Kioti tractors

[MasterMech]

Get on 'em. Drive 'em. Kick the tires. Hard.

You'll figure out what you like as far as controls and ergonomics that way.

A good dealer will steer you towards a machine you'll love to own by listening to your needs and preferences. A bad one will try to sell you whatever he has to get off his floor plan!

Try some of the tractor forum sites. They talk this stuff out 24/7!

 

[oldspark]

I hope the OP is not getting bored. :smirk:

Original poster here, no i'm not getting bored , just soakin in all the info. Now i'm not sure what direction we are gonna go.Sheesh.

Your welcome! :cheese:

 

[Butcher]

Well, I'm gonna stick my nose into this here party just fer the heck of it.
Dont know nothing bout these new tractors cuz I like the old ones speacially when it comes to price. But iffn it hasnt been said yet on this thread, the dealer and their service and parts dept's should be looked at long and hard as to reputation. I've often thought if I had the $$ I would like 1 of them new Bobcat tractors (same as Koita) but the dealer here as a messed up service deptment. They are also a rental place and with only 2 bobcat mechanics they are more inclined to repair the rental units first and work on the customers stuff later. I had our 863 skidloader in there several years ago for some major repairs that I wasnt equiped to do myself and it was there for a month! Every night on the way back to the shop I would stop and check on the progress and sure enough they would be working on thier moneymakers. For that reason alone I would never buy new from them. Just my 2 cents worth.

 

[MasterMech]

Well, I'm gonna stick my nose into this here party just fer the heck of it.
Dont know nothing bout these new tractors cuz I like the old ones speacially when it comes to price. But iffn it hasnt been said yet on this thread, the dealer and their service and parts dept's should be looked at long and hard as to reputation. I've often thought if I had the $$ I would like 1 of them new Bobcat tractors (same as Koita) but the dealer here as a messed up service deptment. They are also a rental place and with only 2 bobcat mechanics they are more inclined to repair the rental units first and work on the customers stuff later. I had our 863 skidloader in there several years ago for some major repairs that I wasnt equiped to do myself and it was there for a month! Every night on the way back to the shop I would stop and check on the progress and sure enough they would be working on thier moneymakers. For that reason alone I would never buy new from them. Just my 2 cents worth.

This is sage advice. It has been my experience that a great dealer selling a decent product will outsell a mediocre dealer selling a great product!

 

[DanCorcoran]

MasterMech,
You use those mowers on golf courses?

 

[MasterMech]

MasterMech,
You use those mowers on golf courses?

The Proflex? Yes we did, up until last season. Replaced it with a Jacobsen HR5111.

Some courses, like ours, have MASSIVE amounts of rough to mow.

 

[SolarAndWood]

Why would you consider some of these tractors 2nd tier when most of JD small tractors are made overseas?

2nd tier was a little facetious and was quoted as such. I have a 30 year old blue Shibaura that serves me very well and a 30 year old onan powered green machine 5' mower that pisses me off. It is the Onan part not the JD part that irritates me. That 4110 has an ancient designed JD blower on it, a new styled quick attach loader, a JD belly mower, a Curtis cab and a Yanmar motor that entices me. I've been shopping for a 55 series for all steel but that package at the price they are asking is pretty compelling.

 

[jross47]

Anyone here have a kioti tractor? If sio how does it perform? How easy or hard is it to get parts for if you need them? We have been thinking of getting around a 30 -35hp tractor with a loader and the wife seen an add for a kioti and the price was way lower than a deere od kabota ( which I perfer), but if they hold up and the wife likes them a tractor is a tractor,,,,,,,,,,,,,right?...Just lookin for some reviews, all the reviews I have seen so far have been good ones. We will use it to brush hog, moving dirt for the yard and help my back moving variuos items the wife thinks I sould be able to move by myself.(wood, rocks,and other heavey things).

Fellow wood burners:

I have a Kioti CK20s a tiny 23HP tractor ....so far it's awesome. It runs my new logsplitter just fine with the in/out plugs in back. lately I've been having problem however mowing uphill. I'm gonna troubleshoot today...but as I mow uphill with the warmed up tractor it starts to die on me after 10-20 ft of mowing on a moderate grade of 10deg or so. This is pissing me off! I've got 225 hrs on and changed hydraulic fluid at 50 hrs and again I will do it at 400 but something isnot right. It may be that the mower has a problem but I've been greasing it ev 50hrs. so that leaves??????.....it's pissing me off. advice is appreciated.

Jims Brain

 

[jross47]

Oh goody, CUTs! (Compact Utility Tractors)

I don't own one but I used to take 'em apart for a living. Still do but it's not my primary job currently.

If you're comparing against Deere's 3x20 series machines or Kubota Grand L 40 series machines then I'm sure the price difference is indeed big. Some may argue this but IMO the finer details do count so a tractor is not just a tractor. The biggest points on these units are Engine HP, Trans type, and Hydraulic System. Most brands are damn close on the first two when comparing apples to apples but that last one is a different story. You can have all the HP in the world but if you have a slow or worse, inefficient, hydraulic system then loader/backhoe work will frustrate you.

You didn't mention which style of trans you were looking for but IMO unless you someone is giving you a free tractor, you want the hydro. There is no substitute for loader work and they hold up much better long-term. That dry clutch on a non-hydro tractor is a $3-4000 ticking time-bomb for maintenance. Of course how long it lasts depends on operator habits more than anything but if it's used on a loader tractor, then you WILL have to replace it eventually. Also on both Deere 3x20 and Kubota Grand L 40 series hydros, they're electronically controlled with some sort of torque management software that makes running the hydros at their full potential super easy and there is NO pedal feedback like there is for a mechanical hydro linkage. One thing I will ding Kioti for is the hockey-stick treadle pedal control on the HST. Kubota used to use the same part and switched to something much closer to Deere's twin touch pedals. The treadle pedals are IMO very awkward to use unless you have a size 19 shoe.

Engines have never been a weak point on any of the three brands we're talking about here but Kubota has been caught "rounding up" before. :lol: Saw that demo in person!

Kioti's loaders are a bit light on lift capacity (1150lbs) compared to Deere's 300CX (1600lbs) or the high cap option for Kubota (1800lbs!). Damn website won't give me a current model # and I can't remember it. >:-( All three are easily removed/"parked" with Kioti and Kubota looking to have identical mounting setups. Deere's loaders are ridiculously easy to park and swap front attachments on right out of the box. They have Deere's proprietary quick-connect setup stock but can also be setup with skid-steer attachment carriers which really opens up your attachment/bucket options. One nice feature of Deere's loaders are the pivot pins in every joint. They're cammed into the bushing so they always remain stationary forcing the joint to rotate around them and encouraging proper wear of the pin/bushing. They also have the grease fittings recessed into the ends and that makes lubrication a snap. The fittings are usually clean and never get snapped off from normal loader use. That's a very common problem especially for the ones located on the bucket pivot pin. Also you don't have to reposition the loader to get at the fittings. One-quick walk-around does the trick.

Deere just plain does attachments better than anyone else. Especially with regard to loaders and backhoes. They fit better, attach easier, and parts are a non-issue in my experience. Most of the other manufacturers sub-out these things or use a universal attachment that is adapted to fit. Sometimes that gets messy.

Deere also wins the hydraulic test with highest total pump flow. (Deere 13.9 vs Kioti 12.7) but I'm having trouble finding the spec on the implement pumps which are the ones that matter. Most tractors have two pumps now, one for steering and the other one for everything else. When I had access to all the dealer info, it was typical for Deere to have a bigger implement pump than competitive machines with similar total GPM ratings. Therein lies the secret of superior loader/backhoe cycle times! Also would be a consideration if you wanted to run say, a log splitter, off of the tractor hydraulics via a Power Beyond kit.

To be continued!

I'm starting to wish that I'd bought a deere. My kioti ran well until recently. (5 year old now) recently it's been slowing on the hills that I mow which are only a 10 to 12 deg slope. I checked the Hydraulic fluid and it's full and clean so I'm a bit stumped. advice is appreciated. I'm thinking that I should make sure the mower is in good order and maybe I'll take the loader off and mow without it for a bit.

Jims Brain

 

[nate379]

My Dad has a 23hp Kioti and loves it. Has a cab on it, Fisher snow plow mounted to the bucket arms, snowblower on the 3pt hitch. Also has a weight box, bucket and fork tines.

I have used it along with a few Kubota and John Deere CUTs and I would say in that size range they are all about the same other than price.

He had a Jimna before at that was a steaming pile of doo. About caught fire twice when the wiring just melted down. Well the wiring was made from scrapped out wiring from something aparently. The tins were heavily Bondo'd to make them look decent, torch cut marks all over for the levers and stuff like that!

 

[Highbeam]

I'm starting to wish that I'd bought a deere. My kioti ran well until recently. (5 year old now) recently it's been slowing on the hills that I mow which are only a 10 to 12 deg slope. I checked the Hydraulic fluid and it's full and clean so I'm a bit stumped. advice is appreciated. I'm thinking that I should make sure the mower is in good order and maybe I'll take the loader off and mow without it for a bit.

Jims Brain

What's slowing? The tractor's motion, the engine, or the mower deck? Let's assume it's a HST tractor and what "gear" are you trying to mow in? You need to be working at PTO rpm. Isn't the CK20 a hi-lo machine? Probably can't do much in hi range, that's for transport. Low range should spin the tires before the engine lugs down. Worst case is the forwards pedal is to the floor, engine rpms up, and no forward motion.

 

[NH_Wood]

My neighbor (older fella - about 72) has a 27 horse (I'm pretty sure) Kioti - about 10 years old now. I've borrowed it lots of time and worked with him lots with it. Great tractor as far as I'm concerned - he's never had a major issue and it still runs real well (he's pretty rough on it). I'd have no issue with buying one after my experiences with his tractor, but.....that's one tractor. Cheers!

 

[Jack Fate]

just a couple random thoughts ,

was told "hearsay" JD under 60 hp are yanmars then told now any under 90 hp are yanmars ,my 2320 is a yanmar made in Japan

next Branson tractors ,was told same plant & assembly line as deere

I looked at these, looked good and they do look like JD in RED & much less$$$

they got 35 hp model with loader $15K & finance deal

they don't have the options JD does

Last as I said before You gotta sit on & or operate any contender .The ergonomics of the JD made my sale but different models differ .......your mileage may very ......

The power steering is super & mine is very maneuverable , it will turn SHARP PUT ON A SPIN KNOB what ever you get

My cx 200 loader will lift more than I think it should ,I think I can hurt itself ,You can't beat the hook up

The on ramp belly mower hooks up well but ,to me stinks on mow quality ,the float of the deck is very limited,sorry but my 25 yr old Simplicty kicks its butt

Diesel compact tractors are great & they don't need to be real big to really work hard

but 25 hp pto min is good to have

best of luck with what ever you decide

 

[711mhw]

just a couple random thoughts ,

was told "hearsay" JD under 60 hp are yanmars then told now any under 90 hp are yanmars ,my 2320 is a yanmar made in Japan/

My first Yanmar engine was in a Yanmay tractor, imagine that. I now have a 115 hp Yanmar in a big skid steer. Great motors, good company.

 

[MasterMech]

was told "hearsay" JD under 60 hp are yanmars then told now any under 90 hp are yanmars ,my 2320 is a yanmar made in Japan​

Deere's old x50 series cuts (650, 750, 850, 950, 1050) were near clones on Yanmar machines with many interchangable parts.

Deere has used Yanmar engines in plenty of it's small tractors since the 80's. Lawn and Garden stuff all the way up to about 60HP.

These days the 4x20 CUTs run Deere engines, the 3x20 series and smaller are Yanmar engines. How close the 2x20 and smaller machines are to actually being Yanmars, I don't know. What I do know is that ALL of them perform well, and parts will be available for many decades to come. I have never been given a reason to doubt the quality and longevity of Yanmar engines/machinery so if Deere chooses to have them build some of the smaller tractors, I think they're up to the task.

 

[billb3]

some kioti and bobcat models used to be made by daedog korea
my JD 2520 is mostly a yanmar with final assembly here in the states
tough to define "final assembly" these days, even "made in" as parts are sourced from all over the world.
Just like cars.
One model Deere could be mostly assembled in Japan, another in India and shipped to US for final assembly. Heck, they could source some from both .
Most of the Deere dealers here are gone so if I was buying a CUT today it likely wouldn't be a Deere - as much as I like mine.
I'd go with what a local dealer ( and one I'd hope would still be around tomorrow) is likely to be able to continue to get parts for and service. ( if needed )
What might make sense in Eastern Oregon likely won't be a great choice in Western Mass.

 

[Jack Straw]

I didn't read all of the posts but its my understanding that Shibaura doesn't make New Hollands anymore and that they will be making Kiotis. I know tractor mechanics who say the Shibauras are bullet proof. I would make sure I got a Kioti made by Shibaura.

 

[Hobby Farmer]

I am leaving my experience with a Kioti 2410 tractor. However, it is not positive. I normally don't live to leave negative feedback about things but Kioti has blown me off with my problems and removed my testimonial from their site as it was not positive. But people need to know all is not a garden of roses. I finally decided to break down and buy a new tractor. Never even owned a tractor and decided to purchase a new one instead of a used headache as we have a small hobby farm and I cant do the things I use to do by hand. I had read all the "positive" reviews about the Kioti brand ( I guess the negative ones were all removed) so that is what I did. I drove over 400 miles RT to purchase this tractor. I even had to buy a dealer demo with 22 hours on it to get one and none of the 4 dealers within a 500 mile radius had any. They made me a good deal so I took it. That was August 2014. It is now December 2015 and I have only put 57 hours on it since purchasing. So it has not been used much at all. I cut my lawn with the belly mower, plow our small garden, and cut one of our little pastures that is not used presently as we are waiting on more sheep. I use a 4' lightweight grass only bushhog. So far, I have had to replace a tire, readjust the front end numerous times, replace 3 hydraulic hoses, replace one of the 3 point hitch center support(my expense again), seatbelt is broken (not replaced yet), replace the ignition switch as the glow plugs stay on constantly, will have to replace the mower belts next month, and replace 2 mower deck wheels (as the snap rings are thin and break) as the wheels fly off to who knows where and all the bushing and washers disappear as well (not covered under warranty). I had to travel 150 miles to get those parts and when I got there, Kioti had sent several wrong parts, missing parts and I was charged a shipping fee from Kioti. Needless to say that cost me an additional $20 in gas and still dont have the parts. The engine is a 3 cylinder and has a hard time running the little bushhog. It bogs down quiet frequently. The front end loader will not pick up nearly the weight it says as the rearend comes off the ground. So to pick up half a bucket of dirt or gravel I have to have to attach the bushhog to the rear to keep it down. It does tend to get in the way. Do not even try to use a 4' rototiller on the pto as it will not work as stated. I purchased one and had to resell. So back to a tiller to fine plow which is one major reason I bought the tractor. I was told by Kioti that is should have bought a bigger one. Well based on Kubota, John Deere, Mahindra, and kioti, the specs on this tractor would do what I needed for my farm. I don't bale hay, tote hay, plow more than the garden to provide our food, etc. Was bought to move rabbit manure from the barn, cut our yard, keep our orchard free from grass, little plowing, small bushogging and maybe something else small. Barely does that. Plus I have had to make all the repairs as it would cost me a fortune in gas toting this thing back and forth to the shop every time. Have requested the center PTO cover for the mower deck twice as the manual states to use when plowing after removing the mower deck and Kioti has ignored those emails twice. So you have to jack the tractor up to clean out the PTO shaft after each time you plow. All I got from them about my problems was...."we are sorry you are not happy". I took over $14,000 out of my IRA to buy this tractor as I don't believe in borrowing money anymore as we are debt free but that was a major mistake. I highly recommend a Kubota tractor. I dread in 8 months when this tractor is out of warranty. It will be a money pit as my original dealer gets tired of me calling for parts. So just do a lot of research when buying these smaller tractors. IF you want a large lawn mower then buy the CS2410..otherwise stay away!! If your 2410 works great with no problems....be thankful and good luck!!

 

[Sean McGillicuddy]

Anyone here have a kioti tractor? If so how does it perform? How easy or hard is it to get parts for if you need them? We have been thinking of getting around a 30 -35hp tractor with a loader and the wife seen an add for a kioti and the price was way lower than a deere od kabota ( which I perfer), but if they hold up and the wife likes them a tractor is a tractor,,,,,,,,,,,,,right?...Just looking for some reviews, all the reviews I have seen so far have been good ones. We will use it to brush hog, moving dirt for the yard and help my back moving variuos items the wife thinks I sould be able to move by myself.(wood, rocks,and other heavy things).

Is Santa bringing you any tractor?

 

[Hobby Farmer]

Not sure about the 30-35 hp Kioti. If I could get rid of mine I would but the value drops once purchased big time. Kubota to me are the best of the smaller ones. Parts you have to order from a dealer as the warehouse in NC wont deal with you. Whether or not your dealer charges you for shipping is unknown. Once the tractor is out of warranty I will have to do my own repairs as it cost me $70 in gas to take this thing to any Kioti dealer. If not I can take to a local tractor repair shop and they will take all my money as I live in a small town and businesses here love to take all your money. Even your own friends in this town charge you out the ying yang!! So not sure what to do. We have been looking at selling our farm and moving up north in the next 5 years (weather here never gets cold enough anymore and always rains so raising vegetables and livestock is getting old) and if we do I will just throw the tractor in as part of the selling price and then buy a new Kubota once we move. Everyone I know who has a Kubota is happy and several have had them for years and only minor problems. Good luck

 

[firefighterjake]

I do not discount your experience Hobby Farmer ... but did you join the forum and resurrect a 2 1/2 year old post solely to discuss your experience with Kioti?

 

[billb3]

maybe it is a Christmas present

 

[jaoneill]

Fellow wood burners:

I have a Kioti CK20s a tiny 23HP tractor ....so far it's awesome. It runs my new logsplitter just fine with the in/out plugs in back. lately I've been having problem however mowing uphill. I'm gonna troubleshoot today...but as I mow uphill with the warmed up tractor it starts to die on me after 10-20 ft of mowing on a moderate grade of 10deg or so. This is pissing me off! I've got 225 hrs on and changed hydraulic fluid at 50 hrs and again I will do it at 400 but something isnot right. It may be that the mower has a problem but I've been greasing it ev 50hrs. so that leaves??????.....it's pissing me off. advice is appreciated.

Jims Brain

Change your fuel filter and clean the air filter. Loss of power in a diesel is almost always a fuel starvation issue.

 

[duramaxman05]

I worked a kitoi dealer about 5 years ago. They are pretty decent machines. As far as warranty goes, we had zero problems with getting anything warrantied. A lot of that goes with the dealer. Where i worked, they have an outstanding service department. We had very few problems with them. I only split 2 of them. One was a 65hp with loader and the clutch went out due to the hydraulic line to the clutch was to too small and when the temps got cold, the fluid moved too slow going back to the resevoir causing the clutch to slip. The other one was a ck35 and had a synchronizer go bad for the shuttle shift. Both under warranty and had no problems getting kioti to stand behind it. Like i said, they do make some nice tractors. The thing is gonna be if you are going to keep it forever and try to move it in a few years. They dont have a good resale value.

 

[ErikR]

Hobby Farmer, It sounds like you need to pack all the stuff on a trailer and take it to a John Deere dealer and trade it in on a 1 or 2 series tractor. You say you hate to barrow money, but I got 60 month 0% financing from Deere on a new 1025R with a quick disconnect FEL with 53" bucket, a drive over auto connect 54" mower deck, 47" front mount snow blower, a ballast box and an engine block heater. Don't believe the on-line prices on the J-D web site. I had 2 dealers competing against each other to sell me a tractor. I got everything for just about 20% off MSRP. I have over 75 hours on it and couldn't be happier! I changed the hydraulic oil at 50 hours, and engine oil/filter and fuel and air filters just before winter.

I didn't want to barrow either, but paying NO interest to use their money... or.... lose the interest MY money would make if I used my money... No question, use theirs.

FYI, a ballast box on your 3 point hitch would help a lot when trying to use your front end loader.. Good Luck!

Oh, and it works great as a firewood hauler too!