John Deere is one of the most recognizable names when it comes to heavy equipment and machinery manufacturers. They specialize in Lawn care & Utility Vehicles, Tractors, and other heavy-duty pieces of machinery.
In this article, we will discuss everything about who makes John Deere Engines and where they are used. Let’s jump right in!
About John Deere
John Deere is the brand name of Deere & Company. They have been in business for over 180 years. In 2020, they were listed 87th in the Fortune 500 list.
John Deere, the founder of Deere & Company, first opened his shop in 1837. He was a general repairman, and, at the same time, a manufacturer of tools like pitchforks and shovels.
Since then, the small shop started to grow (a lot) and was managedeage of John Deere (aka family). As of 2020, they employ over 69000 people worldwide. They are operating in more than 70 countries and 47% of their net sales come from outside of the USA.
Deere & Company has more than 25 brands in its portfolio. They aim to provide innovative solutions and desired outcomes to their customers throughout the life cycle of their product. Some of the brands are – Wirtgen, Hagie, Mazzotti, Blue Rives, and so on.
Products of John Deere
Before we jump into the engines, we should know what types of products do they make engines for. John Deere is known for heavy-duty industrial machinery. So their product lineup is a wide range of those sorts of machines.
Lawn care & Utility Vehicles
Lawn care and utility vehicles are a very successful segment in the John Deere lineup. As they are needed by both industrial and household buyers, these types of machinery are always in demand. John Deere has four different kinds of Mowers and UTV. They are –
👉 Ride-on Mowers
👉 Zero Turn Mowers
👉 Commercial Mowers
👉 Gator Utility Vehicles
Tractors
In small to big scale production firms, Tractors are always important. According to a report, in 2019, around 244637 units of tractors were sold in the USA. John Deere sells the most number of tractors in the USA. They have four different versions of the tractors. They are –
👉 Compact Tractors
👉 Utility Tractors
👉 Specialty Tractors
👉 Large Tractors
John Deere is still the highest-selling Tractor brand in the USA (2022). As of 2019, they have sold more than 3800 units of their tractors throughout the USA.
Production Systems & Technology
John Deere also has a lineup of products that focuses on Technology and Production systems. Those lineups are –
👉 Guidance Equipment
👉 Application Equipment
👉 Drapers & Platforms
👉 Hay & Forage Baling
Who Makes John Deere Engines
Now that we know what they make, now it’s time to find out who makes John Deere Engines for their product lineup. Well, they have different sources making engines for their different types of products. There are other brands who make John Deere branded engines.
Less powerful engines
For products that require less horsepower, like – lawn mowers and machinery, the engine is made overseas. Those engines are mostly made by Yanmar, Kawasaki and Briggs & Stratton.
Compact tractor engines
They are below the 100HP mark and produced by overseas companies. Yanmar America Corp makes these engines. Yanmar is a global diesel engine, and diesel-powered equipment manufacturing brand. John Deere and Yanmar has the contract going since the 1970s.
Zero-turn engines
Same story for these engines as well. They are made by MTD and some other brands. Though there’s a claim that John Deere also produces these engines in their USA plants, it is not entirely proven yet.
Tractors
The tractors are made in the USA, Mexico, Russia, Germany, Brazil, China, Argentina. Previously, these tractors were made by other companies but John Deere took back the production control and now produces them in their factories.
Who makes John Deere itorque engines?
John Deere itorque engines are reportedly made by Kawasaki. Kawasaki Heavy Industries is a famous name in the Japanese machinery manufacturing industry. And like all the good Japanese brands, they are very reliable.
Why do they outsource engines despite having their manufacturing plants?
The answer to this question is not that easy. Several factors influenced their actions.
To make the product more affordable
As we have mentioned, John Deere outsources the less powerful engines mostly. To be precise, those engines that are less than 100hp. They do this to keep the price of the products that use these engines more competitive.
Machines such as lawn mowers are used by small companies or individuals who use them for a living. For them, the price of the machine is quite important. In general, the products made in the USA are more expensive because of the higher wages and material prices.
So, they outsource the engines from reliable sources from countries where they can make those products at a cheaper price, thus reducing the price of the main product and allowing them to stay competetive in the market.
Increasing production of other engines
This one is simple logic. If they do not produce smaller ones, they can use the space and capital to make more of the bigger ones. As John Deere machines with bigger engines, like – Tractors, are in high demand worldwide, the more they produce them, the more they can sell.
Why produce the bigger engines? Don’t they cost more to build?
Yes and No. Yes, they do cost more than the smaller ones but the increased cost is not the main reason. Rather John Deere are have the equipment in place to make the bigger powerplants. So making the bigger ones and generating more profit on their larger products makes more sense.
There’s another reason behind this, heavy equipment with bigger engines is required for more complicated and professional work. Having the entire process done under one authority and supervision comes in very handy trying to make any improvement or correcting any errors. Also it helps ensure relaibility.
Also, we have seen before those products that are manufactured and assembled by John Deere themselves show slightly superior quality. Now that doesn’t mean that they have to operate the manufacturing, but they have to have control over the actual product.
Final words
There you have it. We answered the question – who makes John Deere Engines and also focused on the reasoning behind it. We hope now you don’t have any more confusion regarding who makes John Deere branded engines.
