I just had the same issue (died on field) with less than 50 hours. The MX5400 has been at dealers for almost 4 weeks and they are no closer to diagnosing the problem than they were in week one. Claim to be working with Kubota engineers but doesnt sound like anybody knows what is wrong. They talked about changing wiring harness, possibly a new engine. I dont really care I just need the tractor that Im paying monthly on and dont have use of it. My last Kubota was the MX4800 that was recalled whe it had 60 hours for a major issue (HST). Ive been talking to green tractor dealers. quality issues are bad enough but the lack of service and failure to stand behind their product has pushed me over the edge. Seems like they are trying to live off the name they made for themselves and will quickly loose ground to the new kids (Mahindra) on the block or established manufactures (Deere) that have maintained their quality.
No, these are growing pains of any manufacturer. Kubota has grown exponentially in the past few years (particularly 2020), however their support hasn't grown enough to keep up with the products' sales numbers. The number of equipment that sold in 19 and 20 was FAR beyond expectation. Add in Covid and the shutdowns of 2020, and some of those folks who were laid off didn't go back to work, and you have issues.
Noone is immune. One of the largest issues I had with Kubota in terms of factory-to-dealer tech support was that they were overwhelmed, and didn't have facilities to have a dedicated "tech support". That is changing. The equipment it also changing. There is a huge lack of motivation for people to work in this field. They (deere included) don't pay enough for the headaches involved. Everything just adds up.
not saying I was the best ever tech, just experienced. 30 years, and the last 8 years were with zero pay increase. Yet the training got more demanding (travel on my own dime, etc), and it is required. That's just the money side of it. I could go on and on and on. Kubota's a great company, just not "perfect". None are. And the dealer I was at, far from perfect. I'd have stayed if the dealer had addressed some issues internal to them. And--I'm not the only one, the industry as a whole is losing seasoned techs, yet gaining new ones. That is a good thing, and a bad thing--at the same time.
the deal with kubota's common rail injection system is, BOSCH. Bosch supplies a lot of the parts for them. Bosch has the same issues that other big companies have. Lack of workers, lack of trained workers, lack of motivation for employees to show up on time, and certainly a lack of motivation for folks to put forth some pride in their work in comparison to the demand placed on the product and service that they supply.
