Lack of response from Kioti on loader repair program

[tractorhill]

As being a Kioti Dealer,I feel that if dealers are having a hard time to meet deadline that Kioti will extend the deadline. I have them to always be fair about issue and I feel they will be fair about this. If we get real busy in spring in sales and service I think Kioti would work with us.

 

[TBDonnelly]

Regarding the April deadline. I'm betting Kioti did this without thinking it through. I think they will extend this date after receiving feedback from the dealers. So, until the date comes and goes and they refuse to fix your loader, keep an open mind.

I agree with you. Until the date comes and goes, all the banter is merely vast speculation.

Don

 

[Bob_Skurka]

If they fail to send an info letter to the owners with the crack prone loaders they will be in the dark. I'm sure they would have to repair it if the unit was still under the factory warranty. If out of the warranty period they may be out of luck?

John

Well, if you take the letter at face value, April 30, 2007 is THE BIG DAY. Thereafter, you are on your own. If this is not what they mean, then they need to communicate exactly that. I for one do not like to just rely on faith that the manufacturer, out of the goodness of their hearts, will fix their broken tractor on May 1, 2007, even though the formal letter they sent to you states the contrary. Remember, when all else fails, the only thing you can rely on (legally) is what is spelled out in ink. Based on this, I think it goes without saying that if warranty period has expired, you are out of luck.

As being a Kioti Dealer,I feel that if dealers are having a hard time to meet deadline that Kioti will extend the deadline. I have them to always be fair about issue and I feel they will be fair about this. If we get real busy in spring in sales and service I think Kioti would work with us.

tractorhill, I have no doubt that if you, as a dealer, need extra time to install the repair then you will be given the extra time. Afterall, if you know you have "x" number of loaders to repair, and if you have "x" repair kits, then really the ball is already in your court to schedule the repairs at the mutual consent of you & your customers.

But the main question really has nothing to do with Kioti extending the repair time to allow dealers to install the repairs at the dealer's schedule.

The main question is, what happens to the silent majority of Kioti owners who (presumably) have not yet been contacted (based on the fact that most owners in this thread have not been contacted) and who, if they are not reading TBN, then they may not realize they have an issue until after the deadline and they may well already be out of warrenty?

Now I do agree with coasterez that it is important to keep an open mind, but it is also reasonable to ask some questions and make some observations. And those questions/observations are exactly what NewToy, SuperDuper and a few others have levied. One does have to wonder when people will get their notifications.

 

[TBDonnelly]

The main question is, what happens to the silent majority of Kioti owners who (presumably) have not yet been contacted (based on the fact that most owners in this thread have not been contacted) and who, if they are not reading TBN, then they may not realize they have an issue until after the deadline and they may well already be out of warrenty?

Your thoughts jump to a lot of conclusions that are unfounded as of yet. It's obvious the letters have not gone out yet to the affected KL120/KL130 owners.....TBN readers or not.

Don

 

[Bob_Skurka]

Your thoughts jump to a lot of conclusions

No Don it is just a simple question.

And apparently several have asked it before me. Some of them Kioti owners, some not.

All I did was try to address Tractorhill's response because he is a dealer, and while dealers like him and Wallace, will no doubt take care of their customers, the response he gave did not address the question that was framed by others. As a dealer he will surely have the time he needs to affect the repairs. But again, the perspective of the owners was being questioned, not the perspective of the dealers.

The question is a simple one. No conclusions were jumped to.

I'd suggest you read my prior post more carefully. It was in no way confrontational or antagonistic.

 

[tractorhill]

No Don it is just a simple question.

And apparently several have asked it before me. Some of them Kioti owners, some not.

All I did was try to address Tractorhill's response because he is a dealer, and while dealers like him and Wallace, will no doubt take care of their customers, the response he gave did not address the question that was framed by others. As a dealer he will surely have the time he needs to affect the repairs. But again, the perspective of the owners was being questioned, not the perspective of the dealers.

The question is a simple one. No conclusions were jumped to.

I'd suggest you read my prior post more carefully. It was in no way confrontational or antagonistic.

WE have made our list that we have sold (89) and we have begin to get intouch with our customs as we can get to them. We are going to do our best to get all done but sales and service come first

 

[TBDonnelly]

No Don it is just a simple question.
But again, the perspective of the owners was being questioned, not the perspective of the dealers.

The question is a simple one. No conclusions were jumped to.

I'd suggest you read my prior post more carefully. It was in no way confrontational or antagonistic.

The two posters you quoted in your previous post. One profile shows Farmtrac and the other shows John Deere.

I never said you were 'confrontational or antagonistic'. Maybe a little overly sensitive but certainly not confrontational or antagonistic.

Don

 

[Bob_Skurka]

WE have made our list that we have sold (89) and we have begin to get intouch with our customs

Tractorhill . . . As I wrote, dealers like you and Wallace will take care of your customers and your customers probably realize they have a quality dealer to stand behind them. Good job. You are to be commended.

Don. . . I qouted those two simply because they were addressing the same customer focused question and they preceeded Tractorhill's post which was dealer focused. I could have quoted one of the prior Kioti owners:

I am simply going to turn a shade of Green or Red or the other Orange when the time comes to purchase a new machine.

 

[IslandTractor]

I agree with you. Until the date comes and goes, all the banter is merely vast speculation.

I have to disagree. Kioti is either being extremely selfish or just is not thinking at all about their customer's best interests. While certainly Kioti might choose at a later date to extend the time period beyond April, many tractor owners are going to take the current short deadline seriously and make arrangements to get their machines to the dealer for the repair before April 30. Many, myself included, would incur substantial transportation costs to meet that deadline. If the deadline was clearly extended now, many of those same owners could put off the repair until they had a regularly scheduled maintenance trip to the dealer and would therefore save one extra round trip. I think the example Rick Wallace gave is a good case in point. Also, if Kioti was willing to help it's customers who are willing to install the kit themselves, that would also prevent unnecessary customer expense on transportation.

Kioti is probably paying about $25 for each kit and a half hour of dealer time to install it. It seems it is the average customer (at least those without their own trailers or do not live close to a dealer) who are really bearing the brunt of the cost of Kioti's design defect here. This warranty repair will end up costing me somewhere between $200-500 in transportation costs depending on whether I remove the FEL and trailer it myself on a small utility trailer or if I need to contract someone on a per mile basis to pickup and return the tractor. It will also cost me 2 days of time. Frankly that sucks especially as I am willing to sign a waver and then turn the wrench to tighten 10-15 bolts myself. If Kioti doesn't get their corporate act together and actually value their customer interests in their business decisions, this loader debacle will end up costing them a whole lot more than the cost of kit and installation.

 

[TBDonnelly]

Point taken I.T.

Kioti does need to extend the deadline......and I believe they will. Meanwhile it may be beneficial to contact your dealer to discuss any options he may offer.

Don

 

[Steverino]

WE have made our list that we have sold (89) and we have begin to get intouch with our customs as we can get to them. We are going to do our best to get all done but sales and service come first

Here is a question for you Tractorhill. Is it the dealer who sold the loader who is responsible for notifying the purchaser and not Kioti, or this something you are doing as a superb dealer and going the extra mile to service your customers?

 

[MrsTractor]

I can see the frustration that everyone on TBN is going thru. My thoughts on this now are that, if anyone on TBN has not received the letter from Kioti by February 1, 2007, we at Wallace Tractor will be taking matters into our own hands & contacting our customers with the copy of the letter, there is no reason why we cannot get started on repairing these. Rick has posted before that we have over 100 of these to do & really need to get started. We have received our kits & letter saying what needs to be done by us as a dealer, so that we may make the deadline period. So if any of our customers out there would like to contact me (AMY) about scheduling for the repair, feel free to contact me at anytime.

 

[tractorhill]

Here is a question for you Tractorhill. Is it the dealer who sold the loader who is responsible for notifying the purchaser and not Kioti, or this something you are doing as a superb dealer and going the extra mile to service your customers?

Kioti is going to notify everyone. I doing this to do as many as can before we get busy. I like to give my customs good support

 

[wallace]

I am back from Kioti.
The best thing I can tell you is if you have a loader and know that there is a update call your dealer.
If you do not have a servicing dealer please call one of us dealers here on TBN and I am sure you will be satisfied.
I did tell Kioti my thoughts on the time frame and what they don't want is this to go on and on.
This "on and on" was not created by customers but by the lack of aggressive dealers to get the job done in a timely fashion.

I am quite sure that Kioti did this to make the dealers act fast.
Also do be concerned on the time frame but also rest assure that you will not be left behind!

I did ask about the letters and I was told they did not go out as of yet.

So guys and girls remember what I said "You all know that this is going on, so call you dealer and get it done, and lets move on to a soon to be great spring."

 

[NewToy]

Well, if you take the letter at face value, April 30, 2007 is THE BIG DAY. Thereafter, you are on your own. If this is not what they mean, then they need to communicate exactly that. I for one do not like to just rely on faith that the manufacturer, out of the goodness of their hearts, will fix their broken tractor on May 1, 2007, even though the formal letter they sent to you states the contrary. Remember, when all else fails, the only thing you can rely on (legally) is what is spelled out in ink. Based on this, I think it goes without saying that if warranty period has expired, you are out of luck.

Most manufacturers that are acknowledging a defect in mfg/materials will warranty the repair even if out of the base warranty. I was involved in the warranty claims dept for a major construction equipment manufacturer and it was common for them to pay the claim for a known defect even after the base machine warranty has expired. This applied to the initial upgrade of the known defect. The Kioti loader patch kit would be a perfect example of this. It will be difficult if not impossible to notify every owner of the defective machines in the time frame Kioti has imposed on itself. I would be surprised if they wouldn't fix a machine under warranty after the April 30, 07 date. I would also think they would pay for the kit after base warranty was out if the present owner experienced cracks and was not notified in writing of the repair program.

John

 

[VictorW]

Thanks Rick for your efforts and information. Kioti is sure making it hard for the dealers when they haven't even sent out the letters to the registered/original owners and the cut off is only three months away. It seems like they want the dealers to make the notifications to their customers. Keep up the good work. It's definately appreciated.

 

[MotorSeven]

NewToy- I agree.
A deadline does not release any civil liability, nor would it circumvent state/fed law concerning the "recall". My loader isn't cracked but is a 4*** series so it needs a retro fit kit. I called my dealer and they ordered one. They said that the loader gets another year of warranty tacked on. If they let me DIY, then i will keep my mouth shut, so i don't get them in hot water. All this, "what if and could" stuff is giving me a headache. "If" my loader cracks after the extended waranty, i will just figure out a way to fix it myself. Just my .02 worth.........

RD

 

[NewToy]

Kioti is going to notify everyone. I doing this to do as many as can before we get busy. I like to give my customs good support

What?


John

 

[HODAK]

What about the Kioti owners who do not read TBN and know about the issue? There are probably many owners out there that have never looked under the access panel but still have the start of stress cracks. If they don't get a letter, and do not read TBN, then are they just out of luck?

My response was for the person who posted. He asked about waiting for a letter and I wouldn't wait.

As for the rest, I honestly don't know what will happen. I thought everybody read TBN.......

 

[Donnyj]

Anybody know what the cost of the kit is? Just wondering how much a person would have to spend to repair the loader after the cut off date. Might not really be a big deal if someone misses the cut off date.