"What is a 'grey market' tractor?"

"What is a 'grey market' tractor?"

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If you shop around for anything larger than a garden tractor, sooner or later you will hear the term "grey market" tractor. A grey market tractor is simply a used tractor, usually a compact diesel, imported from another country, usually Japan. Demand for compact diesel tractors is quite high and grey market tractors are becoming a popular option for an increasing number of tractor buyers. However, there are both advantages and disadvantages to purchasing a grey market tractor.

The main attraction is that these tractors are usually less expensive than nearly identical made-for-US models. For a variety of reasons -- currency exchange rates, differences in the value of used equipment overseas, low import tariffs, etc. -- used equipment dealers can profitably resell these tractors for less than domestically used machines. By the same token, grey market tractors are worth less when they are traded in.

The main disadvantage to grey market tractors is that the manufacturers despise this practice and are actively trying to stop it. Manufacturers claim that these tractors are different from those manufactured to US standards, particularly with respect to safety features. Also, although grey market tractors bear familiar trademarks, the manufacturers have not set up the dealer training and parts service networks in the US to support these particular models. So, no support for this equipment is available from the manufacturers or from their licensed dealers.