I wonder about new Kubota tractors...

SDT

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Works for me. This is about discussing / dissecting T4 final tractors and engines and their impact on end users as well as resale value down the road.
Same here.

Obviously, there is interest in the thread as folks continue to post.

Besides, I'm not a member of the forum police.

SDT
 

jtboney1

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Jul 11, 2018
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In a logical world, that would be the case. But, if there is one thing I know about government, they ain't logical. Kubota and others may come up with different systems and there may be some different EPA approved ways of doing things, but the Tier IV rules will stay. (I so hope I'm wrong.) I work for government (state) and I have been part of rule changes and I have basically begged the powers that be to not make certain rules changes due to the consequences that I KNOW will happen. What do they do, adopt them anyway, then comment later how there are some issues with the rule changes. Government is a weird entity, and it is rarely about doing anything with common sense.

I bought my L2501 just because I did not want the potential for DPF problems down the road. I would have jumped all over a L3901 if it did not have the DPF. I was totally ignorant of the Tier IV rules until I started tractor shopping. I came so close to buying a L3940 years ago. Oh, how I wished I did, but my career/finances was a little bit in question at the time.

I also hoped Trump's administration might help in rolling the rules back, and I actually did a bit of searching on that. But, as I already know, that wasn't going to happen, at least not anytime soon.

I would like to know how many people like me steered away from a bigger machine just because of the DPF systems. I bet quite a few.
Count me in as one who would have rather had a L3301 or L3901 but bought the L2501 to avoid the headaches I can see coming in later years when the brains and the electronics start failing. When I bought mine the dealer had two 3901's in his shop with regen problems. He actually talked me DOWN to the L2501 because of the tier IV crap. Not often a dealer talks you into spending less money.
 

North Idaho Wolfman

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Look back at gasoline emissions systems, there was quite a few years of OOP's, before they simplified and streamlined the catalytic converters and systems that ran them.

You can't by any gasoline automobile without that system on it, and they work pretty much flawlessly.

I think one major issue is they allow the user to override the system (yes it's required right now due to system design limitations) but I bet 90% of the emissions failure issues are due to someone not allowing the system to just do its job when it needs to.

Diesel engines are behind the curve for emissions systems and it will take time and a lot of work to get them tuned in and running like they should.

I would really like it if Kubota would open up their software so independent mechanics can be able to read and repair their tractors, especially when they go out of warranty.
 

dochsml

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Look back at gasoline emissions systems, there was quite a few years of OOP's, before they simplified and streamlined the catalytic converters and systems that ran them.

You can't by any gasoline automobile without that system on it, and they work pretty much flawlessly.

I think one major issue is they allow the user to override the system (yes it's required right now due to system design limitations) but I bet 90% of the emissions failure issues are due to someone not allowing the system to just do its job when it needs to.

Diesel engines are behind the curve for emissions systems and it will take time and a lot of work to get them tuned in and running like they should.

I would really like it if Kubota would open up their software so independent mechanics can be able to read and repair their tractors, especially when they go out of warranty.
I think you pretty much hit it on the head. It's the whole having to connect a laptop that worries people. Would be nice if they could have a static system (like a cat. converter) that wasn't even in the engine compartment.
 

SidecarFlip

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Look back at gasoline emissions systems, there was quite a few years of OOP's, before they simplified and streamlined the catalytic converters and systems that ran them.

You can't by any gasoline automobile without that system on it, and they work pretty much flawlessly.

Because the technology has advanced enough where it's basically foolproof and has a very low failure rate. Not only the emissons hardware has advance but to so have the engines. The power they make today makes engines from 30 years ago look like dinosaurs. Plus you can plug in an OBD scanner and diagnose what is wrong. I have one and it not only tells me what is wrong but tells me which component is out of value.

I think one major issue is they allow the user to override the system (yes it's required right now due to system design limitations) but I bet 90% of the emissions failure issues are due to someone not allowing the system to just do its job when it needs to.

Exactly and what the Kubota rep told me last week as well as the head tech at my dealer. They both said the two biggest issues are.. One, new owners don't read the owners manual and follow the recommended regeneration procedure and / or two, they over ride the system because it's not convenient for a regen and they do that so many times, the DFP fills with soot and bad things happen to the engine (if you remember the thread about the guy with the late model M that was pushing exhaust out from under the valve cover and out the air cleaner and when they tore down the engine it was toast.) Dennis told me that has happened there more than once. Plugged the DPF, kept on hammering on the engine and toasted it....and Kubota won't stand good for any warranty claim because it's considered misuse of equipment.

Diesel engines are behind the curve for emissions systems and it will take time and a lot of work to get them tuned in and running like they should.

It will happen eventually, the problem with me as I see it is, what will the interm units be worth as far as resale or trade in?

I would really like it if Kubota would open up their software so independent mechanics can be able to read and repair their tractors, especially when they go out of warranty.
Exactly. Not everyone can afford a Kubota Scan Tool (if they can even get one). At least with the auto makers, the standardized it across the board with all makes OBD so no matter what you own, you can scan the ECU for trouble codes and ancillary systems like ABS and traction control.

Not so with tractor builders (not just Kubota either, they all have their own proprietary systems, all have special scan tools and nothing is available to the general public so no owner can scan for issues and it becomes a dealer only scenario and its usually not free either). I understand the motive sort of but it really excludes the average non dealer shop or you from being able to work on a T4 Final tractor other than routine maintenance. You cannot touch the fuel or emissions systems because you cannot diagnose the issue to repair it.

They don't want you fooling with the systems but they make it so you can override the systems but with detrimental results (if you do it frequently) as evidenced by the guy with the lunched engine.

They need to make them with NO override. Just like big trucks are. You cannot override the regeneration of the DPF and Urea injection for bigger horsepower engines in a big truck period. It's going to regen when it wants to, no choice from the operator.

How the tractors need to be set up too. That and read the owners manual and follow it. That manual was written by the engineers who designed the systems (and tractors) and they know better than the average owner.
 
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SidecarFlip

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I think you pretty much hit it on the head. It's the whole having to connect a laptop that worries people. Would be nice if they could have a static system (like a cat. converter) that wasn't even in the engine compartment.
You cannot because the interface isn't standard so there is no way to plug in except with a Kubota scan tool. You cannot plug in your laptop period. Like I said, JD, Or CNH or Kioti or whatever, each one requires a different interface. There is no standardization and there should be.

T4 emissions are way past selective catalytic reduction (Catalytic convertor). That is Pre 4 stuff and don't meet the emissions stadards set today for tail pipe (or exhaust stack) emissions.

Not to rub salt in any wounds but, I'm sure glad neither of my 2 M's have any of that stuff and the way it stands I don't want anything to do with it.

One thing I've learned over the last 40 years and that is, eventually they all break or wear out.
 

quazz

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Changes without an instant and obvious benefit to the individual owner is always a tough sell.
 

SidecarFlip

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Changes without an instant and obvious benefit to the individual owner is always a tough sell.
Only if you are running for political office. In the case of manufacturing changes, the manufacturer decides and the end user gets to deal with it or buy elsewhere as there are numerous choices.
 

powersrp

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Apr 2, 2017
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I have a 2015 B3350 800 hrs, never a problem with regen, light comes on, throttle to almost max , let er run , and contiue what im doing. then cool down period


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 

troverman

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Despite the folks that think electrics are the answer (they aren't), diesel technology is still progressing. Cummins has a non-EGR Tier4 Final diesel that took a long time to get approved but has been operating on the market for a couple of years now. That is major, since it lowers the cooling requirements of the machine, and is much healthier for the engine. The design reduces the number of regens a DPF must perform, which further lowers "down the road" costs. Keep in mind the newest and largest Kubota tractor uses a Cummins 6.7L, just like in the RAM pickups.

This type of R&D indicates that major manufacturers also realize electric is not the answer and will continue to develop and perfect a design that does work, and works right now. All of us will eventually benefit.
 

GeoHorn

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Despite the folks that think electrics are the answer (they aren't), diesel technology is still progressing. Cummins has a non-EGR Tier4 Final diesel that took a long time to get approved but has been operating on the market for a couple of years now. That is major, since it lowers the cooling requirements of the machine, and is much healthier for the engine. The design reduces the number of regens a DPF must perform, which further lowers "down the road" costs. Keep in mind the newest and largest Kubota tractor uses a Cummins 6.7L, just like in the RAM pickups.

This type of R&D indicates that major manufacturers also realize electric is not the answer and will continue to develop and perfect a design that does work, and works right now. All of us will eventually benefit.
The reason Pres. Garfield died was because everybody kept sticking dirty fingers into the wound and caused infection because they didn’t believe some guy named Lyster who had discovered germs. Later on, some guy named Fleming solved that problem with penicilin.

The reason Cummins works on newer, improved designs of diesel engines is because..... Cummins does NOT make electric motors. Diesels are all they know. That’s not the same as “electrics... aren’t” the answer.

I’m sure glad we don’t still have to shovel horseshit off the streets just because not one believed horseless carriages weren’t the answer. ;)
 

troverman

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SidecarFlip

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I'm pretty sure Cummins is outsourcing the electric drives.
 

SidecarFlip

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The reason Pres. Garfield died was because everybody kept sticking dirty fingers into the wound and caused infection because they didn’t believe some guy named Lyster who had discovered germs. Later on, some guy named Fleming solved that problem with penicilin.

The reason Cummins works on newer, improved designs of diesel engines is because..... Cummins does NOT make electric motors. Diesels are all they know. That’s not the same as “electrics... aren’t” the answer.

I’m sure glad we don’t still have to shovel horseshit off the streets just because not one believed horseless carriages weren’t the answer. ;)
Lets not get into that subject in as much as almost all of that drug comes from China and India now.....:D
 

dochsml

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L4701HST
Jan 21, 2020
216
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The only way I could see an electric tractor being economically viable would be for it to operate with a diesel engine as its prime mover. Much like a diesel-electric locomotive, the diesel could be optimized to run at the synchronous RPM of the alternator (probably around 1800 RPM). This would be a bit of a trick to make good economic sense in a little machine like I got though.