PDQ Equipment

Bobcat vs Kubota compact track loaders, which one is right for you

Buyer's Guide

Bobcat vs Kubota An honest comparison from a dealer who rents and sells both

Quick disclosure, then we'll get out of our own way.

There's a lot of Bobcat in our rental fleet. There's a lot of Kubota in it too. Both get rented hard, both get serviced here, and both get sold used off our lot when we're done with them. The only difference is new machines: we sell new Kubota, and we don't sell new Bobcat.

That's it. That's the whole conflict of interest. Do with it what you want.

Here's why it matters to you. Search this topic and you'll get a dozen articles from dealers who carry exactly one of these brands, and every one of them lands on the brand they sell. That's not a comparison. That's a brochure with a table in it.

What we've got that they don't is years of running both. Rented out, beat on, brought back, fixed, rented again. That's a different kind of information than day one performance, and it's the kind that decides whether you were right.

You're about to spend somewhere north of fifty thousand dollars. You deserve better than a brochure.

Our competitor's case, first

Four Things Bobcat Does Better Than Kubota

Starting with our competitor's wins, because a comparison that can't do that isn't worth reading.

Give Bobcat their due. They pioneered the wheeled skid steer and built this whole category from nothing, and sixty years of being first still shows. What they didn't invent is the track loader, which is a different machine with a different origin, and the two get confused constantly for reasons that make sense once you've run both.

That aside, here's where Bobcat is the better buy.

Attachment ecosystem

The Bob-Tach quick attach system has effectively become the industry standard, with over 100 factory attachments and thousands more from third parties. If your work changes week to week and you want to hang anything on the front of the machine, Bobcat has more options. That's not a small thing.

Dealer coverage nationally

More locations across the country. If you run crews in multiple states, that's worth something.

Model range

More sizes, especially at the large end. Bobcat's operating capacity range runs wider than Kubota's, so if you need something bigger than what the SVL line tops out at, that's a real answer.

Hydraulic flow on the high end

For dedicated forestry mulching or heavy land clearing, the flow numbers on the bigger Bobcat machines are hard to argue with.

If those four things describe your operation, buy the Bobcat. We can't sell you a new one and we'll still tell you that, because pointing you at the wrong machine is how we lose you for the next twenty years.

Now ours

Four Things Kubota Does Better Than Bobcat

Reliability

Kubota holds the largest share of the global market for industrial diesel engines under 100 horsepower. Not in compact equipment. In engines. Their engines are in a class of their own, and they've dominated this segment for decades on a mix of performance and reliability that nobody has managed to match. This goes well beyond Bobcat. Manufacturers all over the world put Kubota engines in their machines, and they don't do it out of loyalty. They do it because the engine holds up.

Bobcat sourced theirs from Kubota until 2015, then switched to Doosan. Some machines still run Kubota power. Ask anyone who ran a Bobcat back when there was a Kubota under the hood how they feel about what came after. You'll get an earful.

When the thing that makes your money quits, nothing else on this page matters. That's the argument.

Two speed standard, and you're working sooner

Kubota includes a two speed transmission standard where Bobcat charges for it, and the diesel particulate filter design lets you throttle up and get to work roughly 60 to 90 seconds earlier. Power delivery is more consistent too, since Kubota runs a direct drive pump to both the HST and loader pumps rather than a belt driven setup. A minute and a half a start sounds like nothing. Multiply it by five years.

More digging force for less money

The SSV75 puts down 5,884 lb of bucket breakout against the S650's 5,130, though the S650 carries the higher rated operating capacity at 2,826 lb to 2,630. Bobcat lifts a bit more, Kubota digs in harder. And Kubota generally comes in lower on comparable iron with more aggressive factory financing behind it.

The cab, and it's not even close

Nobody expects this one until they sit in both. Wider interior. The window slides to any position on a track mounted inside the cab, where Bobcat's five position window rides an outside track that collects grit. Quarter inch bars in the top grating against Bobcat's five eighths, so there's less steel between you and the work. You can see the cutting edge without leaning forward, which Bobcat's wiper assembly gets in the way of. Even the grab handles bolt on rather than being welded to the chassis, so one is a part and the other is a shop visit.

The whole thing on one screen

	Bobcat	Kubota
Engine	Doosan since 2015	Wins. Number one global share, sub 100 hp
Attachment options	Wins. 100 plus factory, thousands aftermarket	Fewer
Two speed	Costs extra	Standard
Bucket breakout	5,130 lb	5,884 lb
Rated capacity	2,826 lb	2,630 lb
Cab and visibility	Outside window track, wiper in the sightline	Wins. Wider, better sightline
Over 100 hp	Wins. Beast size machines	Line tops out lower
Build quality	Solid	Solid

Yes, we sell Kubota. We told you that before you scrolled. The difference is we're the only ones who'll point at the rows where you should probably buy the other guy.

From our own yard

What Both Brands Have Cost Us

A rental machine lives a harder life than one you own. Different operator every week, nobody babying it, hours stacking up fast. Two or three years in a rental fleet teaches you what eight years of ownership would.

Here's what we've learned running both.

The Kubota emissions system will punish the wrong kind of work

This is the single most common complaint on the SVL line, and it's worth understanding properly because most of it isn't a defect. The diesel particulate filter needs heat to do its job, and heat comes from running the machine at working RPM for real stretches. Short bursts, long idles, low throttle, and the filter loads up with soot instead of burning it off. Then you get regen cycles, then codes, then a machine that derates on you.

Rental fleets see this more than owners do because rental operators idle machines. If your crew runs hard all day, you will probably never think about it. If your machine spends a lot of the day sitting at idle waiting on a truck, take that seriously before you buy, on any brand, because this is an emissions era problem and not strictly a Kubota one.

Kubota keeps the diagnostics in house, and that cuts both ways

Fault codes on the SVL and SSV machines clear through Kubota's dealer software after the repair, not by an operator with a scan tool. If you have a good dealer close by, that's fine and arguably better, since it means the fix gets verified. If you're an hour from the nearest one and you like turning your own wrenches, it's a real consideration. Ask yourself honestly which of those describes you.

On Bobcat, the undercarriage is where the money goes

True of every track loader ever built, but worth saying plainly because it's the cost buyers underestimate most. Track tension, debris packed into the frame, and rollers running dry account for a large share of what we spend on any tracked machine in the fleet. Machines that come back cleaned out last dramatically longer than machines that come back with the frame full of dirt. That's an operator habit, not a brand trait.

The Bobcat final drive case drain filter is the one people skip

When it clogs, pressure backs up into the final drive motor and the seal lets go, and at that point you're not doing a filter change anymore, you're doing a motor. It's a cheap part on a schedule and an expensive lesson off it. If you buy a used Bobcat, ask when it was last done.

Auxiliary couplers wear on both, faster on Bobcat

The female half of the quick coupler takes the abuse and collects debris. It's a hundred dollar part and a fifteen minute job, but ignored it contaminates the hydraulic system, and that's not a hundred dollar problem. Anyone running attachments daily should be checking these.

And the detail nobody expects

Some Bobcat track loaders have run Kubota engines. The brand rivalry is real at the sales counter, and under the hood the industry is smaller than it looks. Verify what's in the specific machine you're looking at rather than assuming from the paint.

None of this makes either one a bad buy. It's the stuff you find out in year three, and we already found it out on our dime.

Class by class

Machine for Machine

Track loaders, 74 hp

Kubota SVL75-3 compared with the Bobcat T76 compact track loader

Kubota SVL75-3 vs Bobcat T76

This is where most contractors land, and it's the closest matchup in the lineup. Kubota takes the engine and the standard two speed. Bobcat takes attachment selection. Call it a wash on capability and decide it on service.

Wheeled skid steers

Kubota vs the Bobcat wheeled skid steers

Kubota on breakout and visibility, Bobcat on rated capacity.

Mini skid steers / stand ons

Kubota SCL1000 compared with Bobcat MT series mini skid steers

Kubota SCL1000 vs the Bobcat MT series

Different design philosophy. The SCL1000 is 36 inches wide and fits through a standard side gate, which is the entire reason to own one if you do backyard, landscape or hardscape work.

Bigger than 100 hp

Large frame track loaders above 100 horsepower

Bobcat, honestly

Kubota's compact track loader line tops out below where Bobcat's largest machines start.

If you skipped to the bottom

The Short Version

First machine? Buy the Kubota.

Lower entry price, better factory financing, an easier cab to learn in, and controls that don't punish you for being new. Going from renting to owning is already a big step. This is the softer landing.

Running mostly on pavement and hard surfaces?

Buy wheels, not tracks, and buy whichever brand your local dealer supports better.

Big attachment inventory already, or you need something over 100 hp?

Bobcat. More options, bigger machines, and your couplers already fit.

Comfort and reliability?

Kubota track loader. Better engine, better cab, better price, and the emissions system is manageable if the machine actually works instead of idling.

Still not sure? Give us a call

Come run both back to back on our yard. Half an hour in each seat will tell you more than another week of reading.

For the switchers

Already Running Bobcat and Looking at Something Else?

Different question than which one to buy new, and the people asking it usually aren't asking because of specs.

In our experience it comes down to three things.

Parts cost

We buy parts for both brands every week for our own fleet. So bring us a year of your parts invoices and we'll tell you what that same year would have cost you on the other machine. Not an estimate. What we actually paid. Nobody else comparing these brands can do that, because nobody else is buying both.

Service wait times

This is the one we hear most. A machine sitting in a shop queue isn't earning. Ask any dealer you're considering, us included, what their turnaround is running right now. Not their best case. This month.

The relationship

Some people just want to talk to the same person twice.

If you're switching, the practical concern is your attachment inventory, because Bob-Tach and Kubota's coupler are not the same thing. Adapters exist. Bring us your list and we'll tell you straight what carries over and what doesn't, before you commit to anything.

And there's an easier way to settle this than reading about it. Come put the other one through its paces on our yard. We have both here, so you can run them back to back and feel the difference yourself. Seat time will tell you more than this entire page.

Worth knowing too: the Bobcats we retire out of the rental fleet get sold used off our yard. Full service history, because we're the ones who serviced them. If a used machine fits your budget better than a new one, that's a real option and we'll be straight with you about what each unit has been through.

The part nobody writes about

The Spec Sheet Is the Least Important Thing on This Page

Here's the uncomfortable truth, and it undercuts about eighty percent of what you just read.

Both of these companies build good machines. Neither one is going to fail you because of a horsepower rating. We'd know, we've got both sitting in the yard right now. The iron is not your risk.

Your risk is downtime. A machine in a shop queue earns zero, and it earns zero whether the badge says Bobcat or Kubota. Two contractors can buy the identical machine on the same day and have completely different experiences with it, and the variable isn't the brand. It's who services it and how fast.

That's a local question. It has nothing to do with either logo.

So when you're comparing, stop reading spec tables and start asking the questions that actually predict your next five years:

Where's the nearest shop that works on this machine, and how far is that from your yard?
Do they stock filters and wear items, or does everything get ordered?
What's the real turnaround on a warranty repair right now, this month, not in general?
When you call, do you get a person who knows equipment or a queue?

We're at three branches in Southern California. Sun Valley in Los Angeles, Temecula, and Escondido in San Diego. Same family since 1952. The people who answer the phone are the people who'll deliver your machine.

Ask us those four questions. Then call whoever else you're considering and ask them the same four. Whoever gives you a straight answer without checking with someone is probably the right call, and we're comfortable being judged on that.

Questions we get

Straight Answers

What's the difference between a skid steer and a track loader?

Wheels versus rubber tracks. Otherwise they operate almost the same way, which is why most people use the terms interchangeably. Wheels are faster and cheaper on hard surfaces. Tracks work where wheels sink or tear up ground.

Who invented the skid steer and who invented the track loader?

Two different answers, which is where the confusion comes from. Bobcat pioneered the wheeled skid steer, going back to the Keller brothers in 1956 and the M440 in 1962. The compact track loader came from Takeuchi in September 1986. ASV contests that one, since its Posi-Track reached market in 1990 and Takeuchi's TL26 in 1991.

Which one should I buy if it's my first machine?

Kubota, most of the time. Lower entry price, better factory financing, and an easier cab to learn in. If you already own attachments and have strong preferences, that logic doesn't apply to you.

Is Kubota better than Bobcat?

Depends entirely on the work. Bobcat has more attachments and a wider model range at the top end. Kubota builds their own engines and comes in lower on price for comparable machines. Neither one is a bad buy.

Does Bobcat use Kubota engines?

They used to. Bobcat switched to Doosan engines in 2015.

Will my Bobcat attachments fit a Kubota?

Not directly. The coupler systems are different. Adapters are available for a lot of it. Bring us your list and we'll go through it with you.

Which holds value better?

Both hold up well. Bobcat has the wider resale market by volume. Kubota's lower purchase price often means the gap closes on what you actually lose over the term.

Which is cheaper to own?

Purchase price usually favors Kubota. After that it's parts, service and downtime, and that's a dealer question more than a brand question.

Come Run One

We're Not Going to Close You

You've read this far, which means you'd see it coming anyway.

Here's the offer. Come to any of our three branches and put your hands on both machines. Run them. Load a bucket, feel the controls, sit in both cabs back to back, because ten minutes in the seat beats every word on this page. Ask us the hard questions about either brand and we'll answer them the way we answered them above.

Sure, we'd like to sell you a Kubota. But we've been here since 1952 by being the yard people call back, not the yard that won an argument once.

Buy the right machine. If that's not ours, we'd still rather you heard it here.

Give us a ringGive us a call See the track loaders and skid steers

Los Angeles

Sun Valley
213-513-7423

Temecula

Riverside County
951-517-2979

San Diego

Escondido
619-363-0440

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Family owned since 1952 Los Angeles · Temecula · San Diego