When to use Warranty or repair it yourself

[TD Tractor]

Morning all, So far I have had three repairs that I fixed myself. 1. At the electrical connection on the solenoid for the third function valve, found a stripped screw. 2. Hydraulic fittings loose on the snow blade hydraulic cylinders . 3. Very loose hydraulic fittings at the third function valve where they screw into the valve. Sprayed me and the tractor with about a pint of fluid before I realized what was happening. To me these are minor repaires which no parts were required. I'm used to this kinda repair stuff with my 1959 Ford 871. This L4701 is my first new tractor and as of yesterday has 25.5 hours on it. I got allot of work to do before spring. I was just wondering what y'all do with repairs like these?

Thanks for any help and advice!

 

[TD Tractor]

My wife gave me the name TD Tractor when she noticed most of the work being done was on the 871. "Working on That Damm Tractor again".

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

Warranty????
We don't need no stinking warranty!

Oh better answer is I don't have any warranties on the tractor...Old stuff ya know.

I think when It involves anything that requires more than a little effort and cost to fix, then I leave it to them.

Sounds like all of your issues have been from the add on Third function, and not really the tractor so you should be fine if you have those little things under control.

 

[jcy110]

When covered by warranty, it depends on how long I can do without it vs the price to fix it myself.......

 

[lugbolt]

That and the inconvenience of having to haul it to/from the dealer. And the time it takes for them to do the repair and/or order parts. And the worst, "sir, your repair isn't covered under warranty and your bill is $1,000".

Always ask if your repair is covered before you make a run to the dealer, and even when you do get there, make sure that they're aware that you aren't paying a dime unless you know if it is or isn't under warranty. And sign the work order that says it; and keep a copy for yourself.

If you have a few wrenches, tighten up the loose stuff. IF you have the ability, fix the little stuff yourself if it's not too much trouble. Some stuff we can't do at home, and that's what the dealer is for.

 

[Tooljunkie]

Loose fittings small leaks in my opinion are maintenance things.

Had a buddy just bought a low mileage hyundai, went in for a bad clunk,mileage was under but time was not. Two month over and 30,000 under km warranty. Viscous coupling failing,1500 dollar repair.
Warranty rejected.

You get a bang,clunk grind or squeal out of the ordinary,get it looked at. At least to get it on paper if dealer says its normal. Which he will.

 

[skeets]

MHO, nickle and dime stuff, quick fix, loose bolts, oil change ( some people wont even do an oil change while its under warrenty, just to make sure they are covered) ect. , ya grab a wrench and get to it,

Anything more then that make the call, that's why you have a warranty, and secondly if the same thing mucks up again you have a record of what happened the first time

 

[lugbolt]

Oh and it's always a good idea to read the entire warranty statement that comes with every new Kubota. There's information in there that most people don't know about. 2 that come to mind are the time frame that you have to get your tractor to the dealer and then the transportation to/from the dealer. Those are the 2 big issues that I always had when I did dealer work.

"Well y'all delivered it, come get it and fix it (under warranty)". Nope. Transportation not covered under warranty.

"it's been broken for almost a year but I've not had time to get it to you". Well you better figure out a different schedule; because you only have (I think) 10 days after the failure to get it to the dealer for repair.

#2 usually will get it put to the back of the dealer backlog. Owner wasn't in a hurry to get it fixed but now he is?

 

[jcy110]

My dealer, 10 miles away, charges 350.00 for pickup and drop off, better to have your own trailer if its a small tractor. If your large tractor cant be driven there and you don't have a heavy duty trailer, they have you over a barrel. I have access to a small trailer from a friend.

 

[RCW]

Yeah - I'm with the other guys - simple stuff - just fix it.

Thankfully - my tractor has never gone back to the dealer.

Hope it stays that way!

Lugbolt - appreciate your insight - lot of things I didn't know were in the "fine print." Again, glad it never became an issue for me, but I'm sure it does for a lot of guys!

 

[TD Tractor]

Thanks guys! Some really good information.