Please ease my mind - Kubota L4802 vs Mahindra 5145 - Kubota $10k more, less functional?

[SDT]

First post on the forum so apologies if I’m doing something wrong but I’ve scoured the forums and YouTube and still not sure which way I should go, and this forum seems like a really helpful community.


I’m a first time tractor buyer but I grew up running tractors (Masse Ferguson and Mahindra) on my family land since I was old enough to mash down the clutch.

I just purchased 22ac of flat land east of Houston that’s ~7ac field that I want to keep trimmed, and ~15ac wooded with thick underbrush that I want to thin out and maintain. I also need to take down a dozen ~18” oaks to open up the access as well as maintain ~1/2mi lane. I will also be building a barn and offgrid cabin and will need to maneuver building materials and IBC totes.


My dad’s tractors have always been around the 40hp range with similar terrain so I figured I’d stay in that general space since it worked well for him. I really like the Mahindra 5145 shuttle and on paper it seems to outspec the Kubota L4802 HST (larger frame, more open deck and larger fenders, significantly more lift capacity, beefier 3pt, cat1&2 couplers, standard rear remote, more protection around filters and hoses, mechanical PTO, bucket level indicator, better location for fuel and battery, more hood clearance for engine bay access, etc), not to mention it’s $10k cheaper for the 2023 model.



The common theme I hear on the interwebs is that Mahindra has reliability/service/parts issues but if I go with the 5145 I basically have a $10k repair budget built in before I even get to the same cost of the L4802. Normally I have no problem paying extra for more features/reliability but I get a stomach ache thinking I’m paying 1/3 more money for less tractor just because a one folks on the internet think Mahindra is trash.



Lastly, I understand the L4802 is a brand new model line, which also poses some concerns since the bugs haven’t been worked out.



Do y’all have any insight that can help ease my mind that forking out $10k for the L4802 is the right thing to do?

Thanks in advance!
Ben

If you like the Mahindra, you should buy it if you have long term dealer support.

In my area, Mahindra dealers come and go while the local CNH/Kubota dealer has been around for decades, albeit difficult to deal with and not well regarded by many locals.

 

[SDT]

Isn’t Case a rebadged LS?

No.

Stellantis owns Case New Holland and many Case and NH models are nearly identical mechanically.

 

[rc51stierhoff]

LS seems to think they have some sort of agreement…

LSTA in the USA - LS Tractor

In 1977, Korea Heavy Industries and Construction Company began a new line of tractors. Then in 1983, LS Tractor was born. Learn more LSTA!

lstractorusa.com

.

 

[NorthwoodsLife]

I knew a woman who bought a less expensive car only because it had a 10 year, 100K mile warranty and was way way cheaper to buy. But, after her car being in the dealer's shop over and over and over, and her having to pay, with her own money, to rent a car everytime her "10 yr warranty" car was in the shop; She traded it in for a Honda CRV. That was 20 years ago. She loves and drives that Honda now.

If you need a tractor as cheaply as possible because of your budget, buy cheap and cross your fingers. If you want the best long term investment, buy Kubota. Or JD if the dealer is better or closer. You get what you pay for in tractors.

 

[TheOldHokie]

LS seems to think they have some sort of agreement…

LSTA in the USA - LS Tractor

In 1977, Korea Heavy Industries and Construction Company began a new line of tractors. Then in 1983, LS Tractor was born. Learn more LSTA!

lstractorusa.com

.

Apparently they do.

LS manufactures the low end Farmall (<100HP) lineup for CNH.

They also manufacture the New Holland Boomer lineup. In years past (Ford) that agreement was with Shibaru.

Apparently LS has had OEM manufacturing agreements with Fiat for decades.

Dan

 

[rc51stierhoff]

Apparently they do.

LS manufactures the low end Farmall C (<100HP) lineup for CNH.

They also manufacture the New Holland Boomer lineup. In years past (Ford) that agreement was with Shibaru.

Apparently LS has had OEM agreements with Fiat for decades.

Dan

It was news to me too. But I also can’t imagine NH or Case jeopardizing their reputation either, so i’d suspect they have confidence in the LS product to put their name on it. I don’t think that is uncommon for companies (in a lot of different markets) trying to gain market share without coughing up the $$ to pay for the development across a full line up.

 

[TheOldHokie]

It was news to me too. But I also can’t imagine NH or Case jeopardizing their reputation either, so i’d suspect they have confidence in the LS product to put their name on it. I don’t think that is uncommon for companies (in a lot of different markets) trying to gain market share without coughing up the $$ to pay for the development across a full line up.

Surprised yes but not greatly. Does not alter my confidence in the brand.

Dan

 

[GreensvilleJay]

The 'color' doesn't really matter it's SERVICE and PARTS that does ! As someone else says you BUY once,what comes AFTER matters most.
When I went to buy Case(red), sales guy was busy fixing a chainsaw...I waited 1/2 hour then left. Kubota was next down the road. The sales guy is related to neighbour, great, made the deal for an 'out the door' amount. backup was Mahindra, further down the road, owned by a Dutch kid. I certainly wasn't going to go 'green'.
OP has first hand knowledge of Mahindra, so that has to count big . While most here say Kubota is GREAT, I'll just say 'good'. 3 sets of front tires, busted BH joystick and a busted loader frame isn't from a 'GREAT' tractor company. Dealer service though has been EXCELLENT.

 

[jyoutz]

No.

Stellantis owns Case New Holland and many Case and NH models are nearly identical mechanically.

I thought that LS made all of the New Holland compacts?

Edit: I see there are other posts discussing this.

 

[D2Cat]

Went I was first looking for a small tractor I was tighter then bark on a tree so I was looking for something used. Didn't really care about what brand. Went to a Ford dealer to see what he had on a Sat. morning. I literally walked around outside for 15 minutes looking at what was there. Then since no one came out to see if they could help, I went inside. Got a cup of coffee and kept walking around then went back out side. Finally a guy came out to see if I needed any help.

I asked him who was his stiffest competition, and he told me it was the Kubota dealer down the street on the other side of town. I asked him how to get there and told him thanks and I would go there to get some service. I bought a new tractor there that morning. Been Kubota since!!!

I'm not prejudice. I also own Deutz, Case and Cat.

Buy what you think is right for your budget, purpose and duration of use. Pay little attention to us, it's only entertainment!

 

[jyoutz]

You are joking right?

"Case" is Case International Harvester. They have been in the agricultural and industrial equipment business a very long time. Everything from 25 to 800 HP agricultursl tractors. They currently own the Steiger and New Holland brands as well.

View attachment 119640

Truckloads of these "small" machines pass through here weekly.

View attachment 119638 p

Their itty bitty under 140 HP machines carry their venerable Farmall badge which has been in use for better part of a century.


View attachment 119639

About Case IH - Agricultural & Farm Equipment | Case IH

Case IH has been a global leader in agricultural equipment. Learn how our producer driven design keeps our products innovative and what they have to say.

www.caseih.com

Kubota does not play in the same league.

Dan
[/QUOTE

I was referring to the compact tractors with the Case name.

 

[GrizBota]

Although $10k isn’t nothing, is a 30% purchase price “savings” worth the difference in the legacy of the manufacturers? Are you ok with a potentially higher risk of a failure and waiting a few months for a part?

I know I like my stuff to work every time, not just most of the time. If we were talking cars, I’d say it’s likely about the same reason a Nissan is cheaper than a Toyota, build quality.

Just my opinion and it might be worth what you paid for it.

 

[Runs With Scissors]

IMHO, The best warranty, is the one you don't have to use.

Thats why I buy Kubota, Cummins, and Yamaha's

 

[PaulL]

The advice to take a look at an MX is good advice. The L4802 is the very top end of the L range. The MX5400 is the bottom end of the MX range, and will give more metal for your money, and more lift capacity etc. It'll still be more expensive than the Mahindra, but more comparable on capability.

I'd rate Kioti above Mahindra. Dad had a Kioti that was a good tractor.

Ultimately the question is which companies have been building tractors to "western" requirements for a while. Kubota have been building essentially the same tractors for nearly 40 years, improving them every 5 years or so. They're quite refined, everything that can break has broken then been improved.

Kioti have been at it a bit less time - call it 25 years. They make a good machine, less refined.

Mahindra have been making tractors a long time, but to a spec level suitable for an Indian farmer. Tractors that meet western expectations, for maybe 10-15 years. There are many more rough edges on their machines, but they're also quite inexpensive for the capability and amount of metal. I guess in a sense that's the heritage of building sturdy machines for Indian farmers. They make SUVs too, probably not imported into the USA. We get them in NZ, they're not bad, but they're not a Toyota.

 

[mikester]

Do y’all have any insight that can help ease my mind that forking out $10k for the L4802 is the right thing to do?

Bottom line is it's your hard earned money on the table. You have to decide what is important TO YOU.

For me, I use my equipment to earn money and I don't want down time. I try to buy the best equipment I can afford with the best reputation for reliability and availability of parts and service.

I find that I need to be hands on and try out tools and equipment before big dollar purchases or else suffer buyers remorse dealing with an expensive POS.

My suggestion is to get some seat time on each machine. You already have some tractor experience so that helps because you have an idea of what you like and dislike. If the dealers won't give you a loaner demo have them at least have a set of forks available and a heavy tote you can go pick up and drive around with to see how each machine handles. I also look at things like faster loader cycle times, can I run multiple functions on the loader ie. lift boom and curl/dump smoothly. Fuel efficiency is important to me. Cost and availability of filters and consumables. Ease of maintenance. Warranty. Call the service and parts departments on a Saturday morning or right before they close. Keep a score sheet for each machine and decide from there.

 

[fried1765]

The advice to take a look at an MX is good advice. The L4802 is the very top end of the L range. The MX5400 is the bottom end of the MX range, and will give more metal for your money, and more lift capacity etc. It'll still be more expensive than the Mahindra, but more comparable on capability.

I'd rate Kioti above Mahindra. Dad had a Kioti that was a good tractor.

Ultimately the question is which companies have been building tractors to "western" requirements for a while. Kubota have been building essentially the same tractors for nearly 40 years, improving them every 5 years or so. They're quite refined, everything that can break has broken then been improved.

Kioti have been at it a bit less time - call it 25 years. They make a good machine, less refined.

Mahindra have been making tractors a long time, but to a spec level suitable for an Indian farmer. Tractors that meet western expectations, for maybe 10-15 years. There are many more rough edges on their machines, but they're also quite inexpensive for the capability and amount of metal. I guess in a sense that's the heritage of building sturdy machines for Indian farmers. They make SUVs too, probably not imported into the USA. We get them in NZ, they're not bad, but they're not a Toyota.

I just love how Mahindra claims to be the largest tractor manufacturer in the world.
A major share of their machines are sold in South Asia.
Most are two wheel handlebar machines, pulling an operator sulky.
Those are defined by Mahindra as "tractors"!

 

[JimmyJazz]

Two things that have not been mentioned are 1. will spending $10,000 mean much to your financial circumstances? I know people (not me) that easily spend over $20,000 a year on vacations, club memberships , golfing , airplanes.....From my perspective I consider this discretionary spending (unnecessary). $10,000 is not that much money for some considering the useful life of a Kubota tractor. Second thing, with a Kubota you get the free advice of the people on this forum. I have found this very helpful as I came to tractor ownership at age 55 (late in life) with no experience and didn't want to die. People forget tractors are dangerous. Also, keep in mind the "extra" $10,000 you pay for the Kubota is not lost from an economic perspective and can be somewhat "recovered" thru a sale or trade in. I don't think the "numbers" work as well with a Mahindra. Good luck.

 

[Aranda0408]

The advice to take a look at an MX is good advice. The L4802 is the very top end of the L range. The MX5400 is the bottom end of the MX range, and will give more metal for your money, and more lift capacity etc. It'll still be more expensive than the Mahindra, but more comparable on capability.

I'd rate Kioti above Mahindra. Dad had a Kioti that was a good tractor.

Ultimately the question is which companies have been building tractors to "western" requirements for a while. Kubota have been building essentially the same tractors for nearly 40 years, improving them every 5 years or so. They're quite refined, everything that can break has broken then been improved.

Kioti have been at it a bit less time - call it 25 years. They make a good machine, less refined.

Mahindra have been making tractors a long time, but to a spec level suitable for an Indian farmer. Tractors that meet western expectations, for maybe 10-15 years. There are many more rough edges on their machines, but they're also quite inexpensive for the capability and amount of metal. I guess in a sense that's the heritage of building sturdy machines for Indian farmers. They make SUVs too, probably not imported into the USA. We get them in NZ, they're not bad, but they're not a Toyota.

Thanks to everyone’s feedback and more research I’ve backed off the Mahindra for reliability/serviceability reasons, so now the decision is between the new L4802 and the MX5400.

While I agree with the sentiment about the L4802 being at the top end of the range and the MX5400 being on the bottom end of the range, I don’t actually see much differences in the specs I’ve been able to locate, aside from the obvious HP. I am content with 40-45hp given my experience with my dad’s 40hp tractor with similar land characteristics and use cases, and how his tractor handled them.

MX5400 vs L4802

• Hydro Pump: 9.5gal vs 7.8gal
• Weight: 3734lb vs 3549lb
• 3pt Lift: 2310lb vs 2320lb
• FEL Lift Height: 111” vs 105”
• FEL Lift Capacity: they are measured differently and I don’t know enough to compare accurately:
  • MX5400 lift cap @ pin: 2275lb
  • MX5400 lift cap 500mm forward: 1691
  • L4802 lift cap @pin max height: 1675lb
  • L4802 lift cap @ pin @ 1.5m: 2147lb

With most of the other specs being similar are the above differences worth the additional $4,500?

 

[fried1765]

Thanks to everyone’s feedback and more research I’ve backed off the Mahindra for reliability/serviceability reasons, so now the decision is between the new L4802 and the MX5400.

While I agree with the sentiment about the L4802 being at the top end of the range and the MX5400 being on the bottom end of the range, I don’t actually see much differences in the specs I’ve been able to locate, aside from the obvious HP. I am content with 40-45hp given my experience with my dad’s 40hp tractor with similar land characteristics and use cases, and how his tractor handled them.

MX5400 vs L4802

• Hydro Pump: 9.5gal vs 7.8gal
• Weight: 3734lb vs 3549lb
• 3pt Lift: 2310lb vs 2320lb
• FEL Lift Height: 111” vs 105”
• FEL Lift Capacity: they are measured differently and I don’t know enough to compare accurately:
  • MX5400 lift cap @ pin: 2275lb
  • MX5400 lift cap 500mm forward: 1691
  • L4802 lift cap @pin max height: 1675lb
  • L4802 lift cap @ pin @ 1.5m: 2147lb

With most of the other specs being similar are the above differences worth the additional $4,500?

MX 5400 !

 

[mcmxi]

Thanks to everyone’s feedback and more research I’ve backed off the Mahindra for reliability/serviceability reasons, so now the decision is between the new L4802 and the MX5400.

While I agree with the sentiment about the L4802 being at the top end of the range and the MX5400 being on the bottom end of the range, I don’t actually see much differences in the specs I’ve been able to locate, aside from the obvious HP. I am content with 40-45hp given my experience with my dad’s 40hp tractor with similar land characteristics and use cases, and how his tractor handled them.

MX5400 vs L4802

• Hydro Pump: 9.5gal vs 7.8gal
• Weight: 3734lb vs 3549lb
• 3pt Lift: 2310lb vs 2320lb
• FEL Lift Height: 111” vs 105”
• FEL Lift Capacity: they are measured differently and I don’t know enough to compare accurately:
  • MX5400 lift cap @ pin: 2275lb
  • MX5400 lift cap 500mm forward: 1691
  • L4802 lift cap @pin max height: 1675lb
  • L4802 lift cap @ pin @ 1.5m: 2147lb

With most of the other specs being similar are the above differences worth the additional $4,500?

As an owner of two MX6000s over the past three years I would recommend them to anyone for the reliable, capable, work-horses they are, but given that the L4802 and the MX tractors appear to have the same 4 cylinder engine I would probably choose the L over the MX in this situation. It's not obvious to me what the extra $4,500 gets you.

The MXs are marketed as utility tractors whereas the L and Grand L tractors are marketed as compact tractors. The X is supposed to indicate a model that bridges a gap between two lines but that seems more like a ploy. I have an M6060 which is an entirely different animal compared to the MX and to be honest, the MX is much more of a compact tractor than a "utility" tractor.

Thank goodness you've moved on from Mahindra.