintained the gravel road and driveway, dug out big rocks and a few big holes, brush hogged a little, and moved around a lot of dirt and gravel. I get a little annoyed with the fact I can only get on and off one side. Also rpms need to be about 3k for a regen which is loud and also a little annoying. It has done almost everything I have asked of it, and done it well. It's major limitations for me are with the backhoe but that would be the same on anything this size. I have almost 100 hours on it and it has regened four times, with zero warranty issues. I did have to tighten a hydraulic fitting on the loader that had a small drip at about 60 hours. Hope this helps and feel free to ask me anything else.

Thank you for the information.

Yeah, it's tough to make a decision especially when the kubota sales rep says one thing and the JD rep says another. One thing that Kubota keeps mentioning is that JD doesnt manufacture all the components in their tractors i.e. the motor and the hydrostatic system. what are your thoughts about that? also, what is it with this plastic hood vs. metal hood?

 

[RedNeckRacin]

Op, have you sat on or ran either one? That might be enough of a deciding factor if you have already figured out your required specs.

 

[L39matt]

Honestly as long as it isn't made in China I am fine with it. The John Deere comes with an excellent warranty and as long as the Dealer and service department are good people I'm sure it is fine. I did drive the 3038E a couple times and strongly considered it. In the end I just preferred the Kubota but only because of how it felt to me. I never did any real work with either before buying. I didn't remember this before but the Deere has to be out of gear to get off the seat. That would annoy the **** out of me because I frequently have to get off the seat to see over the bucket, or jump off and re-rig a chain. On flat ground the HST will hold the tractor still. I also was worried about the Kubota pedal over the twin Deere pedals after watching the videos but it hasn't been an issue, I find it very easy and comfortable. As for the plastic hood it wouldn't bother me. If you smacked it hard enough to break it I'm sure the steel hood would be in pretty sad shape too. Deere and Kubota both make a fine machine, drive them both a couple times and pick the one you like the best. Either one will get a lot of work done a lot faster than a subcompact. I can say if I bought another tractor without the Backhoe I would get a ballast box full of concrete. Loader work is WAY easier, and the tractor is way more stable with the weight of the hoe vs the box blade or land plane.

 

[TripleR]

Thank you for the information.

Yeah, it's tough to make a decision especially when the kubota sales rep says one thing and the JD rep says another. One thing that Kubota keeps mentioning is that JD doesnt manufacture all the components in their tractors i.e. the motor and the hydrostatic system. what are your thoughts about that? also, what is it with this plastic hood vs. metal hood?

Personally, if a dealer starts bashing another brand, I'll go elsewhere, neither our JD or Kubota dealers do that. I don't care who makes the drive-train or anything else as long as it's a quality product. I prefer a metal hood over plastic, but it's not a deal breaker for me and some plastics are pretty darn strong. I don't know how much plastic our 1025R has and don't much care. If you go poking around on some big trucks, you'll find plastic and engines not made by the parent company.

 

[MF283]

Honestly as long as it isn't made in China I am fine with it. The John Deere comes with an excellent warranty and as long as the Dealer and service department are good people I'm sure it is fine. I did drive the 3038E a couple times and strongly considered it. In the end I just preferred the Kubota but only because of how it felt to me. I never did any real work with either before buying. I didn't remember this before but the Deere has to be out of gear to get off the seat. That would annoy the **** out of me because I frequently have to get off the seat to see over the bucket, or jump off and re-rig a chain. On flat ground the HST will hold the tractor still. I also was worried about the Kubota pedal over the twin Deere pedals after watching the videos but it hasn't been an issue, I find it very easy and comfortable. As for the plastic hood it wouldn't bother me. If you smacked it hard enough to break it I'm sure the steel hood would be in pretty sad shape too. Deere and Kubota both make a fine machine, drive them both a couple times and pick the one you like the best. Either one will get a lot of work done a lot faster than a subcompact. I can say if I bought another tractor without the Backhoe I would get a ballast box full of concrete. Loader work is WAY easier, and the tractor is way more stable with the weight of the hoe vs the box blade or land plane.

Good advice, both companies have good machines, dealer support & ease of operation are important factors.

Ronnie

 

[SteveM70]

Ah. Six years vs 16 days. I'll step aside then.

Just an attempt at humor, wasn't trying to step on your toes.:newhere::laughing:

 

[stingray1]

Good advice, both companies have good machines, dealer support & ease of operation are important factors.

Ronnie

I agree, distance to and dealer support both are very important.

 

[richardhorne]

I have just bought a 3033r. I am on 11acres on a hillside. So far so good. Been grading and doing fel work seems very capable. I went to 2 different jd dealers just to xcheck the info. Out of all the tractors i looked at i prefered the ergonomics of the jd. i looked at the 3038e but the extra standard stuff on the 33r convinced me to spend the bit extra. It has a bigger lift capacity on the fel to 38e which also swayed it.

 

[TheMadOne]

I have a L3301. It's a good tractor. Most sold today are.

I'd say that you need to sit on them and speak with both dealers, and not just the salesmen. Start at the parts counter. Strike up a conversation. See how they treat you. Quite a few people, myself included, have had bad experiences with some dealers when it comes to parts for smaller tractors and mowers. I'm told that the dealer that treated me poorly is much better now, but I had such a bad taste from it that I didn't even look at a JD when it came time to buy a tractor.

 

[widefat]

Not an easy choice, but on the bright side, you wont go wrong with either choice. For me, the choice was Kubota because the dealer was more responsive.
I almost bought a Deere simply because of the pedal layout - I didnt like the Kubota Heel-Toe. My feet are size 15, and If I'm not careful, I hit the reverse
side of the pedal while shifting around - not good going backwards when you are not expecting to. But, I finally got used to it.
And the further end - I spent a lot of time looking until I found a used Kubota with only 60 hours.

Anyway, long story short, the dealer made the difference.

 

[Omega Woods]

I looked at JD, Kubota, Mahindra and Kioti before buying my Branson.

I completely agree with buying the dealer.