Is a Mitsubishi or Yanmar worthy of consideration?

[Fishugly]

I'm building a house on an acre...a wild acre with trees, stumps, rocks, and plenty of dirt to move around. A loader would be a huge asset around the place but also during construction with lifting beams, posts, etc.


That said, there's a chance I'd sell after I got my house built and property to my liking. So, resale value might be something of consideration.


Decent looking skid steers seem out of my price range. I've been seeing a lot of really clean looking rebuilt 16 - 40 HP Mitsubishis and Yanmars in the $7500-$12,000 range though...and they look pretty good.


Are these things robust and reliable? Are parts easy to get? Difficult to find people to work on them?


Thanks!

 

[neverfear]

I think a backhoe would be more useful than a compact tractor and loader in your situation. Something like a CASE or Deere dedicated hoe with a loader bucket.

 

[old]

I'd pass on either brand. Parts can be hard to come by. I'd look at some of the older Fords or JD or A/C

 

[Texasmark1]

I was reading the other day that Yanmar perfected the small diesel engine for mass production. Smaller diesels use an IDI or Swirl Chamber
where the diesel is injected and that ball of fire migrates out to the main chamber and produces the explosion that produces engine torque.
Said that this system is much more reliable and more efficient than using direct injection injectors with tiny openings.

Back in the late 1960s I was working in N. Dallas and on the way home there was a Yanmar small tractor dealer on the highway....no other small
tractor dealer was anywhere to be seen. Yanmar is a Japanese company and have built tractors and supply engines to JD. The LS I just bought
has a Yanmar engine.

You have the gotta have this color crowd and then you have the rest of us. I have and have had a rainbow of colors over the 43 years I have
been trying to farm and never.....never had a bad one!!!!!! Of any color....and 4 of mine were green to 100 PTO HP.!

 

[Tracy Brown]

X2

 

[Traditional Farmer]

I own and use both brands now.The Yanmar YM 330 is basically the same tractor as the John Deere 950 which was built by Yanmar for JD,got it about 20 years ago
use it to mow hay hooked to a NH 456 mower every year since then.Have a Cub Cadet think its a model 7200 that was built by Mitsubishi,got it a few years ago
probably put more hrs on it than any tractor I own.Been trouble free once I replaced the glow plugs which were about $7 each from NAPA.Parts for both tractors are readily available.I like the look of the new Yanmar tractors and if I was going to buy a new compact it'd be a Yanmar.

 

[Russ from MN]

Our JD 4600 has a Yanmar engine, and not sure how much else. It's probably the finest piece of equipment I have ever owned or run.
1300 hours and no problems, have never needed any parts, but I'm confident they would be available if I needed them. This spring
when I get home I'm going to pull the valve cover and check the valve clearance. It's not getting noisy, it's just recommended
maintenance.

 

[Jeff NWOH]

I have a yanmar engine in my skidsteer.
Not sure exactly how many hours, but it's
over 10,000. It's starting to get tired.
A little hard to start when it's cold, but
still runs good.

 

[Fishugly]

Thanks, everyone!

I forgot to ask about YNM tractors. I'm seeing just as many of those as the Mitsubishis and Yanmars. Same deal with being rebuilt and looking to be in great shape for similar prices.

Are these YNMs of similar quality?

 

[jturbo10]

I have three Yanmar diesel engines on the ranch and they have run trouble free for a lot of years. My 89 John Deere 850 utility is basically
a Yanmar tractor with a dual clutch, engine, etc. Great for a lot of light work on the ranch and trouble free. My John Deere 35D excavator
has Yanmar diesel that works great and like the JD 850 sips the fuel and doesn't use a drop of oil. My Monaco Coach has an Onan generator
with a Yanmar diesel...another trouble free small diesel. No problem getting mx service parts but suspect internal parts may be an issue but
don't know for sure as not one of the three engines has ever required anything other than filters, fluids, and batteries. JMHO

 

[Traditional Farmer]

Hoye Tractor is a good source for many Yanmar parts.

 

[caterpillar guy]

I vote the backhoe too. Will lift more and can dige drainage ditches you can't with a loader. You can but much messier with a lot more work and slower.

 

[BarnyardEngineering]

IF you can work on your own equipment, the Internet and worldwide shipping has pretty much done away with the whole, "You can't get parts," logic behind not getting one of the lesser-known brands.

 

[jaoneill]

We have a little 25hp Mitsubitch with over 15K hours on it. Beginning to get tired, starts hard, been a good machine overall; sips fuel but parts availability has been a challenge. Our experience has been that parts for the Yanmars are much easier to source.