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North Dakota | I've already done a search and read about all of the horror stories about the 8850 and their engines. For comparison's sake, I'm wondering about what anyone who has experience with the 8850 and how it compares to a Cummins 903 V-8. I've had lots of experience with 903's and love that engine.
I've brought this up in another thread on 8970/8960 JD tractors.........what I am looking for is a 4WD tractor with PTO that would mainly be doing limited tillage work (pulling a heavy harrow over ~3,000 acres in the fall, and disking/chisel plowing low ground), pull the grain cart, and have enough power to pull a 40-50 ft. air seeder in a pinch should something ever happen to our main tractor during the planting season.
I've heard the problems with the 8850 concerning water and engine temp (basically the same problem the 903 had), and that an overhaul will cost around $30,000. Last time we called Cummins to overhaul a 903 two years ago they quoted upwards of $20,000 to overhaul it. My hang up is that I can and have overhauled a 903 myself for $2,500 for the inframe kit, so I've never been scared of the 903. But I can't find an overhaul kit for a 955 JD engine. The appealing thing about an 8970/8960 is that with the 855 Cummins, should it go to hell, an overhaul kit is only about $1,200.
Currently, I pull the grain cart with a JD 8640 that has 8,000 hours on it that I paid $18,000 for two years ago. It's fine on the cart, but I'd be SOL if my air seeder tractor went down, and the 8640's pants are full with some of the tillage that we do. There are currently multiple 8850's in the area with similar hours w/PTO that I could pick up for ~25,000. 8970/8960's are pushing $70,000-80,000 with PTO in the area.
I'm guessing if the motor went on my 8640, I'd spend ~ 15,000 to get it going again? So my question is: for a secondary tractor thats primary function is pulling a grain cart (but I would like it to have enough HP to put the crop in with it, in a worst case scenario), would I be better off buying cheap HP w/PTO in an 8850, or spending more money for a "back-up" tractor than I spent on the tractor that I rely on to put most of my crop in?
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John Deere 8850 Opinions.......
