Kubota Quality

[jrmorgan]

I've always heard that Kubota Tractors were of the highest quality and they hold their value which was one of the factors in my choosing a new B2301HST-1 to purchase. My new tractor was delivered by the dealer to my home two weeks ago with all it's attachments and was picked up the same day by the dealer at the jobsite for service having never even been used. The loader stand hardware fell off when we were unloading it at the jobsite due to missing welds on the stand brackets to the torsion tube. The dealer returned it the next day with a brand new loader installed so I have absolutely no problem with the Kubota service but I wonder now about the quality. Is the loader attachment made in Japan? The sticker on the old and new loader both say Jefferson Georgia USA but the tractor itself clearly says Made in Japan on it. I was very disappointed to say the least.

 

[whitetiger]

I've always heard that Kubota Tractors were of the highest quality and they hold their value which was one of the factors in my choosing a new B2301HST-1 to purchase. My new tractor was delivered by the dealer to my home two weeks ago with all it's attachments and was picked up the same day by the dealer at the jobsite for service having never even been used. The loader stand hardware fell off when we were unloading it at the jobsite due to missing welds on the stand brackets to the torsion tube. The dealer returned it the next day with a brand new loader installed so I have absolutely no problem with the Kubota service but I wonder now about the quality. Is the loader attachment made in Japan? The sticker on the old and new loader both say Jefferson Georgia USA but the tractor itself clearly says Made in Japan on it. I was very disappointed to say the least.

The loader was manufactured in Georgia, and there are rarely manufacturing-related failures with them. Like with anything, it can happen.

 

[jrmorgan]

The loader was manufactured in Georgia, and there are rarely manufacturing-related failures with them. Like with anything, it can happen.

Thank you. I figured from the tag the loader may have been made in USA but it doesn't say that specifically. The dealer said the unit was welded by robot but apparently the process starts with the brackets being tack welded in place, and in the end only a small tack weld was holding on each bracket. The new loader has the brackets fully welded.

 

[DustyRusty]

Makes you wonder what will become of the defective loader. Will the dealer just weld the brackets and paint and then put it onto another tractor, or will Kubota want to take it back for an internal investigation? I'll bet that the robot that screwed up will be fired, and their Christmas bonus revoked!
Good dealer on your side!

 

[lynnmor]

Yesterday, Christmas day, I was showing my son-in-law what I was doing in an effort to make my new backhoe usable. I had the cover off the console to look at the adjustments when we noticed that both bolts that retain the levers were ready to fall out. It never ends with this piece of junk, that crew in Georgia needs to be replaced by foreign labor, they simply don't deserve a job.

 

[jrmorgan]

Makes you wonder what will become of the defective loader. Will the dealer just weld the brackets and paint and then put it onto another tractor, or will Kubota want to take it back for an internal investigation? I'll bet that the robot that screwed up will be fired, and their Christmas bonus revoked!
Good dealer on your side!

The dealer has been very responsive from day one, I have absolutely no complaints about them. This defect was costly to me though. I took two days off work to clear a half acre lot I own across town and arranged for the tractor delivery early Thursday morning to my home. My son and I drove to my employer Thursday morning to pick up a lowboy trailer before the delivery, about a 60 mile round trip. I'm not able to safely leave the tractor at the property so I needed to transport it. My lowboy needs new tires and rims but the 5 hole pattern rims could not be found locally. I wasted two days of vacation and 120 miles of gasoline because somebody at Kubota didn't do their job. This weekend the property was too wet because it rained for days so I still haven't been able to work with new tractor. Kind of puts Kubota in a bad light when you spend so much on something and couldn't use it.

 

[Jchonline]

Makes you wonder what will become of the defective loader. Will the dealer just weld the brackets and paint and then put it onto another tractor, or will Kubota want to take it back for an internal investigation? I'll bet that the robot that screwed up will be fired, and their Christmas bonus revoked!
Good dealer on your side!

I read some article awhile back saying that the government was concerned about robots replacing humans because they cant pay taxes. They were trying to come up with some crazy way to payroll tax a robot…..

And to the original subject….two fold IMO. First, the dealer should have probably caught the missing welds. Did you get a dealer delivery checklist? It should come with every tractor, in the packet with the owners manual. Not that welds on a FEL would be called out specifically…but it may give you some piece of mind.

Also never a good thing to know welds were missed at the factory. I suspect Kubota is having the same issues finding good help these days. Everyone wants more for less work. I have been trying to get my business insurance policies updated for 2 weeks…cant get anyone to call me back. What am I paying for again?

Most importantly OP time to check everything over if you havent. All wheel lugs, grease points, fluids (including front axle case), hydraulic fittings for leaks, all functions (all loader positions, rear remotes, 3PT hydraulics).

 

[jrmorgan]

Yesterday, Christmas day, I was showing my son-in-law what I was doing in an effort to make my new backhoe usable. I had the cover off the console to look at the adjustments when we noticed that both bolts that retain the levers were ready to fall out. It never ends with this piece of junk, that crew in Georgia needs to be replaced by foreign labor, they simply don't deserve a job.

I wish the whole thing was made in Japan if this is the quality of work that comes from Georgia plant.

 

[jrmorgan]

I read some article awhile back saying that the government was concerned about robots replacing humans because they cant pay taxes. They were trying to come up with some crazy way to payroll tax a robot…..

And to the original subject….two fold IMO. First, the dealer should have probably caught the missing welds. Did you get a dealer delivery checklist? It should come with every tractor, in the packet with the owners manual. Not that welds on a FEL would be called out specifically…but it may give you some piece of mind.

Also never a good thing to know welds were missed at the factory. I suspect Kubota is having the same issues finding good help these days. Everyone wants more for less work. I have been trying to get my business insurance policies updated for 2 weeks…cant get anyone to call me back. What am I paying for again?

Most importantly OP time to check everything over if you havent. All wheel lugs, grease points, fluids (including front axle case), hydraulic fittings for leaks, all functions (all loader positions, rear remotes, 3PT hydraulics).

Salesman told me the unit had PDI done twice, joked about it going to cost them for one. He did not give me the copies of the PDI sheets. The first thing I did was purchase new grease gun and recommend impact rated grease and check all the fittings. We also torqued all the lug nuts per owners manual and checked all the fluid levels. When they gave me the owner's manual I asked about a manual for the loader and they said there wasn't one. I found the rotary cutter manual attached to cutter and ruined by rain so I downloaded a copy online. The box blade and fork attachment also had no manuals. The only manual I received from the dealer was the tractor owner's manual.

 

[pokey1416]

See if the dealer will throw in a set of WSM‘s on disk for your troubles?

 

[jyoutz]

Salesman told me the unit had PDI done twice, joked about it going to cost them for one. He did not give me the copies of the PDI sheets. The first thing I did was purchase new grease gun and recommend impact rated grease and check all the fittings. We also torqued all the lug nuts per owners manual and checked all the fluid levels. When they gave me the owner's manual I asked about a manual for the loader and they said there wasn't one. I found the rotary cutter manual attached to cutter and ruined by rain so I downloaded a copy online. The box blade and fork attachment also had no manuals. The only manual I received from the dealer was the tractor owner's manual.

When I bought my tractor earlier this month, I received the tractor manual, and manuals for the loader and cutter. It’s all about your dealer’s service.

 

[rScotty]

Sounds to me like we are talking about Kubota dealer quality, not Kubota tractor quality.

 

[mcmxi]

I've always heard that Kubota Tractors were of the highest quality and they hold their value which was one of the factors in my choosing a new B2301HST-1 to purchase.

I owned a BX25D for five years that I bought new, an MX6000 open station that I bought new in February, and an MX6000 with cab that I've owned for less than a week. I currently have more than a few Land Pride implements and had more than a few Land Pride implements with the BX. I can say in all honesty that my Kubota/Land Pride ownership experience has been nothing short of amazing and I have no need to consider another brand for a tractor.

 

[jrmorgan]

Sounds to me like we are talking about Kubota dealer quality, not Kubota tractor quality.

Except the dealer did not build it, Kubota did and they are the ones who failed to complete the welding.
I was in RV manufacturing for almost 20 years, I understand that when over 1,200 employees are building products mistakes happen. There were many missed opportunities to catch the missing welds both at Kubota and the dealer but quality control can't rest on the shoulders of a PDI at the dealership. Quality has to be a way of life not a slogan or poster, people have to live quality. I worked for a Fortune 500 RV company in the 1990's that had a quality program du jour, meaning it wasn't serious to them just a slogan or something to put on the brochure or hang on a banner that could change on a whim or by the day.

 

[jrmorgan]

I owned a BX25D for five years that I bought new, an MX6000 open station that I bought new in February, and an MX6000 with cab that I've owned for less than a week. I currently have more than a few Land Pride implements and had more than a few Land Pride implements with the BX. I can say in all honesty that my Kubota/Land Pride ownership experience has been nothing short of amazing and I have no need to consider another brand for a tractor.

Absolutely the reason I picked Kubota is because of recommendations and satisfaction of owners like you. Kubota has reputation for the highest quality and is the reason their products hold their value. Land Pride are the only implements I even considered, I did not shop around I trusted the dealer to give me a fair price for the quality I was receiving. I purchased the LP BB1248 and LP RCR1248 with the tractor, it wasn't a package deal. The Terra Force forks were the ones recommended by the dealer.

 

[jrmorgan]

See if the dealer will throw in a set of WSM‘s on disk for your troubles?

Found it online and downloaded it already.

Part# Code No.9Y111-11560

 

[Deleted member 47704]

PDI doesn't include inspecting the welds, the mechanics are not qualified for that anyway.

 

[top gnome]

I am getting the same tractor and loader with a backhoe in a few days. I was wondering where the tractor was made. I was hoping Japan. Outside of fluid levels and checking for loose bolts. Is there anything else to look for.

Lynnmor what issues are you having with the backhoe? I may get mine with the backhoe off and would like to know what to look for on the backhoe.

I was a quality engineer and manager in a fortune 200 company. Kubota should have the quality systems in place to make sure the quality level is the same regardless of where the product is made. It is possible an operation was missed but there should be fail safes. if the robot did not cycle I would think the loader would not continue down the line without a manual override. only a guess on my part never saw a loader manufactured. Or maybe another boomer retired.

 

[jrmorgan]

I am getting the same tractor and loader with a backhoe in a few days. I was wondering where the tractor was made. I was hoping Japan. Outside of fluid levels and checking for loose bolts. Is there anything else to look for.

Lynnmor what issues are you having with the backhoe? I may get mine with the backhoe off and would like to know what to look for on the backhoe.

I was a quality engineer and manager in a fortune 200 company. Kubota should have the quality systems in place to make sure the quality level is the same regardless of where the product is made. It is possible an operation was missed but there should be fail safes. if the robot did not cycle I would think the loader would not continue down the line without a manual override. only a guess on my part never saw a loader manufactured. Or maybe another boomer retired.

The tractor itself seems flawless. I was under the mistaken belief that the tractor and loader were made in Japan, but now I know the loader was made in USA. One thing I wish the salesman would have recommended was ballast. I was using the loader with forks to move pallets around my house and discovered without the rotary cutter attached the tractor is very unstable when lifting. I ordered a ballast box online which is being delivered Tuesday, I plan to fill it with pea gravel.

 

[lynnmor]

I am getting the same tractor and loader with a backhoe in a few days. I was wondering where the tractor was made. I was hoping Japan.

Lynnmor what issues are you having with the backhoe? I may get mine with the backhoe off and would like to know what to look for on the backhoe.

I had some sloppy and incorrect assembly caused by the dealer, but all of my issues centered on the backhoe. I have no idea what kind of funny farm they are running in Georgia where it was produced.

A number of thumb kits had the wrong pin that was too short and not drilled for a grease fitting. Those kits also had the wrong bolt and nut. It still didn't stop the selling dealer from using wrong parts.

Here is a what I wrote in a recent post:

Make sure that the backhoe is working correctly before accepting delivery, I have a number of issues with mine. The tractor and loader have been trouble free, but I am into this backhoe fiasco for nearly 8 months with no end in sight.

Check that it doesn't leak down with the engine running and off, observe it for couple of hours.
Check that a thumb will fit and adjust to all six positions, even if you are not buying right now, it may be welded together wrong.
Check that there is no interference at the intersection of the boom and dipper when fully extended.
Check that the proper pins with grease fittings are being used at each joint.
Check that the grease fittings are tight and not painted shut.
Check that the retaining bolts for the pins are correct and have about a millimeter of play.

I have had all of the above and Kubota has been of no help.

Since I wrote the above I discovered the completely loose bolts holding the operating levers. I also temporarily swapped the hoses between the boom and the bucket valves and proved that the boom valve leaks excessively.

Keep in mind that I had these issues from day one, and had the unit tied up at the selling dealer for six weeks and another dealer for two weeks. Nothing is fixed yet, but the second dealer has parts on order, Kubota lost the first shipment. The boom and thumb parts need replaced.

I bought the tractor in May, between the wasted time for assembly, dealer visits, waiting for Kubota to get involved and the repair time, I have only 15 hours on this junk.