Ol' Reliable

Just got this 1995 Geo Tracker back from minor repairs. We use it on the farm to check cattle and took off the doors to make it easy to run along side a calf and tag it.  Got me thinking about most of our equipment on the farm, our newest tractor is a 2007 and most of them were built in the early 90s.  Our local mechanic doesn’t like anything with lots of electronic gadgets so we stay away from the latest & greatest.  You may have heard about the “Right to Repair” bills that haven’t made it through legislatures.  Most new farm equipment requires a computer hook-up at a dealership for diagnostics and to reset software, etc.   I spent 15 years in engineering and the software business so it pains me to not utilize the latest technology.  But I also feel there are some places where it isn’t needed and causes more problems.  Friend of mine who runs an equipment dealership told me half of his repairs are electronics.  So I’m assuming the mechanical type breakdowns are still as much as before, so the new equipment breaks down twice as much as the pre-computer equipment? 

We retro fitted GPS guidance and steering on a couple of tractors and benefit from being able to more precisely apply manure and fertilizer.  But these systems cost $2,500 and can be diagnosed separate from the tractor. 

Long way of saying that old/reliable will continue to be our motto on equipment, at least until the electronics become less of a hassle/ expense to repair.