Bobcat · Sub-Compact

Bobcat CT1021

~$15,086

MSRP, base build

Bobcat CT1021
Sub-Compact
21 hp engine · 16.3 PTO−22% to the shaft

Bobcat's cheapest way into a diesel tractor is a Daedong-built sub-compact: 21 hp, 16.3 PTO hp, 46 in across, and a published starting price of $15,086. The 608 lb loader rating is what pays for that number.

Engine
21 hp
PTO
16.3 hp
Loader lift
608 lbs
3-pt lift
700 lbs

1.08 PTO hp per $1,000 of list price

As published by the maker

Specifications

Size class
Sub-Compact
Transmission
Hydrostatic
Engine
Daedong
Engine hp
21 hp
PTO hp
16.3 hp
Drive
4WD
Loader lift
608 lbs
Three-point lift
700 lbs
Hydraulic flow
7.2 GPM
Fuel tank
6.7 gal
Weight
1,521 lbs
4WD
Yes
Cab
Open station
Turbo
No
Cruise control
No

On the price: The maker's own published starting figure for the base build. A dealer adds a loader, a deck and freight on top.

Lift figures are the maker's and are quoted at whichever point the maker chose; the about page explains why two loaders with the same number do not lift the same pallet.

Comes with

4WDHydrostaticFront LoaderPower SteeringDiesel

From owner discussion and long-term write-ups

What owners say

What they like

  • Bobcat publishes the $15,086 starting figure on its own model page, so a dealer quote can be checked against the maker rather than guessed at
  • Under 25 hp, so the engine carries no diesel particulate filter and no regeneration cycle to interrupt a short job
  • 46 in of overall width clears most gate openings and fence lines, which is the entire reason the 1000 platform exists
  • Mid-PTO is standard, so a belly mower deck bolts on instead of requiring a drivetrain change
  • 7.2 gpm of total hydraulic flow is respectable under a 1,521 lb machine
  • The 3C100LWH-U2 three-cylinder is a Daedong engine, the same family Kioti sells under its own badge, so the block is not an orphan

What they complain about

  • 608 lb of loader lift at maximum height is the lowest figure in the Bobcat tractor range, which rules out most pallet work
  • 700 lb at 24 in behind the lift point keeps you on light Category 1 implements
  • No warranty term appears on the model page, so the coverage has to come out of the dealer's paperwork
  • 16.3 PTO hp leaves almost no margin for a rotary cutter in heavy grass
  • The starting price is the bare tractor - the loader is an added cost on top
  • Bobcat's tractor dealer coverage is thinner than Deere's or Kubota's across much of the country

Gathered from owner reports

What owners report

All four accounts of the CT1021 say a version of the same thing: it is the smallest tractor Bobcat builds, it does get the work done on a few acres, and it does it slowly. Two owners on three acres each describe it struggling through jobs rather than sailing through them, and a shopper weighing one against the next size up talks himself out of it on exactly that basis.

What comes up favourably

  • It punches above what owners expect on a small property - one a year in reports uprooting trees bigger than he thought it could manage with some patience, doing general lifting and scooping, and regravelling his driveway with a blade fitted.
  • Dealer quality is why owners end up with one, and the ones who have a good local Bobcat dealer say so plainly.

What comes up as a complaint

  • Both owners who work three acres with one warn it is undersized. Two on three acres each report it getting jobs done but taking much longer and struggling through them, with one adding that he suspects the work is hard on the machine, and both counsel erring toward a bigger tractor.
  • One owner two years in had his shut down mid-job while pushing logs and a brush pile, and afterwards the dash and lights came on but the starter would not engage - with neutral and the mower interlocks both checked. He expected an expensive mobile service call to resolve it.

Questions worth asking

Is the CT1021 enough tractor for five acres?
Owners who have one on three acres are already saying it is at its limit, so five is a stretch. Their reports are consistent: it does the job but takes longer and struggles through, and at least one worries about the wear that implies. A buyer looking at five acres of clearing, gravel work and post holes talked himself into the next size up for that reason. If the budget reaches, owners here would spend it on more tractor.
What can it actually do?
On a small property, more than the size suggests, provided you are patient. An owner a year in reports it uprooting trees larger than he expected with a little finesse, handling general loader lifting and scooping, and regravelling a driveway with a blade. He rates it reliable so far while noting his is not old enough to prove much. The recurring caveat is time: the work gets done, it just takes longer than on a bigger machine.

Summarised from public owner discussion, not from testing. Nothing here was measured by this site, and a report that recurs is not the same as a defect rate.

Cross-shopped against

Line the Bobcat CT1021 up

vs Bobcat CT1025vs Massey Ferguson 1GC.25

Same brand or same size, nearest in price

Related tractors

More from Bobcat →
Bobcat CT1025
~$17,205MSRP, base build
Sub-Compact

Bobcat

Bobcat CT1025

24.5 hp engine · 18.8 PTO−23% to the shaft
Loader
608 lbs
3-pt
700 lbs
Trans
Hydrostatic
Drive
4WD

Same 1000-platform chassis and same 608 lb loader as the CT1021, but with 24.5 hp and 18.8 PTO hp - Bobcat pushing to the top of the sub-compact bracket while the engine still stays clear of a particulate filter. Starts at $17,205.

Spec sheet & owner notes
Bobcat CT2025
~$20,760MSRP, base build
Compact

Bobcat

Bobcat CT2025

24.5 hp engine · 22.2 PTO−9% to the shaft
Loader
1,369 lbs
3-pt
1,631 lbs
Trans
Gear
Drive
4WD

Moving up to the 2000 platform more than doubles the loader rating - 1,369 lb at max height against the 1000 platform's 608 - on a 1.65 L Daedong three-cylinder that is still under 25 hp. The 9x3 manual build starts at $20,760, the three-range hydrostatic at $22,524.

Spec sheet & owner notes
Bobcat CT2035
~$28,653MSRP, base build
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Bobcat CT2035

34.9 hp engine · 29.4 PTO−16% to the shaft
Loader
1,389 lbs
3-pt
1,631 lbs
Trans
Hydrostatic
Drive
4WD

A 34.9 hp Daedong three-cylinder dropped into the same 2000-platform chassis as the CT2025, which means ten more engine horsepower and almost no change in what the loader or hitch can lift. $28,653 in open station; the CT2535 adds a heated, air-conditioned cab at $41,173.

Spec sheet & owner notes
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