Mahindra vs. Kubota

[jasperab]

I have a Mahindra 4500 and a guy I work with brought out his Kubota and we moved about 2 acres of firewood and chips into piles separated into wood, ready to split and chips for mulch.
He accomplished almost twice as much with the hydrostat as I did shifting gears!
His Kubota is about the same age as my Mahindra and works great, with over 2500 hours on it.
The Mahindra is dead! Threw a rod with 186 hours, the same month that the warranty expired.

 

[3RRL]

Too bad about your Mahindra breaking down.
There's little doubt a hydrostat is easier to shift than a pure gear driven tractor especially for loader work (my opinion), but his 2500 hours experience might also have something to do with it.

 

[Redbug]

And it depends on HP and bucket size, too!

 

[coobie]

I have a Mahindra 4500 and a guy I work with brought out his Kubota and we moved about 2 acres of firewood and chips into piles separated into wood, ready to split and chips for mulch.
He accomplished almost twice as much with the hydrostat as I did shifting gears!
His Kubota is about the same age as my Mahindra and works great, with over 2500 hours on it.
The Mahindra is dead! Threw a rod with 186 hours, the same month that the warranty expired.

How old is the mahindra?coobie

 

[lawn_king]

186 hours is very early in the game to loose a rod? Was the machine abused?

 

[rvaitor]

I have a Mahindra 4500 and a guy I work with brought out his Kubota and we moved about 2 acres of firewood and chips into piles separated into wood, ready to split and chips for mulch.
He accomplished almost twice as much with the hydrostat as I did shifting gears!
His Kubota is about the same age as my Mahindra and works great, with over 2500 hours on it.
The Mahindra is dead! Threw a rod with 186 hours, the same month that the warranty expired.

Sounds like a Kubota salesman that just lost a deal to a Mahindra. I had a somewhat abused repo 6000 that was tremendous and the subsequent owner loved it as well.

 

[shvl73]

I have a Mahindra 4500 and a guy I work with brought out his Kubota and we moved about 2 acres of firewood and chips into piles separated into wood, ready to split and chips for mulch.
He accomplished almost twice as much with the hydrostat as I did shifting gears!
His Kubota is about the same age as my Mahindra and works great, with over 2500 hours on it.
The Mahindra is dead! Threw a rod with 186 hours, the same month that the warranty expired.

First 100hrs-good
100-150hrs-fair
186hrs-scrap metal!!!
Power steering lines started leaking between 50-100hrs
Brush clearing broke off starter solenoid
At 186 hours engine started knocking-was told it was probably igniters so I tried to get it back to house from the field where it sat all winter. Rod through the block!
No short block available-$5000+ labor for a new motor.
Warrenty expired the month it started knocking and factory says "tough luck".
I only used this tractor to mow and plant food plot since the farm is in a CRP Program. Very light use.
Now I am back to my 30y/o MF230 which still works fine.
If you are looking at Mahindra Tractors, think twice and keep looking.

This doesn't seem to add up. Was it being used to move/clear brush or was it setting for awhile prior to being fired up and moved back to the house?
Could there have been water in the oil? Certainly is bad luck but, I think there is more detail to this. Can you fill us in?

 

[jasperab]

My farm is in a CRP program so I mow about 30-40 acres each year. The only plowing I do is with a 6' field cultivator to put in food plot for the wildlife. The clearing I was doing was in the woods around one of my deer stands. A small tree snapped back and took off the solenoid which sits low on the side of the engine with no shielding.
Started knocking when I was blading the road down to the house last October, so I left the tractor in the field until I knew what the problem was.A friend told me he thought the problem would be injectors but this spring was so wet, I didn't try to bring it in until may, and thats when the rod went through the block.
My dealer tried to get Mahindra to do something, but the warrenty expired in October, 2007 (the month it started knocking) and I didn't go in until may when it threw the rod.
Abuse! I've never had the engine close to high RPM's or pulled a heavy load.
And no, I'm not a Kubota dealer, but if I buy another tractor I will look seriously at them. Right now I'm back to using my 30 y/o MF230 gas. At least the gas is cheaper than diesel right now!

 

[MDM]

No intent to offend, but in the few years I have been following these forums, I have come to my own personal observations on Mahindra:

The smaller Japanese/TYM made Mahindras are great and equal to any other brand.

The larger Mahindra Ag machines are not so great. This is just my observation from reading these forums, especially with the volume they move, there seem to be more problems reported than other brands.

 

[shvl73]

My farm is in a CRP program so I mow about 30-40 acres each year. The only plowing I do is with a 6' field cultivator to put in food plot for the wildlife. The clearing I was doing was in the woods around one of my deer stands. A small tree snapped back and took off the solenoid which sits low on the side of the engine with no shielding.
Started knocking when I was blading the road down to the house last October, so I left the tractor in the field until I knew what the problem was.A friend told me he thought the problem would be injectors but this spring was so wet, I didn't try to bring it in until may, and thats when the rod went through the block.
My dealer tried to get Mahindra to do something, but the warrenty expired in October, 2007 (the month it started knocking) and I didn't go in until may when it threw the rod.
Abuse! I've never had the engine close to high RPM's or pulled a heavy load.
And no, I'm not a Kubota dealer, but if I buy another tractor I will look seriously at them. Right now I'm back to using my 30 y/o MF230 gas. At least the gas is cheaper than diesel right now!

Thanks for filling in the rest of the story.
What I would try is, send a pm to musamarketing, a TBN member, explaining in careful detail (and politely) all this info. There have been manufacturers that have assisted in meeting the customers needs, even on out of warranty problems, when it is the right thing to do. It can't hurt and bad pr doesn't help any company.

 

[MessickFarmEqu]

The smaller Japanese/TYM made Mahindras are great and equal to any other brand.

The mitsubishi ones I thought where fine, never been a fan of what TYM has done myself.

 

[MtnViewRanch]

The mitsubishi ones I thought where fine, never been a fan of what TYM has done myself.

May I ask, what is it that you don't like about the TYM built tractors?

 

[Roady]

The mitsubishi ones I thought where fine, never been a fan of what TYM has done myself.

I'm curious too. I love my TYM 273 and I've put alot of seat time on all of the "big 3". If I had to do it all over again, I would not think twice before buying another.

Roady

 

[crabjoe]

I'm curious too. I love my TYM 273 and I've put alot of seat time on all of the "big 3". If I had to do it all over again, I would not think twice before buying another.

Roady

Maybe he's not talking about the Mitsubishi equipped TYM's.

 

[AchingBack]

To clarify what I know to be fact. The only series of Mahindra, made by Mitsubishi, is the 15, and the tier lll 16 series. I do believe the 10 series was made by TYM of South Korea. The 10 series has been discontinued, and I don't believe any Mahindras are made anywhere; except for, India, Japan, and China.

 

[JoeinTX]

" have a Mahindra 4500 and a guy I work with brought out his Kubota and we moved about 2 acres of firewood and chips into piles separated into wood, ready to split and chips for mulch.
He accomplished almost twice as much with the hydrostat as I did shifting gears!
His Kubota is about the same age as my Mahindra and works great, with over 2500 hours on it.
The Mahindra is dead! Threw a rod with 186 hours, the same month that the warranty expired...."


Jasper, like many others here, one has to think there is something missing. To throw a rod at 186 hours......in today's world considering how easy it is to devise an engine for reliability.......knowing how much bad p.r. can effect a marketer......I personally think something isn't right.


The Mahindras, and I don't even own one, are showing to be wonderful, tough rigs shedding the bells and whistles while doing what they need to do. A Web-wide reputation for service and toughness.


I still worry more about the complainer than the rig and this post......I want serial numbers and bills and documentation of the stituation.

 

[swines]

I still worry more about the complainer than the rig and this post......I want serial numbers and bills and documentation of the stituation.

And someone has to jump through hoops specifically for you -- why?

 

[JoeinTX]

Hoops?!?


So, providing a little proof....documentation.....a little something to back up their case is now "hoops"?

Jeezus. Anybody in the world can get on here and post anything they want....but don't expect just a whole lot sympathy or help if you've got nothing to back up your claim.


First, the fact that the Mahindra with a standard gear tranny got outpaced by a tractor with a hydro is not some indication of a fault with the tractor. They are simply two different kinds of transmissions that work in different ways and do different things. Hook a chisel up to both and watch the geared tranny plow rings around the other. It works both ways.


If jasperab has a legitimate case here, then he should publicize it and do so with the evidence. If he doesn't have any, or any part of the story has been left out, then it will get him nowhere here or with Mahindra.

 

[Dargo]

Hook a chisel up to both and watch the geared tranny plow rings around the other. It works both ways.

Um, I have both type of tractors and have had many more gear drive tractors in the past and I have to say, in my opinion, what you said above simply isn't true. I've pulled heavy plows and disks with both type of tractors and I definitely wouldn't say that the gear drive tractor would plow rings around the hydro tractor. To be quite honest, the hydro tractor pulls ground engaging implements rather well and will do so all day long without any heat issues or other issues. The gear driven tractor may get a bit better fuel economy, but I don't believe that is what you implied.

 

[Farmwithjunk]

Um, I have both type of tractors and have had many more gear drive tractors in the past and I have to say, in my opinion, what you said above simply isn't true.  I've pulled heavy plows and disks with both type of tractors and I definitely wouldn't say that the gear drive tractor would plow rings around the hydro tractor.  To be quite honest, the hydro tractor pulls ground engaging implements rather well and will do so all day long without any heat issues or other issues.  The gear driven tractor may get a bit better fuel economy, but I don't believe that is what you implied.

According to ALL the major manufacturers of big scale agricultural-purposed tractors, it IS true that hydro trannied tractors just don't work very well for heavy tillage use.  You won't find any mass produced farm tractors intended for heavy primary tillage that are hydro drive.  There were a few attemts back in the 70's, mostly by International Harvester, but they didn't pan out as a successful  tillage tractor.  They did make a great all purpose chore tractor.  Great for hay work, planting, cultivating, ect.   Just NOT as a tillage tractor on a continuous basis.   While they may perform adaquately on a limited basis, in occasional use, hydro's just don't hold up in constant day after day heavy drawbar pulling like a gear drive.  The technology  (and ensuing cost) involved in building a hydro equipped farm tractor is POSSIBLE, but so cost prohibitive that it's likely you'll never see such on a mass produced machine.   Now the issue of "plowing rings around one or the other"..... That might be a stretch.  Probably about equal side-by-side performance on a short term basis as a generality.  But longevity in heavy duty pulling goes to the gear tranny tractors by a landslide.  BOTH schools of thought have their distinct advantages AND DISadvantages.