L series tire question and problem.

AB4D · Dec 14, 2005

I recently purchased a new L3430HSTC (4 hours as of today). I upgraded the tires to the R-4 industrials. However, I noticed that the sidewall rubber on one of the front tires is beginning to seperate. The front tires are made by Titan??? but the rear tires are made by Firestone. I contacted my dealer who informed me that Kubota routinely mismatches tire brands on their tractors to facilitate maintaining contracts with multiple tire manufactures to ensure an ample supply of tires in case of a shortage or strike. I am not sure if this is true. Does anyone else on TBN have mismatched tire brands from the factory (one brand on the front and another on the rear) on their L or Grand L Kubota?

I attempted to obtain a tire under warranty from Titan, however the end result of that nightmare was I have to purchase another front tire made by Titan from one of their dealers, who in turn will submit my tire to Titan for inspection, and if Titan determines that the tire is actually defective, I will then get credit /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif. I spoke to my local tire dealer who didn't have anything good to say about Titan. He indicated that it could take months before Titan responds once he sends in the tire for inspection. I asked him if he could order me a new recently made tire instead of selling me old stock, but he indicated that he wouldn't because he wants to get rid of the one old tire made by Titan that he has had in stock for over a year. Dissatisfied with the situation, I contacted my Kubota dealer who has offered to replace the front tire, but his tire is also old stock, and he wasn't sure of the brand. We'll, I don't want to end up with three different tires, so I finally e-mailed Kubota about the situation and asked to have the front tires replaced with the same type as the rears, but I haven't received a response. Does anyone think Kubota will change out my front tires?

Jim

JerryG · Dec 14, 2005

It isn't unusual to see two different brands of tires on a new tractor. The tractor companies do purchase from different suppliers sometimes to protect their supply and sometimes to maintain the correct front to rear gear ratio.

CTyler · Dec 14, 2005

I have the same tires on my L3130, titans on the front and Firestone on the rear. No problems with with either tire in 800 hours and lots of heavy loader work.

JerryG · Dec 14, 2005

Have you spoke with / or e-mailed Titan directly? When I had a tire problem with a new tractor, I went straight to the manufacture and they in turn dealt with the tire dealer.

mark2610d · Dec 14, 2005

I have a 05 L3430HSTC that came with the same set up as you have, Firestone on the rear (R4's) and Titan on the front. I have had zero problems with my tires and have 67 hours so far on them. Maybe you just got a defective tire that missed the quality control check and found it's way onto your tractor. I would for sure ask for a "new tire" and I would not be scared to go with Titan brand from my experience so far. All tire brands probably have a "bad apple" every now and then.

You sure made a good choice of tractors! Congrats!

Mark

AB4D · Dec 14, 2005

Jerry,

I contacted Titan directly about the tire and dealer but was informed that they (Titan) have no control over how independent tire dealers handle warranty claims for Titan because the dealer only acts as an agent and does not have the authority to determine whether a tire is defective.

Thanks for the input.

Jim

kevincook · Dec 14, 2005

I wouldn't deal with the tire manufacturer or dealer at all. You have a warranty from Kubota regardless of what they put on there. Have the dealer replace the tire. If he can't match the good front tire you have then insist that he replaces both of them. You spent a lot of money on that new machine and shouldn't have to be screwing around with a tire dealer with only 4 hours on the machine.

Good Luck,
Kevin

N80 · Dec 14, 2005

I agree completely. Your dealer should take the responsibility to get this worked out. This isn't a tire wear issue. This is a factory defect. He sold you the tractor and the tires on it.

In regard to different brands, the rears on my L4400 are Firestones the fronts are Goodyear (Ags).

ccsial · Dec 14, 2005

My L3400 has R4's, Goodyear on the front and Titan on the rear. I'd be guessing whatever truck they unloaded last is what goes on.

I doubt Kubota will replace the tires. The auto manufactures don't usually do that either. Your dealer is probably your best bet.

JustGary · Dec 15, 2005

Goodyear and Firestone R1s on my L2800.

GM grudgingly replaced two front tires for me once after I fussed at them. The van had bad idler arms which they replaced under warranty, and it had chopped the front tires. Press Kubota. They should fix it for you, or at least help you get satisfaction from the tire maker.

- Just Gary

cheesehead · Dec 15, 2005

My L3130 has Goodyear on the front and Bridgestone on the back. At 10 hours I got a flat on the left front and took it to a Goodyear store for fix (3 PM the Wednesday before Thanksgiving). While there I joked about buying road hazard protection and darned if he didn't sell it to me. My tires are now covered for flat fixes or full replacement to 75% of tread life, and a prorated amount after that. Also, the Goodyear place is open 8 AM - 9 PM weekdays and during the day Saturdays and Sundays versus my tractor dealer who is only open when the bank is.

daTeacha · Dec 15, 2005

I'm going have to chime in here with the idea that car warranties specifically do not cover tires. They are considered a wear part and have their own warranty. You may get some satisfaction from the Kubota dealer, but if so it's because that dealer is helping you out. I'd approach them with the idea that they should have inspected the enTIRE (sorry, /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif) tractor before delivery.

Failing that, send a picture of the tire to Titan and see if they will send you a letter or something that will cover the replacement costs. I wouldn't worry about old stock tires. Kept out of the sunlight and stored properly, they should be fine. This is just a case of one tire slipping through the cracks in the system.

How about posting a pic of the defect? Maybe someone here can tell from the looks of it whether it's a manufacturing defect or damage from mishandling the crated tractor somewhere down the line between Kubota and your hands.

slowzuki · Dec 15, 2005

I've got titans all the way around and have been warned by another dealer they will no longer accept the Titan R-4's from Kubota since they have sent so many back for delamination.

Hope mine stay together! I don't care about mix and match but they are darned expensive to replace.

Mark_K9 · Dec 15, 2005

Hello AB4D,

I had Titans on my NH TC33D and all four were of poor quality. To make a long story short, the local Titan dealer gave me Titans 800 number telling me that he had returned clearly defective tires that Titan claimed were "abused" - warranty claim denied. My call to Titan was short...they told me that I had a local dealer and to use him! The Titans (trac-loaders) lost chunks of rubber, had casing separation, and cracking that would be classified as dry-rot if the tires were not new.

I recently purchased a new L3430 and specifically had the dealer provide a separate warranty on the Titan fronts.

From what I observe, Titan sells a low quality product that it does not stand behind. This keeps the cost to the tractor manufacturers low.

MJK

kevincook · Dec 15, 2005

When I purchased my tractor I actually discussed exactly which tires would come on the tractor. I wanted turf tires and wrote into the purchase contract that the tires would be Goodyear tires. I didn't want any cheap junk. I'm glad I did that now.

Good Luck,
Kevin

caylor · Dec 15, 2005

My L3130HST has AG tires with Firestones on the back and Goodyears on the front

Mark_K9 · Dec 15, 2005

Kevin,

FYI...Goodyear Ag Tire division is now owned by Titan. I assume that your tires were actually made by Goodyear, since this change of ownership happened just a few months ago.

MJK

ksmmoto · Dec 15, 2005

I have the Titan fronts and Firestone rears on my L3430 also. No problems at all.

ksmmoto

CT_Tree_Guy · Dec 15, 2005

<font color="blue"> I contacted my dealer who informed me that Kubota routinely mismatches tire brands on their tractors to facilitate maintaining contracts with multiple tire manufactures </font>

If I had gotten R4's on my Grand L they would have been Titans on the front and Firestones on the rear, IIRC. I have no problem with that.

What I DID have a problem with was the lead/lag ratio, an abyssmal -6% lead (6% lag) or so. The turfs that I ended up getting have a much more acceptable +3.8% lead. Michelin XM27's will give a nearly ideal 1% lead.

For those who care, there's more on this in this thread: New wheels for L3130?

I think Kubota needs to pay more attention to properly sizing their tires, and work out whatever "contracts with multiple tire manufacturers" they need to, to get it right.

AB4D · Dec 17, 2005

**Update**
Thanks to all that posted in this thread. I went ahead and took my dealer up on his offer of a new tire and rim. Picked up another Titan tire mounted on a new rim today, tire was made in 02/05, and looks a lot better than the one that came off the tractor (no radius sidewall cracks). My dealer indicated that if I had anymore tire problems, to let him know, and he would take care of the situation. I still haven't received a response from Kubota to my e-mail /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif, but I am going to give Kubota a few more days. I want to see how Kubota responds to this type of situation, but they will probably just direct me to contact my local dealer.

Jim