Corrosion question

[WildThing]

I am well down the road to purchasing a 2015 L4760 from a nearby dealer (in New England). When the tractor arrived from a more distant branch of the dealer's small empire, I was surprised and disappointed by the extent of corrosion.

The bucket had normal looking light corrosion on the inside, but quite a bit of rust on the back of it (with peeling paint). The brush guard in front of the radiator had peeling paint and exposed rust underneath. The hinge mounting plate for one door and one foot step had corrosion. Inside the enclosed cab there was corrosion on a metal fascia (cannot recall which that was). Three of the four decals on the loader were missing. Hours on the machine are 640.

I don't want to be unrealistic in what I expect of a tractor just over 2 years old, but I was kind of dismayed. Is this normal for a Kubota? Or am I seeing a tractor that was rode hard and put away wet?

In searching this forum I did not see a lot of complaining about corrosion. As a quality brand and knowing that tractors have long lives in the elements, I would think that Kubota paint would hold up pretty well.

Am I right to be concerned, or am I worrying too much about cosmetic issues?

 

[mikester]

Maybe you got unlucky with a unit that had poor paint prep. My Kubota's so far have had few paint issues. My NH had a lot of paint peeling problems everywhere in comparison.

Used machines are simply used and it's buyer beware.

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

Pictures of the issues would be good.

If your buying it used and it has these issues, I would be wondering if they used it to move salt?

I've got a 25+ year old Kubota and there is little rust on it.

 

[Creature Meadow]

My uncle has a 18 year old L3400 and it has no paint peeling but has been stored under shelter for say 90% of it's life.

Paint is faded some but nothing like you are saying.

Sounds like where it has been used may have contributed to the paint problems.

If you dig deeper where else may you find corrosion and the potential for future problems like electrical maybe.

Post some pics like NIW said and someone will chime in.

 

[WildThing]

I am wondering about salt as well. In the cab, which had not been cleaned since winter use, there were lots of white speckles here and about, that to a New Englander's eye look like salt. I did not take pictures of the corrosion - it was after I left that I started to realize my desire for a good deal was causing me to ignore reality.

 

[D2Cat]

You mention being "well down the road of purchasing"....you can be well down the road and still put the brakes on! It's your money, you're the boss of it. Don't feel guilty about finalizing the deal if you're not feeling good about it.

Simply tell the dealer you're disappointed in it's appearance and prefer to look at something else, if that's what you desire.

I'd rather not have a tractor then have one I wish I hadn't bought!

 

[WildThing]

I agree 100%, and have already expressed my misgivings to the dealer. The guy I am dealing with has been very good to deal with, and his reaction was that the goal is to satisfy me the customer. Reassuring.

It happens that the dealer has two other used L4760s (which I have not seen) and plenty of new ones, so there remains a good chance that I can find something I want without reservations. It is occurring to me that if I want one that is in great shape and is taken care of well from day one, I can consider a new one.

I was looking for a good value proposition, but I don't think the tractor in question (which was the newest and lowest-hours tractor of the three used L4760s this dealer has) is a better value than a new one.

 

[WildThing]

I went back to look again at the tractor today. I will share some observations but am going to ask a question on a new thread about water ingress into a cab.

First, the worst apparent corrosion is on the loader bucket, which is a Woods. I looked at other Woods buckets on older tractors on the dealer's extensive lot, including one with near identical age and hours, and they are all suffering from corrosion on the back of the bucket and peeling paint. The dealer guy said they suffer from getting hot then cold when winter plowing, but I will just say that they may be good buckets but Woods paint adhesion is sub par.

Some of the rust I am concerned about is on welds at various places, and may not be a big deal (I see it on other non-new tractors). The brush guard of other tractors had issues too, probably due to dings to the paint giving surface corrosion a start.

The issue of biggest concern to me was a small piece of steel in the cab, a piece that is a kind of a stop on the throttle lever. In the tractor I was fixin' to buy, this 2 year old piece was heavily corroded. The dealer said it was easy to replace, but I said that was not the point - nothing inside the cab should be that corroded in such a short time. Well . . .

In doing my lengthy inspection today, I lifted the floor mat. Underneath is cushioning material that is maybe an inch thick. It was 100% saturated with water, like a sponge. I pressed down and water flowed out the door, right over a bracket and screw that were (surprise) corroded. Something is letting water into that cab, and it has been going on for a while, and the humid condition (in the sun) I suspect has caused the corrosion inside the cab.

So, I looked at the dealer's other 2015 L4760, which has a few more hours but comparatively little corrosion aside from the bucket (which is comparable), and agreed to buy that one instead.

 

[adventure bob]

Beyond the bucket the rust should be minimal, or at least to your level of tolerance. Wonder if your first choice wasn't a flood victim? There is no Carfax for tractors. I'm OCD and end up cleaning, repainting and treating mine like a car vice a tractor. There's no real purpose for it, dealers are going to treat them like tractors on a trade in no matter how well you cared for it. However I like mine to look nice.

 

[lugbolt]

Well it is New England. Doesn't everything rust up there?

Makes me glad I live in the South...ain't no rust on anything unless it was used for fertilizer or salt (rare). Reminds me I need to run over to the hills this weekend and see if I can't get that old 'Cuda out of the weeds to see how bad it is. I gotta cut a tree out of the car though, without damaging the sheet metal somehow.

If it bothers you, look for another one that's not rusted.

Woods loader? I can't stand them. Kubota all the way....when I see a Kubota tractor with a Woods loader, I automatically think that someone was cheap when they purchased the tractor and got the cheaper loader. Or it was added at a later date. I passed on a L3430 last weekend that had a woods loader on it, good price too ($3400)...I just can't stand the loader and how it mounts (quick attach? yeah right....). I sold and installed a few of them when I was younger and hated them then, and still hate them today for the same reasons. Woods is a pretty good company and builds good equipment, but now that Kubota owns Land Pride, woods is kind of falling to the wayside in some ways.

 

[ghec369]

I had another thread where I talked about my brand new Kubota M62 that was delivered to me with some areas that had rust.

I purchased a brand new tractor from a dealer in Louisiana and it had been on their lot for almost two years. Prior to purchase, dealer sent me several pics and I went on his word there were no issues with the paint. I live 900 miles away in West Texas and we have no rust on anything.

Nevertheless, after receiving the tractor, I discovered at least two areas (grill guard and a small area next to where the loader attaches to the frame and both showed rust. Again, keep in mind this is a brand new $60k tractor. Pics are attached. I called dealer and he failed to consider doing anything. Only to say he missed seeing those two areas and was unaware the tractor had any rust. I asked for at least some paint to touch up the rust and again, he only said I got a great deal on the tractor and that owner could not provide me some touch up paint. BTW, I also started another thread asking if anyone might know the color code for the gray paint. I also found various very minor, but nevertheless spots that showed some rust (where welds were made and where bolts are located and have sprayed these with a rust protector spray in an effort to prevent any more rust from taking place. The decals have also started to peel in several places.

The local dealer suggested I file a claim with Kubota and see what they can do. Others suggested it is all not worth the hassle and that I just fix those areas myself.

An interesting item is that the salesman has asked me a number of times to return an affidavit that states I have received tractor and manuals (still waiting on these) and that the tractor basically checks out. I have procrastinated in returning these forms until I at least receive the manuals. I am open to any ideas anyone might have. Having read the previous similar concerns on a used tractor, I thought it would be worthwhile to comment on same issues I have had on a brand new unit.

H

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk

 

[Jewel]

My experince is close but fenders. My 2017, L4701 had rust blisters within 3 mths. of purcahse. My local Kubota dealer stepped up and changed both fenders, no charge. Fast forward to 3yrs. and 10 mths. and the fenders are blistering again. My dealer advised me to contact Kubota Corp. , now the answer is Sorry, out of warranty. This is twice in less than 4 yrs. Check out the attachments, the 1st is the L4701, the 2nd is my 1972 Kubota. Compare the pictures and see what I expect my $30,000 investment to look like down the rode. The answer is simple, poor metal prep, no primer. It is called Quality Assurance or the lack of.

 

[Ryansweatt2004]

My experince is close but fenders. My 2017, L4701 had rust blisters within 3 mths. of purcahse. My local Kubota dealer stepped up and changed both fenders, no charge. Fast forward to 3yrs. and 10 mths. and the fenders are blistering again. My dealer advised me to contact Kubota Corp. , now the answer is Sorry, out of warranty. This is twice in less than 4 yrs. Check out the attachments, the 1st is the L4701, the 2nd is my 1972 Kubota. Compare the pictures and see what I expect my $30,000 investment to look like down the rode. The answer is simple, poor metal prep, no primer. It is called Quality Assurance or the lack of.

my 2017 L3901 hst has the exact same paint issue on the fenders and a few other areas.

 

[Mark_BX25D]

I don't want to be unrealistic in what I expect of a tractor just over 2 years old, but I was kind of dismayed. Is this normal for a Kubota? Or am I seeing a tractor that was rode hard and put away wet?

I am the second owner of my BX, which is, I believe, a 2016. I have no such problems as you describe, and mine lives outdoors.

 

[Dieseldonato]

Since we're reviving a dead thread. 2005 B7510 lived it's life outdoors until I got it. Rust was pretty minimal considering I live in PA. Just a few spots on the fenders, and a spot where the hood latch had worn down through the paint. Paint is over all faded pretty good, but still in good shape over all.

 

[Fordtech86]

Anybody live near a coast?

 

[Dieseldonato]

Anybody live near a coast?

Why do you ask that?

 

[hagrid]

Mebbe looking for a softshell crab hookup? They make tasty sammiches.