Buying Advice Used BX2350 Inspection

[ChetB]

I am looking at purchasing a 2006 BX2350. I found it at a Deere dealer about an hour away. They say it needs a new pulley and and bolts on one side of the 60" deck. They are getting parts from the local Kubota dealer. Is this something I should be concerned about?

Also, does anyone have any tips on the pre-purchase inspection and test drive?

This will be my first tractor. If all works out, it will be about 2500 to 4k less than what I have seen to be market value around here.

 

[bp fick]

The BX in the 50 series were marketed briefly. Somewhat shorter time than the other BX series. The heavy use of plastics made this particular model somewhat more suspect in a lot of people's minds and Kubota quickly upgraded to the current 60 series. IIRC, the plastic floor pans/fenders cracked and many where replaced and/or repaired using a support bracket.

The 50 series also had the abrupt stop and start. Be sure when you test drive you can put up the abrupt forward to reverse and abrupt stop in reverse. Some guys hated it so much they traded off the 50 immediately, while others it never seemed to concern them.

 

[JOHNTHOMAS]

The BX in the 50 series were marketed briefly. Somewhat shorter time than the other BX series. The heavy use of plastics made this particular model somewhat more suspect in a lot of people's minds and Kubota quickly upgraded to the current 60 series. IIRC, the plastic floor pans/fenders cracked and many where replaced and/or repaired using a support bracket.

The 50 series also had the abrupt stop and start. Be sure when you test drive you can put up the abrupt forward to reverse and abrupt stop in reverse. Some guys hated it so much they traded off the 50 immediately, while others it never seemed to concern them.

I was one of the traded it off almost immediately. I had owned previous model BXs and knew it was wrong. My neighbor has one with almost 300 hours on his and doesn't seem to mind it and yes his does the abrupt stop in reverse. I know because I tried his one day to see if it did.
The plastic parts didn't bother me but I didn't keep it long enough for them to crack or break.
Engine wise and other wise there are no issues that I know of. The 50 series probably and should bring less money on resale than other series because of these known issues but there will always be those that don't know about the issues and maybe will pay more or think they are getting a great price.
Try it yourself several times backing up and stopping and see how it bothers you in the neck and back and go from there either negotiating or going for a different series.

 

[ChetB]

I have read about the reverse issue, but haven't had a chance to test drive yet. The least expensive 2x60 I have seen with FEL and MMM is around 12500. This one is 8K.

What about generic inspection tips?