Equipment Maintenance: Ridiculous and Inscrutable

[wbthacker]

Equipment maintenance really seems ridiculous on FS22. Everything wears out too fast and requires too-frequent maintenance -- and I'm running on low dirt settings for now. Just about to turn dirt off completely... I really do want the realism of maintenance, but I'm sick and tired of having to repair every time I swap implements!

And how does paint deterioration factor in? The cost of repainting vehicles is ridiculous, especially for beginning farmers... does it have benefits beyond cosmetic? Maybe equipment wears out faster if the paint condition is poor?

Sure would be nice if, I dunno, the game's help or their FS Academy videos explained this important concept. I feel like I'm wasting a lot of time and money just because Giants doesn't tell me how this works.

[fuall]

You're not alone. I honestly don't think Giants themselves know how a lot of their functions work.

[bossmanslim]

I have never repainted anything and I can't see that paint does anything other than visuals.

[Neon_Lemon]

The values are honestly HORRIBLY off. There's no reason my brand new tractor with 8 hours on is already 3/4 of it's maintenance used when I regularly wash dirt off vehicles. Not to mention I have rocks turned.

There's no excuse for me needing to repair my tractor before I even fill it up for the first time (and my fuel is on normal usage). Someone at Giants isn't very good a math.

[paul_c]

I am wondering if there is some kind of exponential factor applied if you run a machine that needs the full power (or is over - so the tractor is slower trying to run it - but still can). Of course, you use a bigger tractor but then I think there is also a factor which is proportional to the new purchase price of said tractor.....

What I really need to do is monitor the repair costs much more closely, to see which jobs take their toll on machines, and factor it into my money making scheme.

[StoneTheCrows]

I am wondering if there is some kind of exponential factor applied if you run a machine that needs the full power (or is over - so the tractor is slower trying to run it - but still can). Of course, you use a bigger tractor but then I think there is also a factor which is proportional to the new purchase price of said tractor.....

What I really need to do is monitor the repair costs much more closely, to see which jobs take their toll on machines, and factor it into my money making scheme.

I like how the high costs encourage you to be more strategic about what you do. You can't just plough and plant without planning and accounting for the costs.

[mackintosh]

I don't mind higher maintenance costs - the game will always snowball at some point; this seems like an attempt at shifting this point as far into the future as possible. I do however mind when my brand-new harvester "breaks down" before it's done harvesting a single large field. Now that is just ludicrous. Even JDs don't catch on fire on their first day out.

[FarmerJohn89]

Yeah giants definitely need to higher an accountant to help them better balance the games costs and margins....

[PrincessJessi84]

While I think things do wear fast, I have also found that doing the proper field work in order with the right machines makes a HUGE difference. I am down to repairing my stuff every few years now and I can easily pay for that with just a few fert contracts that year. I could be wrong but it also *seems* like the harder the machine has to work, the faster it wears. When I pulled a 200 hp tool with a tractor with only about 20 or so extra hp (I don't remember the exact numbers), my tractor was shot after 1 season. The next year I hooked it up to a larger tractor and the wear was a LOT more reasonable. So unless I am wrong, it will pay to make sure your machines are properly sized to the tools and not just "winging it".

[Tekjunkie28]

You got to think that no one is this game is going to put in the THOUSANDS of hours that normal tractors get. You also got to think that the game is a little abstract so that you get the feel of the need(or lack thereof) maintenance. IDK why anyone would be repainting their stuff anyways. Just because there is a button doesn't mean you need to press it. Even going to 0% on the repair needs doesn't do anything.. I would like the tractor to stop functioning all together.. Even catch on fire and you need to pay insurance to fix it. I dont mind the price to fix stuff, I thought it was always too low, to the point of being useless to even have that mechanic in the game. Its still fairly useless as the equipment still functions.

[NateS]

I just started a similar thread about the lack of NEED in the repair function. I see no functional difference between equipment at 100% or 30%... I've yet to wear one down to 0%

[fenixguy]

I just repair whenever I think about it. My three greenhouses EASILY cover all my maintenance costs plus some.

[burnsdg]

I put 11 hours of use on a tractor.
Game wanted $30k (yes THOUSAND) to repair it.

THAT'S INSANE.

[mrodgers]

I think you all are silly with your expectations. My father-in-law has a large farm tractor and he regularly has to do $8000 in repairs for every 10 minutes of use just like the game /sarcasm

[paul_c]

Having looked briefly at it, it is what it is: For example, I have a JD7000 series (the one you get given) with about 60 hours now, I'm in August 04 and last month's bill was about £10k; and its "gone" again and needs another £10 of repairs. I am guessing with the 1 day/month time squash, its like dog years and a 60 hour tractor is more like 900 hours.

So, it costs about £8000/month to lease a slightly better, more powerful tractor. And so long as I don't have anything valuable left in it, I can return it at the end of the day/month, then turn up at 00:01 and ask for another lease, of another brand new, fully working, full-of-fuel tractor.

I've bought a few big bits of kit but I think unless you use it little and often, or have some kind of emotional attachment to it, my fleet will be leased from now on!