Posted: 6/30/2026 7:40:04 AM EDT
[Last Edit: turfengineer][Edited]
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Looking for a used 80+ HP tractor with cab, loader and 4wd. Trying to be between $30-50k. I have a 2002 McCormick of that size and I need another similar sized tractor as this one has become less dependable. Typical small farm uses, most hay and feeding related. Bonus points for a 540/1000 PTO as my 20’ bush hog has a 1000. I’ve been looking at 2010-2020 models for New Holland, Kubota, Massey and McCormick. I’m not sure I want to buy another MC, because my current tractor has had a few issues along the way that were frustrating to repair. EDIT: adding that this will be used on a 350A farm in SE Ohio Any experience with these brands or something else I should consider? |
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| Dad bought a Mahindra (think it is 44-45hp) a couple years back for the 24 acres in east Texas. He said it was about $10k less than Kubota with a much better, longer warranty. Not sure about parts availability and associated pricing, but that would be a factor in any consideration I made. |
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Originally Posted By zach_: IBTL. Tractor threads never disappoint. Why would the thread get locked? Everyone has opinions but it’s not like politics To answer the OP….local dealer is irrelevant to me. I can order any part for any major brand online and have it within a few days max. But, I’m not relying on my tractor to make money. If you do, then dealer becomes more important as you would probably want to be able to either pick up a part at the dealer or take it there for a quick repair to get it back in service quickly. I own a Kubota. I have no idea where the nearest Kubota dealer is….and don’t care. I’m sure I could find one locally if I wanted to. But I’m sure I can find the parts I need cheaper online. I haven’t used many parts but have purchased a few over the years I’ve owned the tractor. Kubota is a great brand. Older John Deere is good. Not sure I would buy new John Deere given how they have tried to lock out other than dealer repair. I’d have to research that some more. Kioti would be worth looking into from what I have heard. No personal experience though. I think Mahindra might be ok. Friend of mine owned one and I used it a few times. Alternator failed very prematurely but otherwise it seemed pretty good. |
"It behooves every man to remember that the work of the critic is of altogether secondary importance, and that, in the end, progress is accomplished by the man who does things."
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
| I used Kubota tractors back in my turf days. They were solid unless the had a hydrostatic transmission, which really robbed power. The Deeres I’ve also used in the turf days were a little larger model but appeared to not have this issue. |
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| If tiy have a dealer in the area, you might look at the LS line. They build machines for other brands as well as theri own but my 47 hp LS with hydrostatic trans is good to go. I use it for general farm/ranch use such as soome tillage, corral cleanup, feeding and yard mowing. I think you will find a new 80 hp LS in your budget range. |
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Originally Posted By 57plymouth: I believe that the only other brand that has as loyal of a following as Kubota is Harley Davidson. I drank the Kubota kool-aid, and I suggest you do too. They live up to the reputation. While you may be right, I bought a Kubota because I found it used on Craigslist for a good price. I’d have bought a different brand if I had found one at a good price. That said, I’m very happy with my Kubota and aside from from rebuilding my hydraulic cylinders, rebuilding the starter, replacing the alternator and welding the clutch shaft over my 12 years of ownership, it’s been great. |
"It behooves every man to remember that the work of the critic is of altogether secondary importance, and that, in the end, progress is accomplished by the man who does things."
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
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Originally Posted By ColtRifle: While you may be right, I bought a Kubota because I found it used on Craigslist for a good price. I’d have bought a different brand if I had found one at a good price. That said, I’m very happy with my Kubota and aside from from rebuilding my hydraulic cylinders, rebuilding the starter, replacing the alternator and welding the clutch shaft over my 12 years of ownership, it’s been great. Hydraulic cylinder seals do wear out. I don't know about the clutch shaft breaking. That isn't much of a ringing endorsement without knowing how many hours you use it. If it's got a lot of hours then a starter and alternator wearing out could be expected. If you are like me and use it sporadically (170 hours over 6 years) then that would not be a good level of reliability. Either way, I stand by my claim that Kubota owners are like Harley owners (and probably Glock owners) that they are fan boys. I fit that mold. |
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A lot of good feedback so far, thank you. I have never taken a tractor in for service. Between my dad and I, we repair and service everything ourselves, which may be the problem, lol. I’m not as worried about local dealer support as much because of that. To be honest, hauling a 100hp tractor to a dealer for a fluid change sounds like a nightmare. I try not to be a fan boy for this stuff, and really want a good value balanced with reliability. Being easy to work on is also important. That is where McCormick may fall a little short in my experience. |
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Originally Posted By 57plymouth: Hydraulic cylinder seals do wear out. I don't know about the clutch shaft breaking. That isn't much of a ringing endorsement without knowing how many hours you use it. If it's got a lot of hours then a starter and alternator wearing out could be expected. If you are like me and use it sporadically (170 hours over 6 years) then that would not be a good level of reliability. Either way, I stand by my claim that Kubota owners are like Harley owners (and probably Glock owners) that they are fan boys. I fit that mold. Kubota (Japan) in general makes great machines/vehicles. A lot of the fan boy thing is a result of heavy marketing over the last 20yrs+- so I don’t really put much stock in that. The same has been seen with stihl. They are particularly popular with small land owners. This is evidenced well in the used market with the abundance of low hour pristine machines of various ages. Even if you look at larger kubotas on the used market the Deere counterparts for example typically have way more hours on them for example. I can see this IRL in my area as almost no large farm operations have a Kubota anything other than a lawn mowers. Now with small property owners - kubota is the majority around here. I’ve got one Kubota (L3710dt) and it’s been a great tractor. It has 700hrs on it now and needs an axle pivot seal and the steering cylinder leaks(PIA to get to). Other than that I’ve had no issues. The TLDR opinion is that kubota is mostly on top in the under 50-60hp class but once you go above 80.. there are many other good options like Deere, NH, Massey and those other brands are in more abundance in actual farm operations IME. Even with a huge kubota dealer presence in the area. |
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This is the way I’m looking at this. YMMV. I plan on keeping a tractor until fully depreciated and maybe longer. I’m not doing a fast depreciation and I’m looking at resale. I prefer to do a traditional depreciation, for reasons. Once again, YMMV. The additional cost of a more desirable brand is diluted by the depreciation, increased resale value, and the years that I own it. You may want to buy one tractor for the rest of your life, and that’s your decision. If I decide to keep it longer then I will, I’m not going into purchase with that mindset. Does the additional expense of a more desirable tractor brand over so many years make that much of a difference to you? That’s a personal decision. |
Words fall from your mouth like shit from ass.
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Originally Posted By Steamedliver: This is the way I’m looking at this. YMMV. I plan on keeping a tractor until fully depreciated and maybe longer. I’m not doing a fast depreciation and I’m looking at resale. I prefer to do a traditional depreciation, for reasons. Once again, YMMV. The additional cost of a more desirable brand is diluted by the depreciation, increased resale value, and the years that I own it. You may want to buy one tractor for the rest of your life, and that’s your decision. If I decide to keep it longer then I will, I’m not going into purchase with that mindset. Does the additional expense of a more desirable tractor brand over so many years make that much of a difference to you? That’s a personal decision. Good points. I’m generally planning to keep the tractor as long as possible. I have others that are 1970-80s that serve me well for their use. That said, I’m also not chasing a brand name for any reason but I do understand that some brands do actually have reliability driven value. |
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I have a NH Powerstar 75. 3 plus years, no issues. I'd buy another. It was roughly 10 to 12k less than K or JD in late 2022/early 2023, to get the same performance and features. Like extra remotes out back, 3rd function up front, self leveling bucket, etc. In my hood, NH/Case is very popular in the 75 to 110 hp machines. Bigger than that, it's virtually all JD. Meanwhile, K tends to dominate the sub compact and compact markets. |
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Originally Posted By bondryan: Run from a new holland as fast as you can. They are hot garbage. Originally Posted By Ernesto556: I have a NH Powerstar 75. 3 plus years, no issues. I'd buy another. It was roughly 10 to 12k less than K or JD in late 2022/early 2023, to get the same performance and features. Like extra remotes out back, 3rd function up front, self leveling bucket, etc. In my hood, NH/Case is very popular in the 75 to 110 hp machines. Bigger than that, it's virtually all JD. Meanwhile, K tends to dominate the sub compact and compact markets. Just about any tractor thread here you will get polar opposite opinions, kinda cool to see them back to back though. Unless its a specific make and model with a known defect, I realized I’ll have to roll the dice and make my own opinion. |
Words fall from your mouth like shit from ass.
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Originally Posted By Steamedliver: Just about any tractor thread here you will get polar opposite opinions, kinda cool to see them back to back though. Unless its a specific make and model with a known defect, I realized I’ll have to roll the dice and make my own opinion. Originally Posted By Steamedliver: Originally Posted By bondryan: Run from a new holland as fast as you can. They are hot garbage. Originally Posted By Ernesto556: I have a NH Powerstar 75. 3 plus years, no issues. I'd buy another. It was roughly 10 to 12k less than K or JD in late 2022/early 2023, to get the same performance and features. Like extra remotes out back, 3rd function up front, self leveling bucket, etc. In my hood, NH/Case is very popular in the 75 to 110 hp machines. Bigger than that, it's virtually all JD. Meanwhile, K tends to dominate the sub compact and compact markets. Just about any tractor thread here you will get polar opposite opinions, kinda cool to see them back to back though. Unless its a specific make and model with a known defect, I realized I’ll have to roll the dice and make my own opinion. I’ve farmed with 4 75-100 hp new holland tractors. Once they were required to meet emissions and added a bunch of electronics they turned to complete shit. We rented 3 one year for harvest and two of them never left the shop yard due to electrical problems. Every mechanic I know hates them. |
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Originally Posted By Ernesto556: I have a NH Powerstar 75. 3 plus years, no issues. I'd buy another. It was roughly 10 to 12k less than K or JD in late 2022/early 2023, to get the same performance and features. Like extra remotes out back, 3rd function up front, self leveling bucket, etc. In my hood, NH/Case is very popular in the 75 to 110 hp machines. Bigger than that, it's virtually all JD. Meanwhile, K tends to dominate the sub compact and compact markets. Those power stars are nice! |
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Originally Posted By 57plymouth: Hydraulic cylinder seals do wear out. I don't know about the clutch shaft breaking. That isn't much of a ringing endorsement without knowing how many hours you use it. If it's got a lot of hours then a starter and alternator wearing out could be expected. If you are like me and use it sporadically (170 hours over 6 years) then that would not be a good level of reliability. Either way, I stand by my claim that Kubota owners are like Harley owners (and probably Glock owners) that they are fan boys. I fit that mold. I bought my Kubota in 2012. It is an early 1990s model. So was roughly 20 years old then. Now more than 30 yrs old. I put maybe 50 hrs per year on it. But I used to use it much more than I do now. My repairs are not outside the normal for any brand including Kubota. |
"It behooves every man to remember that the work of the critic is of altogether secondary importance, and that, in the end, progress is accomplished by the man who does things."
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
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Originally Posted By bondryan: Run from a new holland as fast as you can. They are hot garbage. Aside from a hydraulic issue that was covered under warranty, I've had nothing but good service from my Workmaster 105. Bought new in Nov 22, it's only been used for hay for 3 seasons and other jobs around the property. |