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> liability When has any company been held liable for a customer modifying it. > distribution channels It might be annoying to create but they won't lose mon

> liability When has any company been held liable for a customer modifying it. > distribution channels It might be annoying to create but they won't lose money on parts, it would likely be a profit center, just not as big a center as doing the repairs themselves. They already distribute parts to dealers around the world who service the tractors. > documentation They already have repair documentation that they distribute to dealerships around the world. Nobody is asking manufacturers to make huge sacrifices, just stop holding customers ransom.

kempbellt 7y ago
> When has any company been held liable for a customer modifying it. All the time. Regardless, the liability is to their brand. If someone hears that a John Deere tractor blew up and set a field on fire, they avoid the brand. Even if it was caused by an improper repair. > They already distribute parts to dealers around the world who service the tractors. Just guessing here, but I imagine they do this in bulk to local service centers, via a regular distribution chain (on a semi-truck to many service centers) to manage cost. Distributing a part to an individual, or service centers they don't own, would require remodeling their distribution chain. My point is, it's doable, but not cheap, and customers will end up paying for this convenience in the price of the product. > They already have repair documentation that they distribute to dealerships around the world. That are used internally... Are your internal docs customer friendly enough to help them repair the most minute problem? Like I said, I am for right-to-repair and I'd like to see manufacturers move towards these types of models, but it's typically basic market forces that cause manufacturers to act the way they do. Unless I see evidence that someone consciously chose the "No, lets screw over our customers for more money" option, I'm not going to assume mal-intent and start screaming "they're holding customers ransom!" from the hilltops.
- labawi 7y ago
  > the liability is to their brand. If .. a John Deere tractor blew up ... they avoid the brand. Even if it was caused by an improper repair. Perhaps the tractor is hard to repair safely, the manuals aren't good, qualified repairs are expensive/unavailable/take a long time and repair community isn't good enough... Those seem like 100% legitimate buyers concern and I don't see why the brand should immune.
- steve19 7y ago
  > All the time. Then I am sure you can give us some recent examples in the media where the manufacturer is blamed for bad modifications by users. If I pour a gallon of gasoline on a tractor and set it on fire, and the media reported "man sets farm on fire after torching a tractor", no tractor buyer is going to blame John Deere. Your argument relies on the false premise that informed consumers (tractor operating farmers) would react negitivly to a brand if something happened involving a modified tractor. When in reality farmers are crying out to be able to repair and mod their tractors. Compare to the tech industry. How often do PC gamers mod CPUs out of spec and end up shortening thr lifespan, or killing them? All the time. Nobody blames Intel. > That are used internally... Are your internal docs customer friendly enough to help them repair the most minute problem? Have you seen car repair manuals? They are very detailed and complete and third party dealers have access to them.

kempbellt 7y ago

> When has any company been held liable for a customer modifying it. All the time. Regardless, the liability is to their brand. If someone hears that a John Deere tractor blew up and set a field on fire, they avoid the brand. Even if it was caused by an improper repair. > They already distribute parts to dealers around the world who service the tractors. Just guessing here, but I imagine they do this in bulk to local service centers, via a regular distribution chain (on a semi-truck to many service centers) to manage cost. Distributing a part to an individual, or service centers they don't own, would require remodeling their distribution chain. My point is, it's doable, but not cheap, and customers will end up paying for this convenience in the price of the product. > They already have repair documentation that they distribute to dealerships around the world. That are used internally... Are your internal docs customer friendly enough to help them repair the most minute problem? Like I said, I am for right-to-repair and I'd like to see manufacturers move towards these types of models, but it's typically basic market forces that cause manufacturers to act the way they do. Unless I see evidence that someone consciously chose the "No, lets screw over our customers for more money" option, I'm not going to assume mal-intent and start screaming "they're holding customers ransom!" from the hilltops.

labawi 7y ago
> the liability is to their brand. If .. a John Deere tractor blew up ... they avoid the brand. Even if it was caused by an improper repair. Perhaps the tractor is hard to repair safely, the manuals aren't good, qualified repairs are expensive/unavailable/take a long time and repair community isn't good enough... Those seem like 100% legitimate buyers concern and I don't see why the brand should immune.
steve19 7y ago
> All the time. Then I am sure you can give us some recent examples in the media where the manufacturer is blamed for bad modifications by users. If I pour a gallon of gasoline on a tractor and set it on fire, and the media reported "man sets farm on fire after torching a tractor", no tractor buyer is going to blame John Deere. Your argument relies on the false premise that informed consumers (tractor operating farmers) would react negitivly to a brand if something happened involving a modified tractor. When in reality farmers are crying out to be able to repair and mod their tractors. Compare to the tech industry. How often do PC gamers mod CPUs out of spec and end up shortening thr lifespan, or killing them? All the time. Nobody blames Intel. > That are used internally... Are your internal docs customer friendly enough to help them repair the most minute problem? Have you seen car repair manuals? They are very detailed and complete and third party dealers have access to them.