Morbark Chippers

[treeboss]

 :-/ We own a Morbark 2090D Wood Chipper with John Deere Engine, purchased in 2000.
Does anyone know when Morbark switched to Cummins engines in the bulk of their equipment and/or why?
I am trying to find out if there were any service bulletins or recalls on this machine with this engine.
Anyone else own one?  Any unusual problems?

I just found out the engine is cracked (less than 700 hours) and John Deere says it's a "casting problem", manufacturing defect. Although the machine has been in the hands of "authorized service reps" since June of 2002, since it didn't get detected until after the warranty expired, Deere won't budge on fixing it. $8 thousand for a new engine isn't exactly in the company budget right now. Just trying to dig up some history on this.

Thanks!

[Tom]

'welcome to the 'forestryforum, treeboss.  

I had the same thing happen to a Kubota but the problem was found within the first 2 or three hours of operation.  Kubota still didn't want to stand behind their product and if weren't for a dependable dealer who put his dealership on the line, I would have probably been out of an engine.

You would think that Deere would stand behind this, especially since they have discovered it to be a mold fault.  One of the best things the internet is good for is letting others know of your experiences with an unweilding company.  

It just might be that John Deere will get email wanting to know why they are making you "eat" their problem.  Ya never know.  

If it were me, I would definitely take the problem higher than their distributer.  Somebody from way up top would have to have a face to face conversation with me.

These corporations sure are getting independent acting of late.  I wonder if it's the new crop of executives that's running them?

[treeboss]

Thanks for your input!  Not only have I "gone to the top" with this, I have written to the John Deere Public Affairs Office, the president of Standard Equipment, which is the original service organization "working" on the macine since June (by the way, the machine had its "yearly check up in May, by these same folks, and they missed the problem then, too.)...June is when the warranty expired, also.  How convenient they didn't find the source of our problem until January, when we finally took it away from Standard and brought it directly to John Deere!

Morbark won't stand behind it, either saying it is a John Deere Engine and they only warranty the physical Morbark chipper, not the engine!
Unfortunately for them, although they are merely dealing with a "female" business owner, I have been a construction Project Manager and contract negotiator for 6 years...I'm not letting this one go!

Our attorney is one step short of an ambulance chaser and has been given the task to write a "letter of demand", to start...I am just preparing some leg work as backup!

I'll keep you all informed of the progress as it comes!
Thanks again for your support!

[Jeff]

Where did you buy your Morbark chipper? Did you get it from The Winn plant? The head of sales for the whole midwest, but I am not sure about east, used to stack lumber for me.

[treeboss]

We bought the chipper locally, from Standard Equipment in Maryland.  The Sales guy has been "replaced" for various reasons" and never filed the warranty paperwork until the jack stand broke in November of 2001 and we tried to get it replaced.  We aren't even able to get information on the actual "in service date" of our warranty because of all the "covering up" being done!  The "authorized rep" missed this problem, even though they were consigned to do a rollover accident assessment of the machine in June.  The machine had just been in for service the month before, as required by the service manual!  
The machine was not only leaking oil...after Standard had it June until August, and Morbark in Winn took it over to continue the "physical repairs", they (Morbark in Winn) spray painted over such an obvious oil leak it shows up in my photographs!

I have been dealing with Kevin Kowallic and "Mick" from Morbark and the president of Standard Equipment (Paul), since June of 2002 on a wide variety of issues.  Morbark stands by the "physical machine" and has been helpful, if not vague, throughout the entire process.

Seems Morbark (in Winn) can fix the machine and the physical damage but, their authorized rep, Standard Equipment, is who they use for engine repairs. Even John Deere lists Standard Equipment as their authorized rep, locally.  When Standard couldn't come up with a resolution (their service MANAGER, Mike, said, in front of my climber and my crew chief, "I really don't know what I'm lookin' fer, I never work on chippers"!!!), we brought it "down the road" to a John Deere tractor service (with the urging of my insurance agent who just couldn't believe we were still looking for more service from a June accident in December!!!), and they confirmed Standard's December assessment!  It's a casting problem and manufacturer's defect!  Not caused by the accident (thereby letting my insurance company off the hook) but, since the crack in the engine was never discovered before the warranty ran out, we were in for an $8000 engine replacement!

Since my attorney can't even "get to this" for another couple of weeks, I am doing my damndest to research, write letters, post public forum, etc, and at least try to save myself HIS fees, too!  There were over $8000 worth of physical damages, paid by my insurance company since the original June 2002 assessment from Standard...with this added in, the machine's value has been met and/or exceeded.

I have even asked diesel mechanics, hypothetically, what they would do to assess a situation like this..the machine rolled over three times, engine over tongue...yet the "service rep" never assessed the engine, never took it apart to see if internal engine problems existed, AND they (Standard Equipment) ran the machine without ANY fluids (oil, grease, etc.) to demonstrate the complete repairs in August, in front of my crew chief because "fluid replacement was not "in the original accidnet estimate"!!!, which is what prompted Morbark to "take over" at that point, to begin with!

This is, in the "true American way", "the other guys' fault"...meanwhile, I am almost out of business without the machine (small owner operated family business) and still facing payments of $420 a month on a machine I haven't used since June!

Sorry to get so long-winded but, I don't know if you were married to the guy that invented this engine, if anyone would be willing to take responsibility for this.  

Morbark "switched" to Cummins engines at some point, and I can't get information on when and why but, I don't find any "new" 2090D chippers on the market, nor do I see machines after 2000 with John Deere engines.  Do you see the direction I am aiming at?  Not trying to be sneaky, just gathering "stuff".

[Skully]

I have the same chipper it is a 1990 unit that I bought from a dealer in denver this year.  The chipper had a brand new cummins disel when we bought it, so thats all the help I can give.  The dealer is southside total power and the owner is Paul Cicero. Great guy, I bet if you called him, he could tell you more.

[dail_h]

Treeboss,
    Most large co.s will avoid paying if they can.They wont pay if they think you will go away,so dont give up. The one thing they dont like is a bad image.A lemon sign on the unit ,proominately displayed while you work sent to DEERE PROBABLY WOULD WORK WONDERS.
  It's a shame that a giant that likes to portray itself as having such a good customer service dept.would try to take advantage of the very people who are their customers.

[Jeff]

This board gets a lot of visitors. A LOT. You might want to refer a "Friend" to this thread by using the link to the left. maybe somebody thats email ends in @morbark.com?

We could use some morbark input here and I bet that if the right person sees this thread some help might possibly be made available. I would hope so anyway. Morbark makes some fine products and in a case where a product they are associated with may be defective I would think they would WANT to help.

[treeboss]

Well, Jeff...given they(morbark) have "chipped in" (just a little humor there!) all along the way with the physical repairs, one would think that!  Unfortunately, their stance at this point is:  We will back our product to the end...BUT...the engine is a Deere and we don't fix engines, just chippers!  

Could it be that's part of the reason Morbark chippers have predominantly Cummins and Perkins engines in them these days?  Who knows!  After seven months of this, Morbark is the only one who has stepped to the plate, repeatedly!  When it came to the engine however, they ran "screaming from the building" as though it were on fire!  Thus my quest!

By the way, most of the email addresses I have from Morbark employees are @yahoo.  I have acknowledged their participation by sending them a "Beer on the Wall" gift pack, in appreciation for their generosity and willingness to help, which is what got the physical stuff done (their help, that is!), after the service rep (Standard Equipment) couldn't follow through.  They (Morbark) have implemented new training, since, but we ARE on the Lower Eastern Shore of Maryland, here...not to be condecending but, it is what it is and that is VERY limited, resource-wise!

Of course, if anyone else has "in-roads" I may not have explored...mine are exhausted and beginning to fray at the ends...you know..."The "fraid knot" response"?!!

With humor and patience, I now have a newly painted, freshly decalled paperweight or yard ornament!  HELP, you guys!  :-/

[treeboss]

 :PWell, I want to thank Skully for the info about Southside Total Power.  As a result of that "search" I came across the Association of Equipment Manufacturers and their Construction Equipment Standards and Regulations Committee...just so happens Dave Gamble of Deere is the Chairman of this Committee!

I have sent an email, followed by snail mail,  and anxiously await their response!  I also found the "Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act" and the Uniform Commercial Codes that regulate how companies must respond in situations like this.  Seems Maryland enforces this thing called "Implied Warranty of Merchantability" that holds manufacturers responsible to "provide a product that is fit for the ordinary purpose for which it was sold". The term of THIS warranty is 4 years and supercedes their standard 2 year warranty.  Fascinating stuff you can learn when someone is trying to put the screws to you!  Thought I'd share it here, in case anyone else is having a similar problem.

[Frank_Pender]

It sounds as though your next step is to your state Attorney Generals office.  I had a recent problem with deere and it joy stick for a 740 loader on a 5300.  I sent one e-mail to the factory folks and they jumped.  I can't repeat what I said, but it got their attention, right quick.  

[treeboss]

Frank:  I would be happy just getting the factory's email address!

I have been faxing and snail mailing!

[Frank_Pender]

Treeboss,
I simply went to John Deere.com and began snooping around, found an e-mail address and sent my letter.  It was forwarded to a Western regional office in Albeq., New Mexico and to the local dealer near me, who had done the work.  Let us knowhow that goes.  If no success I will try and get you a direct warm body to speak with.  

[treeboss]

I got an interesting email from Morbark today!  After all the "We don't deal with the engines, just the machine", perhaps the mention of the Laws and Codes I found caused him some "further reflection"?

He has contacted John Deere himself, which he had told me from the start was up to me to do, and "is sure there is something they can do" for me.

I won't get ahead of myself and begin to hang on hope but, this is the first positive response I have gotten in a few months!  Just thought I'd share.

I also posted to  www.thecomplaintstation.com  For ANY consumer spending more than a few bucks, this is THE best website I have found for feedback on Products and Services from Hundreds of companies!  This should be on EVERYONE'S "Favorites" list!

[treeboss]

 8)As a follow up to this post, I want to make certain everyone here knows how this all turned out, in fairness to those who finally did react and respond.

Last week, after several conversations with John Walters from Superior Diesel (the John Deere rep Morbark "turned me on to"), I explained in detail the trials and tribulations of the whole 8 months we have been going on with the repairs to our chipper.  Next thing I know, Mick Gifford of Morbark calls and says he may have an offer to consider, so I called him back.

Morbark went the "extra mile" for me, again, and has now begun the process of shipping a BRAND NEW chipper, with only 14 hours on it, at NO FURTHER COST to my company!!!
This is not to say any of this was a "quick fix" but to stand behind Morbark and their relationship with John Deere outside of my local region, the "powers that be" came to the conclusion it was worth servicing a customer over pointing fingers and passing me around in an effort to save the "corporate buck"!

It shows these guys actually listen once they really start to HEAR what a customer has to say.  They closed the "rule book" and took the real facts into consideration and moved to closure on a very unfortunate series of events to the customer's satisfaction.

I won't soften the issue by doing the "snoopy dance" over the end result...it took 8 months and a daily monitoring, faxes, letters, phone calls and emails to convince the parties involved that I wasn't going away but, when it came to reason, Morbark and Deere really came through!  As for Standard Equipment (the "authorized service rep for Morbark AND Deere in our area), they are still reading the fine lines of their agreement and "holding themselves harmless" for their part in this mess...my insurance adjuster will have his "day" at the end of this month, with the Insurance Commissioner.

In all, it pays to do your homework when faced with the stone walls I have hurdled and by not backing down, keeping my cool and documenting every detail, I was able to present a credible case to these guys who, eventually saw it for what it was and did the right thing for my company.  There's much to be said for corporations such as Morbark and Deere who allow their staff to to THINK and BEHAVE like real people who can actually make decisions which favor customer relations rather than the bottom line!

John and Mick deserve a HUGE thumbs up!  Seems Morbark monitors this page, also, so THUMBS UP for you guys, too!

[Tillaway]

   Glad this is resolved.  Good for you.

[Tom]

It especially makes me glad that Morbark and Deere stepped up to the plate.  I hate to see companies of this size lose their customers confidence.   Good for you and them both. They have generated a lot of Good Will by their actions.