Bobcat T650 vs Case TR320

Hey, everyone! My husband has always been a Bobcat fan; we have had 4 of them and rarely had issues. Fast forward to 3 years ago, we bought a new T190 and this thing is a POS (and has been from the get-go). Now, we are wanting a new machine. Asked Bobcat about a trade-in on it (they have done extensive warranty work on this machine; rebuilt left side track and parts, drive motor has gone out, hydraulics have gone out, etc; major issues) and they said because of the issues, they won't even give us payoff (which was financed at .9% for 60 months); yet, we have never paid for any of this work, because everything wrong with the machine has been warranty stuff (that should have never torn up to begin with). Hubby is ticked! Not to mention, that because BC is territorial, other dealers nearby won't talk to us about selling us a new machine. I have since found out that the price they are quoting us on the T650 is $63k with no attachments.

Which leads me to my question: the Case dealer, who is trying to earn our biz has offered us a TR320 for about $15k less than BC on the T650 (with a 78in bucket as well). He knows my hubby is mad at BC and the reasons why we are thinking about leaving BC. (And, yes, I have that price in writing already). My only question (and I have read reviews while pouring thru these forums); should I be concerned that Case is so much lower cost than BC? Is there a reason? Should I expect major repairs with the Case? It seems like a well built machine, but I wanted to ask. Would you pay the additional $15k for the T650 or try out the TR320? I know it is a subjective question, but was wondering if anyone else had also experienced that great of a price difference btw the companies.

Thanks everyone for reading my long-winded questions and explanations. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

I would try out the Case machine. There are a lot of Case skid steer loaders around me and I have not heard of them having major problems. When I was selling equipment I would rather take a CASE skid steer in trade over a Bobcat because of there being too many used Bobcats for sale. The Case machine was easier to sell.

(quoted from post at 22:17:48 11/19/15) I would try out the Case machine. There are a lot of Case skid steer loaders around me and I have not heard of them having major problems. When I was selling equipment I would rather take a CASE skid steer in trade over a Bobcat because of there being too many used Bobcats for sale. The Case machine was easier to sell.

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Thank you for your opinion. I appreciate the feedback. We are really leaning towards the Case machine; because of the price and crappy handling of our T190 from our local BC dealer. I think it is complete crap that they only offered us $18k for a trade because of all the problems with the machine (which is ALL their fault for building a bad machine with this one), yet they are re-selling used T190s with more hours in our area for $39k+. They are trying to make their money back on the warranty repairs and that just irks me. (As it would any business owner).

I agree with JD Seller, I sold CASE Uni Loaders for many years, I felt we always had as good or better product than any other machine including Bob Cat,, I have not been around the track units but I see a Lot of them working here, far more than CAT or BC of which we have both dealers here as well, have the CASE dealer bring it out and let you demo it for a day,, I think you will like it and not better way than running it at your own place and jobs to get a feel for it,, resale is always good here on the CASE units as well, as for the $$ diff, the CASE is the same or very close to the BC in sticker [price, the reason you see the diff is the BC dealer is trying to low ball you big time due to the warranty issues,, to me that speaks volumes,,good luck
cnt

They are trying to earn your business because they
know it is going to be repeat. I would do it in a
heartbeat. You can't be worse off than you are and
you have a new service dept eager to meet your
needs. Good for them working to cultivate clients.
Anymore it seems if you aren't buying a farm worth
of anything YOU have to do the sales work.

Sounds like the problem is with your dealer, I know of two T-300's that had similar issues as well as a T-750, all the machines were fixed under warranty and were traded back in within a few months. The dealer felt bad about the machines being lemons so they gave good money on trade, put them into their rental fleet and sold them at auction at the end of the season. If your husband is a big fan of Bobcat its worth the distance to travel to get what he wants. I have two dealerships near me the closest one is 10 miles the other is 90 miles from me there is no territorial issues here, in fact the salesman at the closer dealership told me he likes it, it keeps both dealers honest and welcomes the competition.

If your local dealer is selling the same machine you have with more hours, call his bluff, advertise yours privatly for the same money as he is asking and see what happens.

As far as the difference between the two machines, Id still go with the Bobcat mainly because in my opinion Bobcat has a much nicer/comfortable cab, I'm a tall guy and like the leg room. I haven't been in the newest model Case but IIRC the last one I drove the door opened the opposite direction, which probably isn't a big deal but when you are used to the handle on one side of the door its a habit that's tough to get used to.

Just a side note I have a friend that owns two tracked Deere machines, they are good also but more $$ and the cabs aren't as comfy either. He told me if you could put a Bobcat cab on a Deere machine you would have one heck of a machine.

I have a case TR270 and love it.Hardly use my old bobcat anymore.It will lift 2700 lbs. Are you sure you need one as big as you are
looking at?It would be a beast but it is pretty long.

We have a TR320 and over all is a good machine. We even have a brush cutter for it and works well in wet areas and you can raise it over bush's and lower it on them. Here's a few pics of it during foundation project. Only complaint is if you have door on it you must have bucket and boom all the way down for door to open. We have had it over 3 years with no break downs. Greg

That's sad to hear about the T190. I have one (a T190) I bought new in 2007 and had some engine mount problems (at 20 hours) that the factory had done wrong. The dealer (175 miles away) sent a mechanic to fix it. The mechanic fixed it so it was usable and said it would need to come to the shop to get fixed properly. The dealer came with another machine for me to use and took the T190 back and fixed it and brought it back to me and I've never had a problem since.
I call that excellent customer relations!
DWF