fried1765
Well-known member
Equipment
Kubota L48 TLB, Ford 1920 FEL, Ford 8N, SCAG Liberty Z, Gravely Pro.
KTAC cover?
- Thread starter Bri-Guy-GA
- Start date
Got the BX back Friday and mowed Saturday with it. Need to adjust the anti-scalp wheel down a hole, but otherwise it worked great. They replaced the deck itself and the anti-scalp wheel assembly. The rest is original. Got my moneys worth out of paying KTAC for the past 3 years. Will try to not need it again, but nice to know its there in case I do something dumb.
Yeah they gotta keep replaced parts for 6 months. Every other manufacturer that I've dealt with is 90 days. Only applies to warranty. KTAC claims, I don't think they care, or didn't when I was there. Warranty, though...THEY care. Kubota has FSR's that came in every so often and they inspect warranty parts. They'll look back at the claims from the last, however long (usually up to 60 days or so but up to 120 if they feel like it) and then go to the warranty parts shelf and compare what's on the shelf (or floor...) to the claims that were sent in. The FSR we had was very picky. If a bolt wasn't there, he'd throw a fit. So yes, we had a BIG pile of warranty parts laying back in the backside of the shop, a continual pile because by time 6 months is up from one part, you've already accumulated 6 months more parts. Sucked to have to go through it all too but that's what the FSR usually did, and he hated it.
with the 4 year warranty on the Kommanders, and how cheaply they were built vs what customers used them for, we had TONS of parts. Literally tons. Decks engines tractor buckets SSQA's axle housings nuts bolts switches (lots of brake switches from the Kommanders) recall parts you name it.
Some parts that were "warrantied" (like a deck that is bent for example), if they inspect and find evidence of neglect or abuse, they'd debit the account the cost of the claim on the spot, no questions asked, no statements made. Then the next day when we look at our statements, we see that they docked us for $1900 or whatever, then have to ask em why. "Well it's because claim number such and such appears to have hit something rather than the claimed material defect". So just because warranty department approves it and pays it, doesn't mean you get to keep the money....which is stupid, costs the dealer a lot of money, costs Kubota dealer trust, which trickles down. When customer asks if a broken pulley (for example) is a warranty item, the dealer doesn't say yes. They say "maybe". Not what customers want to hear for sure, especially lawn mower customers, and then they lost trust in the dealer. Note that warranty isn't an insurance claim, but there needs to be a clear line drawn between abuse/neglect and material defects, rather than "well maybe they will". Dealer has responsibility with that. Secondly it takes a GOOD service manager to keep up with it all and we did not have a good one. I did it for a number of years and gave it up, told the boss I was going back to turning wrenches (paid the same) and he could hire a SM. Kubota's warranty system takes a while to fill out all the garbage that they want. Key part numbers, problem codes job codes actual labor vs flat rate labor, reasons for this and that, long drawn out explanations, and what takes as much time as the job in a lot of cases is sending pictures. Start a claim, they kick it back wanting pictures. Upload them from the phone to computer, then from computer to kubotalink, then sit and wait while the slow internet connection sends it. Then maybe a day, maybe a month later, the warranty people might say "request for more pictures", or "denied due to bad picture", or whatever...and start all over again. Pain in the neck and it doesn't have to be. A smartphone app makes it simple. That's what we use at the polaris dealer. Send in the case, they deny or pay it in usually minutes' time. I did a recall today on a Sportsman, took them under a minute. Scan the bar code on the machine (serial number) enter miles/hours, enter the recall number (from drop down menu), send pic....all from the same app. The way it should be. Maybe Kubota's gotten better with that stuff but in talking to old coworkers today, it doesn't sound like it.
I will never forget the FSR hinting that they want to compete with JD. I told him that you have decades to go before you come anywhere close to competing in a lot of ways, and this kinda stuff is what I was referring to.
with the 4 year warranty on the Kommanders, and how cheaply they were built vs what customers used them for, we had TONS of parts. Literally tons. Decks engines tractor buckets SSQA's axle housings nuts bolts switches (lots of brake switches from the Kommanders) recall parts you name it.
Some parts that were "warrantied" (like a deck that is bent for example), if they inspect and find evidence of neglect or abuse, they'd debit the account the cost of the claim on the spot, no questions asked, no statements made. Then the next day when we look at our statements, we see that they docked us for $1900 or whatever, then have to ask em why. "Well it's because claim number such and such appears to have hit something rather than the claimed material defect". So just because warranty department approves it and pays it, doesn't mean you get to keep the money....which is stupid, costs the dealer a lot of money, costs Kubota dealer trust, which trickles down. When customer asks if a broken pulley (for example) is a warranty item, the dealer doesn't say yes. They say "maybe". Not what customers want to hear for sure, especially lawn mower customers, and then they lost trust in the dealer. Note that warranty isn't an insurance claim, but there needs to be a clear line drawn between abuse/neglect and material defects, rather than "well maybe they will". Dealer has responsibility with that. Secondly it takes a GOOD service manager to keep up with it all and we did not have a good one. I did it for a number of years and gave it up, told the boss I was going back to turning wrenches (paid the same) and he could hire a SM. Kubota's warranty system takes a while to fill out all the garbage that they want. Key part numbers, problem codes job codes actual labor vs flat rate labor, reasons for this and that, long drawn out explanations, and what takes as much time as the job in a lot of cases is sending pictures. Start a claim, they kick it back wanting pictures. Upload them from the phone to computer, then from computer to kubotalink, then sit and wait while the slow internet connection sends it. Then maybe a day, maybe a month later, the warranty people might say "request for more pictures", or "denied due to bad picture", or whatever...and start all over again. Pain in the neck and it doesn't have to be. A smartphone app makes it simple. That's what we use at the polaris dealer. Send in the case, they deny or pay it in usually minutes' time. I did a recall today on a Sportsman, took them under a minute. Scan the bar code on the machine (serial number) enter miles/hours, enter the recall number (from drop down menu), send pic....all from the same app. The way it should be. Maybe Kubota's gotten better with that stuff but in talking to old coworkers today, it doesn't sound like it.
I will never forget the FSR hinting that they want to compete with JD. I told him that you have decades to go before you come anywhere close to competing in a lot of ways, and this kinda stuff is what I was referring to.