Contents
Light & heavy duty brands
Estate tractors and serviceability
Classic brands
Frequently Asked Questions
"Which brands of tractors are good and which are bad?"
Good
and bad are relative terms. There are generally two types of lawn and garden
tractors: light duty and heavy duty.
Light duty equipment is usually much less expensive to purchase, has low required maintenance, is made of sheet metal and plastic, is belt-driven, has short-term parts availability and is designed to last for a short period of time. Many failures on light duty tractors simply can't be repaired and used machines can't usually be traded in for credit on new equipment. However, light duty equipment is very popular, largely due to its low purchase price. With proper care, light duty equipment can perform useful chores for many years. But, beware that some manufacturers of light duty tractors place over-powered motors into light duty tractors, in order to make them more attractive to buyers. This causes stresses and strains beyond the tractor's design limits, resulting in rapid failure of the drivetrain, suspension, steering and/or other tractor mechanisms.
On the other hand, heavy duty equipment is typically expensive to purchase, has more required maintenance, is usually based on an iron or steel frame (although certainly will contain sheet metal and plastic parts), often has true axles with cast iron housings, is shaft-driven, has long-term parts availability and is designed to last for many years with proper care. Most breakdowns on heavy duty tractors can be repaired -- although parts can be very expensive -- and it is common for users of heavy duty equipment to "trade up" to a newer model after several years, as is typical with automobiles. This means that there is a good supply of used heavy duty tractors to choose from.
The chart below shows several popular
brands of light and heavy duty lawn and garden tractors. Also shown are
the horsepower ranges for the companies' 1996 product lines.
| Lawn & Garden Tractor Brands | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Light Duty | Heavy Duty | ||
|
14-22 HP |
12-18 HP |
13-22 HP |
12-20 HP |
|
|
13-25 HP |
14-25 HP |
13-22 HP |
|
12-20 HP |
|
14-20 HP |
|
|
|
|
12-18 HP |
14-20 HP |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
13-22 HP |
13-20 HP |
|
|
|
14-20 HP |
|
| PowerPro | Roper |
|
12-19 HP |
| Poulan | Weed Eater |
|
Snapper
12-20 HP |
| Huskee | Scotts |
|
|
| Husqvarna 15HP | |||
Estate tractors, also known as compact diesel tractors, are nearly all heavy duty machines. What differentiates brands in this category are reliability and parts availability. Some brands have reputations for breaking down more than others, parts for some manufacturers' tractors are more difficult to obtain than for others', some brands simply have inferior "fit and finish" in comparison to other brands and some makes have consistently lower resale values than their competitors. For purposes of this topic, we will call the former "Service-Challenged" and the latter "Service-Neutral." The purchase of one of these tractors is a major investment. And replacement parts are remarkably expensive. It is a great benefit to establish a relationship with a nearby dealer who is knowledgeable, free with advice and who stocks parts for your tractor.
The table below shows the service
category for several popular brands of compact (and not-so-compact) tractors
currently being manufactured. Also shown are the horsepower ranges for
the companies' 1996 product lines.
| Compact Tractor Serviceability | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Service-Challenged | Service-Neutral | ||
|
16-24 HP |
28-172 HP |
10-100 HP |
14-180 HP |
|
18-90 HP |
26 HP |
56-210 HP |
15-340 HP |
|
28-70 HP |
30-110 HP |
19-27 HP |
42-215 HP |
|
25-76 HP |
23-41 HP |
40-215 HP |
45-215 HP |
|
|
|
|
|
|
43-123 HP |
|
||
* This tractor also sold under "Hardy Diesel," "Bison" and "Wheel Ox" names.
Where are They Now?
Used tractors are everywhere, but not all brands are still being made. Here is a list of defunct brands and their last known dates of manufacture.
- Allis-Chalmers - 1985. Now a division of AGCO Corp.
- Bolens-Iseki - 1988. Bolens now manufactured by Troy-Bilt.
- Case-IH - 1999. Case now a subsidiary of New Holland.
- David Brown - 1971. Sold as Case/David Brown until 1985.
- Deutz-Allis - 1991. Deutz is now a division of AGCO Corp.
- Deutz-Fahr - 1985. D-F merged with SAME Group in 1977.
- Ford-New Holland - 1996. New Holland is now a subsidiary of Fiat.
- Hesston-Fiat - 1991. Hesston is now a division of AGCO Corp.
- IH-Farmall - 1985. Now a division of Case Corp.
- Minneapolis-Moline - 1974. Assets purchased by White, a division of AGCO Corp.
- Mitsubishi-Satoh - 1988. Mitsubishi is the OEM for pre-1995 Case compacts < 30HP and the current OEM for Cub Cadet compacts.
- Oliver-Cockshutt - 1975.
- Speedex - 1995. Assets purchased by Trans Tech International.
- Yanmar - 1989. OEM for John Deere compacts < 40HP.
