New in Crate or Assembled

[swmpbgy1]

Yesterday was a rain day so I stopped at the Honda motorcycle dealer who was in a new building that I had not seen yet. Was talking to the salesman who used to be a parts man for me many years ago. The subject of customers came up and he stated that most of the old bikers were not around any more and the new yuppie ones were for difficult to please and were very demanding.

Looking at some of the replies here, I can see where he is coming from. It is a tractor, a piece of equipment that will be used in the yard or whatever. It will be getting scratches. The ones that are on there can be touched up. There will be more put on by the buyer and there will be some on a new one in the crate that will be touched up.

As far as some of the replies with the tractors being over priced, what about the jobs that some of you hold that enables you to buy your over sized lot that requires something larger that a push mower to mow.

It is a tractor, a tool that enables you to get something done easier and faster than without it. It is not a work of art or something that you will put on display in you home. It is not a high end automobile that you will drive to impress the women.

Based on some of the problems that I have seen on this site with broken transmission cases or some of the questions regarding services, a lot of the people here have never seen a tractor before. Not that I have a problem with someone new to tractors and wanting to learn form the mistakes and experiences of others. It is this demanding attitude of perfection on the part of others. This is why our country has such a poor perception in other parts of the world.

I did not make this post to hear someones political views of what's wrong with our Nation. IMHO, it's this half *** attitude that anything less than perfect IS acceptable, is what's wrong. The next time you hop on a plane, you better hope that the mechanic who worked on it doesn't have the same half ***attitude.

I am one of those people you refer to in your post. I have an oversized lot, 12 acres, and enjoy every inch of it. It was my choice to buy it. I have worked hard to get where I'm at, and yes, I do demand perfection in many aspects of my life. If I'm going to spend $20,000 on a tractor, it better darn well be close to perfect. I would think your Honda salesman buddy would be happy to have demanding yuppie customers, like me, with great jobs. Otherwise he would be at McDonalds flinging slop to the masses.

Well any how, I have an appointment for Saturday morning with my Kubota Dealer. Hopefully we can work things out with the scratches.

I cannot see me buying anything else but ORANGE!
Swmpbgy1

 

[johnk]

I had the day off today and actually washed AND waxed my tractor. I found a few self inflicted scratches but as long as I put them there I don't care. Not getting involved with the politics of it but I received mine brand new and with no imperfections as a NEW tractor should be.

 

[crazyal]

If it was a car or truck there's no way I would accept it. As it's a tractor the options are different. I would ask for a new hood and fender. Once said the owner might offer you a break on the price (your choice if you can live with it looking like that) or offer a different tractor. If he offers you a different tractor I would take that to mean he is probably just going to sell it to the next guy hoping he doesn't notice or care or could be he knows it will take some time to get the new parts.

Touch-up paint would be fine for an attachment but it would never last like the factory paint. When I buy one I plan on keeping my tractor for 20 plus years. It could look very nice at that point with some help. The dents and scratches will probably happen but then it's my choice if I want to fix/ replace the part or not. I sure wouldn't want to start out with scratches and a dent before I even owened it.

 

[BAYOUBENGAL]

I bought a new 7610 mid-April. It had been pretty weathered and had several touch-ups. I knew it had and the dealer offered full disclosure. I bought it and liked it, but hated the seat. But as I had it a month or so the hood fading re-exposed. I noticed other little rust spots too. See "Another New Orange Pull Toy" thread. I just got my new direct out of the crate to me B3030. If it bugs you it bugs you. Make no apologies. It's your hard earned money. Get what you want or don't get at all.

 

[BrianW]

If it bugs you it bugs you. Make no apologies. It's your hard earned money. Get what you want or don't get at all.

I couldn't have said it better or agree with it more!

 

[tydp]

Actually, it's more like a $10,000 machine that costs $20,000, which is even worse.

There is no way I'd accept damage, unless it was re-priced accordingly as used (on the order of $3-5k off), JayC

3-5k off......get real.

 

[N80]

The subject of customers came up and he stated that most of the old bikers were not around any more and the new yuppie ones were for difficult to please and were very demanding.

Did the 'old bikers' every really ride Hondas anyway? Seriously, if the picky yuppies are buttering his toast, what's he complaining about. If it weren't for the weekend warrior, there wouldn't be any such thing as a motorcycle salesman!

Looking at some of the replies here, I can see where he is coming from. It is a tractor, a piece of equipment that will be used in the yard or whatever.

Look, that idea doesn't float anymore. A car is just a piece of equipment too. Its just a tool. Whether its a Yugo or a Mercedes is just a machine to get you from point 'a' to point 'b'. You going to pay a new price on a dinged up Mercedes? And today's pickups are even worse. They were designed as utility vehicles. Many of them are now prettier than that Mercedes. Who's going to pay top dollar for a luxury edition pickup with scratches and dings? And for that matter, if I'm buying a new hammer and one of them looks beat up, I'll certainly reach for the one that looks new instead. So 'its just a tool' thing doesn't work for me.

As far as some of the replies with the tractors being over priced, what about the jobs that some of you hold that enables you to buy your over sized lot that requires something larger that a push mower to mow.

I didn't think anyone was saying they were overpriced. I think we were saying that they were expensive. There is a difference. They are expensive no matter how you slice it.

It is not a high end automobile that you will drive to impress the women.

I'd rather attract the kind of woman that was impressed by my tractor more than my car.

It is this demanding attitude of perfection on the part of others. This is why our country has such a poor perception in other parts of the world.

Nope. Someone said it better than me, but if we're going to look for problems with this country it is that we are not demanding enough of quality. We are a throw away society because nothing is made to last. Tractors, being tractors, tend to buck that trend since they are typically made to be durable. But I want my tractor hood to last as long as my engine.

 

[DVR]

bottom line...
it makes no difference what i think (previously stated) or anyone else.

they guy buying makes the decision. it obviously bothers him or the thread would not have been started. you need another machine. if it bothers you now it will bother you later.

 

[witel]

My wife drives a brand new $40k vehicle with every option that it is capable of having. I am currently looking at spending about $40k on a relatively small tractor (with every option) that I won't drive every day, can't even drive off my property (insurance-wise), doesn't have AC, and will probably sit outside a good portion of its life. I'd say that is an expensive machine ... and it'll be capable of a lot. The funny thing is that after three years and all the work I have planned, I'll bet my $40k tractor will look better than my wife's $40k vehicle.

Speaking of AC ... I just had a house built and moved in two weeks ago. I had the AC-guy was out here this morning ... for at least the third time. Once to install the system, once to "repair" it, and once again to "repair" it. The first time, he didn't install it correctly. The second time, he did a rush-job, and thought he'd fixed it without double-checking things. This morning, he finally found out why it wasn't working, and fixed it again ... maybe. Still seems to be a problem. No wonder it costs so much to get things done (and redone and redone). So, if he'd taken a little pride in his work, and done the job right to begin with, the other trips here would not have been necessary. To top it off, he was projecting a bit of an attitude like I was bothering him. I see this half-a**ed (HA) attitude a lot with people ... doing the minimum ... if that. If I did that with my work, people die. I suppose I grew up in a different house than these HA people.

Oh, I have another one for you ... My mom used to work for the city and was telling me about a construction company that put in a very long wheel-chair ramp along-side a building that they were building. There was a telephone-pole right smack dab in the middle of the ramp ... making it totally non-functional. However, they got the check-mark-approval for having the ramp ... which they promptly ripped-out after getting the approval. What a waste of time, concrete, and money ... all for bureaucracy. HA!

Obviously, HA is a peeve with me. <stepping down off of the soap-box>

swmpbgy1, I can't wait to see how the ... HA ... dealer compensates you.

 

[Northland]

Hear, Hear witel- I agree 100%

Many of us take great pride in the work we do and how we present ourselves. I hate it when I get crappy service and then the service provider has the audacity to brush off my issues as me having "too high expectations"

I actually bought a new BX23 with front snow blower back in Nov 05 from a dealer here in Canada. The BX-23 showed up with bird crap all over it, the 3 point hitch rusted in it's box, the manuals and other paperwork in water-soaked bag. It had a 1/4 tank of fuel and only 1 key. The snow blower was not with the BX-23 and the delivery guy didn't know how to operate anything. When I called the dealer owner he thought I was being "picky". He suggested that "maybe I should just pick it up" and I agreed.

The next month I went and bought a B7800 from a great dealer in northern Michigan.

 

[DUMBDOG]

It is obvious that I struck a raw nerve with a lot of you. But if I can, I will try to clarify a few things.

First of all, with the motorcycle salesman, no where in my post did I say the he was complaining about the customers. If you would carefully read what is written, it says that he stated. Just because he stated that they were more demanding and difficult to please does not mean that he was complaining about it, it was just a statement of fact and that is all. This whole thread bears that out.

There was also a post regarding the price of the tractor. "20K for a 10K machine that costs 20K." If a person can afford the property to need a tractor, then they can afford the 20K for the tractor. My whole point was that if you worked your way up in life to get to the point where you want something for a need, why beat up the other guy on price to the point where you say that his product costs double of what it should be selling for. If you feel that the tractor is double in price for what it is worth, then maybe your job pays you twice as much as you are worth.

We have all worked hard to get where we are and to afford what we have. if you are not saying the the price is twice of what it is worth, then I was not referring to you.

It just bugs me when people belittle the price of a product and state that the price is way to high. If that is the case, they should not be looking at the product, as it is obvious, to me at least, that they cannot afford it.

When it comes to the performance of the product, then I am picky. I buy them to use and they had better work each and every time. Right now all three of tractors are sitting out in the rain. Right where they were used and where they will be used when it it dry enough. Some people wash their tractors, this is how mine get washed.

To me a few scratches are just cosmetic and that is all. When you buy a tractor, it should not look like the dickens, but look good, things many happen that I might overlook, but it looks like I am in the minority here in that respect.

 

[johnk]

If the motorcycle salseman had bikes with scratches on all the tanks I bet he'd be out of business before long because there will be another guy selling bikes that takes pride in what he sells. If they are NEW they should look NEW. I wouldn't buy one scratched. Might as well just buy a used one for a lot less. Just my opiniion. Not to be arrogant so don't take it as such... Would you buy a new Harley with a scratch or ding in the tank and pay 20K for it and say its only a scratch?

 

[swmpbgy1]

swmpbgy1, I can't wait to see how the ... HA ... dealer compensates you.

Witel:

I had a meeting with the Dealer this past Saturday morning. I voiced all of my concerns with him. He understood where I was coming from and agreed to order me another 3030. He's going to throw in a cover and fender extensions at no charge. I'm a repeat customer and purchased a new BX2230from him in 2004. He's never had the HA attitude. He 's a small town dealer and knows all of his customes by first name. I've sent him several friends to him who've purchased from him. People that I don't like, I send them to the HA Stealer on the "other" side of the county!

Everyone.....Thanks to all that have replied! I will be posting pix sometime after the 4th when the new 3030 arrives.

Go big ORANGE!
Swmpbgy1

 

[johnk]

Good dealings and good dealer. Best of luck with your new machine..

 

[jsborn]

Witel:

I had a meeting with the Dealer this past Saturday morning. I voiced all of my concerns with him. He understood where I was coming from and agreed to order me another 3030. He's going to throw in a cover and fender extensions at no charge. Swmpbgy1

To think it took us 4 pages and almost a civil war to work this out.

And all that was needed was a sit down with the dealer and some easy conservation.

Never underestimate the power of the buyer/seller relationship.

 

[swmpbgy1]

To think it took us 4 pages and almost a civil war to work this out.

And all that was needed was a sit down with the dealer and some easy conservation.

Never underestimate the power of the buyer/seller relationship.

AMEN!

 

[witel]

Good. I am very happy that you have a reasonable dealer. Congratulations! You got what you need.