Yanmar LX4100

[CPortu]

Hi All,
I've posted in a few different places thus far in my tractor search. I'm getting close to pulling the trigger on an LX4100. I've got it down to pretty much the same price as a Kioti DK40HST and a LS4041H (about 21,500 give or take a couple hundred bucks) with dual rear remotes (1 factor 1 additional)- All things being equal, I like Yanmar and it's history, 5 yrs of warranty and the flat deck among other things.

Any of you have experience good or bad with this tractor that you would care to share?

Thanks in advance,
Carlos-

 

[TSO]

Hi All,
I've posted in a few different places thus far in my tractor search. I'm getting close to pulling the trigger on an LX4100. I've got it down to pretty much the same price as a Kioti DK40HST and a LS4041H (about 21,500 give or take a couple hundred bucks) with dual rear remotes (1 factor 1 additional)- All things being equal, I like Yanmar and it's history, 5 yrs of warranty and the flat deck among other things.

Any of you have experience good or bad with this tractor that you would care to share?

Thanks in advance,
Carlos-

When I shopped and sat on the Cub, I really liked how they used the rear fenders for storage and a 12v outlet. I thought the engine sounded a bit loud and clanky. But otherwise, it seemed to be a good tractor. Does it have telescoping 3pt arms? Draft control standard? Dual rear remotes?

 

[DK35vince]

I looked a Yanmar LX 410 with power reverser this past summer.
It was a VERY NICE unit.
It would definitely be one of the machines at the top of my list if I were purchasing a new tractor.

 

[CPortu]

That's a yes to the dual remotes and telescoping arms. Gotta check on the Draft control.

 

[Katahdin]

That's great price! I think I commented on one of your tractor shopping threads, I'm glad you got a chance to try out a Yanmar!

Regarding TSO observation about engine loudness, what are you comparing it to? Its important to note the 4TNV88 engine in the LX 4100s and 4500s are direct injection so it lacks a precombustion chamber. That precombusion chamber might make a similar sized indirect injection engine run a little quieter but IDI is a less efficient combustion process. That said, I generally get compliments about how quiet my 4500 runs but I do prefer to drive it with Peltor AM/FM ear muffs on.

I have 120 hours on my LX so far, I like it a lot. I use it for box bladeing and spreading gravel, fork lift work, bush hogging, and snow plowing. Re gearing, you're in Florida, right? You may never need to take the transmission out of high gear because you don't have any hills :laughing:, on hills is pretty much the only time I ever needed to take it out of HI. FYI, my top GPS verified speed across town was 16.8mph with Ag tires.

I've done all the maintenance on mine and it seems pretty straight forward. I like the fact I don't have to take off extra body panels to check fluids or access a battery, the fuel tank is easily drained if your fuel becomes contaminated, the fuel pump is external and easily swapped out, the fuses are easily accessible and comes with its own puller, the manual is easy to follow and understand. Coming from the northeast I like the fact the body panels will never rust.

Do you think you will modify your tractor? There's lots of room under the hood for a larger battery (it will take an Optima battery without modification) and the firewall is easily accessed to add an auxiliary fuse box. There's also plenty of room under the hood for a battery tender if you'd like to add one. The instrument cluster cowl is easy to take off to do some auxiliary wiring.

One observation I have is the rated PTO power for the LX HSTSs seem to be several horsepower less than other brands. I'd like to know why that is, but this summer I was pulling a 6 foot King Kutter rotary mower just fine up and down hills in tall grass so it hasn't been an issue for me.

Generally I don't think you'll hear many complaints about the LX series, there just aren't many problems with them. The only fluke I've read here about was a fuel tank outlet got clogged with some drilled plastic bits, but that owner later had an entourage of Japanese engineers show up at his farm to take notes on how he used his tractor and ask about any changes he'd recommend, I don't think you can ask for a better outcome and customer service than that.

 

[pilotman]

I have had a lx4100 for a year and have dug 2 small ponds done a lot of landscaping with it. Yanmar lx line with the cl 600 loader are great tractors, for green color you pay $8000 more and not get any more tractor.

 

[TnAndy]

Generally I don't think you'll hear many complaints about the LX series, there just aren't many problems with them. The only fluke I've read here about was a fuel tank outlet got clogged with some drilled plastic bits, but that owner later had an entourage of Japanese engineers show up at his farm to take notes on how he used his tractor and ask about any changes he'd recommend, I don't think you can ask for a better outcome and customer service than that.

I'm the guy above. http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/cub-cadet-yanmar-cuts/269152-cub-cadet-yanmar-lx410-2.html


Had my LX410 little over a year now, and with the exception of the fluke thing with the tank blockage, I'm well pleased with it. I had a hydrostat New Holland before this ( and a gear drive Yanmar before that), and wasn't sure if I'd like going to the gear drive/shuttle shift, but I'm glad I did. I suspect it has a lot more power than the same model in hydro, runs lot higher speed if running down the road to another field, and I don't miss the hydro a bit.

I gave $18,500 for mine in the fall of 2012.

I would buy this tractor again.

"Field" modifications I've done already:

1. Bought another plastic fender handle that comes stock on the left side, and added it to the right side. My NH had handle built in on both sides, and I missed having something to hold onto on the right side as I bounce along doing repetitive stuff like plowing.

2. Like the tool holders ( won't call them a box ) built into the fender tops.....but I like to carry more stuff on the tractor than those would hold, so I bought a larger metal box and mounted it on a piece of 2"x2" angle I welded between the roll bar. Now I can carry a decent hammer, pipe wrench, fencing tools, can of WD-40, and so on.


Ones I plan to do when I get around to it:

1. Add a step on the right side. The mounting brackets are there, it just didn't come with a step on that side, ( because of the loader control I imagine ), but I'd like one there. I'll built it.

2. The rear lift arm lever sits too far to the rear for my old screwed up shoulder....awkward to get to ( NH had it right up on the fender top ). I plan to remove the handle top, weld up a Z shaped adapter (Z turn on side) that brings the lever up and forward some, then put the handle top on that new extension.

3. Lift arm lever again. Sits low and down behind the seat. I can NOT reach it from the ground, so when hooking up an implement, if I need to raise the arms 1/2", I have to get up on the tractor, try to look over the back and gauge the lift.....and do it again if I missed it. DANG inconvenient if you ask me. SO I plan to weld a T adapter (T turn on side) down under the fender that I can reach from the back of the tractor while on the ground that will make this a snap.

 

[TSO]

Regarding TSO observation about engine loudness, what are you comparing it to? Its important to note the 4TNV88 engine in the LX 4100s and 4500s are direct injection so it lacks a precombustion chamber. .

It was about a year ago, and I believe it was the LX490 ... it was louder than my Kioti/Daedong, and my LS/Mitsubishi. Louder than my buddies Kubota too.

But, it was cold out so that may have been a factor. Not saying there was anything bad about it sounding clanky, just didn't like the sound myself.

 

[Katahdin]

The 490 is a slightly different beast, it has a slightly smaller displacement engine with a turbo. The 410x and 450xs have the same naturally aspirated engine with a slightly larger displacement. True, low temps might make an initial startup noise difference. Here's what mine sounded like at -5 degrees Fahrenheit last night without any aid of a block heater: Yanmar LX 4500 Cold Start -5 Degrees - YouTube But she did start up! :thumbsup:

I don't know much about the Mitsubishi engines in the LS, but I do know the Kubota and Kioti/Daedongs are Indirect Injection with a longer stroke and smaller bore than the Yanmars in the 40hp range. Interesting to note, the bore and stroke ratio between the Kubota and Kiotis are exactly the same, right down to the millimeter. I think if one delves into the engine details they'll come to the conclusion the 40hp Yanmars with the direct injection and shorter stroke/larger bore gives it a slight fuel efficiency and longevity edge over the orange tractor engine designs.

 

[TSO]

The 490 is a slightly different beast, it has a slightly smaller displacement engine with a turbo. The 410x and 450xs have the same naturally aspirated engine with a slightly larger displacement. True, low temps might make an initial startup noise difference. Here's what mine sounded like at -5 degrees Fahrenheit last night without any aid of a block heater: Yanmar LX 4500 Cold Start -5 Degrees - YouTube But she did start up! :thumbsup:

I don't know much about the Mitsubishi engines in the LS, but I do know the Kubota and Kioti/Daedongs are Indirect Injection with a longer stroke and smaller bore than the Yanmars in the 40hp range. Interesting to note, the bore and stroke ratio between the Kubota and Kiotis are exactly the same, right down to the millimeter. I think if one delves into the engine details they'll come to the conclusion the 40hp Yanmars with the direct injection and shorter stroke/larger bore gives it a slight fuel efficiency and longevity edge over the orange tractor engine designs.

Interesting. How does mine compare?

Mitsubishi S4QL
152.9 ci
Bore/Stroke: 3.465x4.055 inches

 

[CPortu]

I enjoyed the cold start video... Needless to say- that won't be an issue here for me.... It's in the Mid 60's today and breezy. We're starting a tropical fruit orchard and small organic farm so I doubt we'll need to operate with freezing temps. IF we do, I've got bigger problems than having to use the block heater.

I was needing a mower as well, got a price of 1900 for the Yanmar YRC60 mower (Made by Woods) and that seems pretty crazy to me seeing that I could buy King Kutter with slip clutch delivered and free shipping for about 1500. Thought maybe the dealer was trying to recoup a little on the tractor pricing by jacking up the implements. I thought perhaps I'd beat him up and try to get the mower for 1K (Probably his cost). At worst I'll get the Tractor/Loader, Canopy, Dual Rear remotes and Rear Blade for 23 (about 200 more than the same package with Kioti and LS). I did notice that Kioti increased their rebates on the DK series after Jan 1 so I will revisit my Kioti dealer to see if he can make that deal more compelling. LS dealership is just too far and I'd rather stick with Either Kioti or Yanmar at this point.

 

[Katahdin]

I googled TSO's Mitsubishi engine and dug up my other bore/stroke notes about the other tier 3 engines in the 40hp CUT class. The S4QL is indirect injection, like the Kubota and Kioti engines.

The S4QL has the same bore as the Yanmar 4tnv88 (88mm) but it has a longer stroke (103mm vs 90mm). I don't think we should be surprised at this because the S4QL engine is rated for higher horsepower, and it gets some of that from its larger displacement. In comparison, the Kubota/Kioti engines each have 83mm bores and a stroke of 92.4mm

Let's calculate the Bore Stroke Ratios:
Yanmar .97:1
LS .87:1
Kub/Kioti .89:1

So what does this math mean? Well the Yanmar LX engines stand out because it they have a nearly square bore/stroke ratio, or very close to 1:1. The other engines have longer strokes so they crank the pistons over longer distances, this generally delivers more low-rpm torque but also incur more friction as the piston rings rub against the cylinder walls. The shorter stroke of the Yanmar engine, however, means it can deliver more power strokes per minute, and the direct injection gives it a fuel efficiency edge. Note, this is a very basic assessment, it overlooks a lot of things like camshaft design, rod length, advances in engine design, etc but this is the type of stuff we can ascertain on the spec sheets the tractor salesmen give us, so I hope its a fair assessment!

 

[Katahdin]

Yeah, I hear you about mower prices. I picked up a 6 foot King Kutter for $900, the shear-bolt one without the slip clutch. It was cheap because it had been sitting in the dealer's yard for a couple years and the paint had faded, but I was happy with the price!

Yanmar vs Kioti, truth be told I hemmed and hawed for a long time about that decision too. Good luck with the dealers!

 

[TSO]

I googled TSO's Mitsubishi engine and dug up my other bore/stroke notes about the other tier 3 engines in the 40hp CUT class. The S4QL is indirect injection, like the Kubota and Kioti engines.

The S4QL has the same bore as the Yanmar 4tnv88 (88mm) but it has a longer stroke (103mm vs 90mm). I don't think we should be surprised at this because the S4QL engine is rated for higher horsepower, and it gets some of that from its larger displacement. In comparison, the Kubota/Kioti engines each have 83mm bores and a stroke of 92.4mm

Let's calculate the Bore Stroke Ratios:
Yanmar .97:1
LS .87:1
Kub/Kioti .89:1

So what does this math mean? Well the Yanmar LX engines stand out because it they have a nearly square bore/stroke ratio, or very close to 1:1. The other engines have longer strokes so they crank the pistons over longer distances, this generally delivers more low-rpm torque but also incur more friction as the piston rings rub against the cylinder walls. The shorter stroke of the Yanmar engine, however, means it can deliver more power strokes per minute, and the direct injection gives it a fuel efficiency edge. Note, this is a very basic assessment, it overlooks a lot of things like camshaft design, rod length, advances in engine design, etc but this is the type of stuff we can ascertain on the spec sheets the tractor salesmen give us, so I hope its a fair assessment!

What's your analysis of this engine?

Iseki E4DE
134.1 ci
47.1 HP @ 2600 rpm
Bore/Stroke: 3.82x3.94

 

[TSO]

What's your analysis of this engine?

Iseki E4DE
134.1 ci
47.1 HP @ 2600 rpm
Bore/Stroke: 3.82x3.94

... and I should point out, it's in a Massey 1648, in case you needed that info.

 

[fieldnforest]

CPortu I have an ex450. It's definitely not the same model, but I can tell you I'm very happy with the Yanmar. My wife and I have a hobby farm and it gets used everyday, and I got to say they designed the loader and tractor perfectly. I can lift big round bales with no stability issues. I have used other tractors that are very tippy and unsafe with big round bales. I have 250 hours on it so far and not a hitch for issues. The Lx4100 is an even nicer tractor than mine. So I'd give you a thumbs up on the trigger pull.:thumbsup: