Hi guys,well its been some time since I updated my experience with Takeuchi Equipment thus far, The last thread I posted regarding my (brand new) Taky was nearly four years!
Well to fill you in a bit,I am a licensed Plumber and Drainer here in Australia and have been operating backhoes and excavators for nearly all my working life of 30 years,we decided to purchase a new excavator around the 3-4 ton bracket,there was no budget in mind I just wanted a good reliable machine.
We decided to go with the Takeuchi despite it being more than $10;000-00 AUD dearer at ($79,000-00) than a Kubota KX 121-3 (which is a non zero swing) machine,and that was one criteria we had was zero swing.
Despite having some initial problems with the sales rep over my bucket choice the machine arrived,minus the optional (long arm) that it was ordered with,that arrived several days later and was fitted prior to delivery.
The first problem I encountered was the Air-Con was pretty much unusable on a hot summers day,I was seeing temperatures of up to 31 deg "c" in the cab,and after paying $10,000-00 extra for an air-conditioned cab I was not impressed,after many attempts by the dealer to overcome this problem it has never really been resolved and on a real hot day you must resort to opening the door in the end.
The machine probably sees 2-3 days a week digging,it has now clocked up 1938 Hrs,not much by second hand machine standards that we had purchased in the past,it has now had (SEVEN) hydraulic hoses BLOW or LEAK in that time,which is unheard of,some of these leaked under the "crimp sleeve" on the hose and (ONE) was replaced within the first 12 months. It has had to have the switch replaced that operates the back-up alarm, the wiring in the "right-hand joystick" that controls the "decel operation" broke in two,it recently had to have the ignition switch replaced,All of this at my expense!
I am the owner and the operator and the machine which still looks as good as the day I took delivery of it,but if this is an example of Takeuchi's engineering and back-up it is far from what you would expect and I think I will be forced to sell it and buy another brand. My mate purchased a new Kubota KX 121-3, 12 months prior to me and has had full time work,he has now clocked in excess of 5000 Hrs with (ZERO PROBLEMS) and cant say enough good things about it.
The Takeuchi may have a "unique" boom swing arrangement and is very practical to operate,and also appear to be built with quality components,but as far as longevity goes with what I have experienced first hand it has become obvious that I either have a (lemon/dud) or the quality is just not there.
Well to fill you in a bit,I am a licensed Plumber and Drainer here in Australia and have been operating backhoes and excavators for nearly all my working life of 30 years,we decided to purchase a new excavator around the 3-4 ton bracket,there was no budget in mind I just wanted a good reliable machine.
We decided to go with the Takeuchi despite it being more than $10;000-00 AUD dearer at ($79,000-00) than a Kubota KX 121-3 (which is a non zero swing) machine,and that was one criteria we had was zero swing.
Despite having some initial problems with the sales rep over my bucket choice the machine arrived,minus the optional (long arm) that it was ordered with,that arrived several days later and was fitted prior to delivery.
The first problem I encountered was the Air-Con was pretty much unusable on a hot summers day,I was seeing temperatures of up to 31 deg "c" in the cab,and after paying $10,000-00 extra for an air-conditioned cab I was not impressed,after many attempts by the dealer to overcome this problem it has never really been resolved and on a real hot day you must resort to opening the door in the end.
The machine probably sees 2-3 days a week digging,it has now clocked up 1938 Hrs,not much by second hand machine standards that we had purchased in the past,it has now had (SEVEN) hydraulic hoses BLOW or LEAK in that time,which is unheard of,some of these leaked under the "crimp sleeve" on the hose and (ONE) was replaced within the first 12 months. It has had to have the switch replaced that operates the back-up alarm, the wiring in the "right-hand joystick" that controls the "decel operation" broke in two,it recently had to have the ignition switch replaced,All of this at my expense!
I am the owner and the operator and the machine which still looks as good as the day I took delivery of it,but if this is an example of Takeuchi's engineering and back-up it is far from what you would expect and I think I will be forced to sell it and buy another brand. My mate purchased a new Kubota KX 121-3, 12 months prior to me and has had full time work,he has now clocked in excess of 5000 Hrs with (ZERO PROBLEMS) and cant say enough good things about it.
The Takeuchi may have a "unique" boom swing arrangement and is very practical to operate,and also appear to be built with quality components,but as far as longevity goes with what I have experienced first hand it has become obvious that I either have a (lemon/dud) or the quality is just not there.
