So, let’s first understand the cost breakdown of a used excavator.

Here’s the breakdown:

1. Middleman Commissions: To find the right model, you usually need to go through a middleman. Simply broadcasting a general ad is pretty much useless. The chances are you’ll need a middleman to connect you with the right sellers. Middlemen typically have networks through WeChat and QQ groups, each with at least 500 members. By collaborating, they can quickly find a matching model. Building such a network costs money, and for each excavator found, you’ll usually pay a 1500 RMB info fee or introduction commission.
2. Procurement Cost: This is the net cost of the excavator itself. If you can find a seller directly, you can buy it. A used excavator should be in good working condition—engine running smoothly, no issues with the hydraulic system, and clear nameplate info. It’s best if the seller can provide the original invoice to verify the machine’s authenticity. If the details don’t match, you’ll want to discount the price. The hour meter should show real hours too.
3. Logistics Costs: Transporting the excavator to the refurbishing site will typically cost between 2000-8000 RMB.
4. Refurbishing Costs: This includes cleaning the entire machine, flushing the pipes, cleaning the engine, flushing the hydraulic system, replacing broken parts and wear items, bodywork, interior refresh, repainting, and labeling. During refurbishment, the hour meter is usually reset—usually to 500 hours, but sometimes even under 200 hours. So, if a machine looks brand new but shows 5000 hours, it’s gonna raise some red flags. Many sales companies take advantage of this by claiming the machine is brand new stock. Refurbishing is typically done in batches, not on an assembly line, so the original nameplates often get mixed up or lost, and stamped markings can be rubbed off during bodywork or covered with paint. Over time, people stop caring about this, and after refurbishment, it’s nearly impossible to find the original paperwork. We usually pick a nameplate that matches the model from a pile and slap it on. It’s kind of like those DIY car refurbishing videos you might have seen—usually a bit of a mess. Excavator refurbishing workshops are no different. People don’t care much about documentation details. Unfortunately, we can’t change this.
5. Logistics Again: After refurbishing, the excavator has to be transported to the market parking lot, which means more logistics costs.
6. Parking Costs: Parking the excavator in the market’s lot for display can cost about 2000 RMB a month. That adds up to around 3333 USD a year. This pressure to sell quickly is one reason why some companies will rush a sale, and when that happens, integrity often takes a backseat.
7. Resale Costs: Usually, each company only keeps 2-10 machines on hand, and only about 2 are displayed in the market. So, if you see 200 excavators in a market, there could be 100 companies behind them. At peak times, the market can hold up to 600 excavators. This means you can easily find almost any common model from the same company. But not all these excavators belong to the company—they have to pay the original owners for them. For example, a client of mine wanted a DH150, it's procurement Cost was 120,000 RMB. But the company quoted me 150,000 RMB, and I’d have to mark it up further to make a profit. So, the more you buy, the more extra fees you end up paying.
8. Deposits: Deposits can be a big problem. Sometimes, companies just want to grab your deposit without any intention of actually selling you the excavator. The deposit is usually 30%, and once you’ve paid it, getting it back is difficult. If you’re worried about losing it, you’ll need to keep negotiating with them. At this point, they have the upper hand, and if there are any problems, they’ll try to make you compromise. Some companies will just take the deposit and ignore you completely. That’s why a third-party escrow system, like Alibaba’s, is useful—but unfortunately, I didn’t have that option. If a company promises something that sounds too good to be true, you should go see the excavator in person before paying a deposit. It’ll still be there, and even if it’s sold, there may be another similar one waiting for you. Don’t rush into it.
9. International Shipping Fees: Every company has its logistics partners, but not all of them can handle customs clearance. They might just help you get the excavator to the port. This is when you might run into EPA clearance issues. Sometimes the machine will get held up at customs. I remember seeing a guy on YouTube whose excavator was held up. He had to take off the engine to clear it, and later, he had to buy a new EPA-compliant engine. Finding the parts in the U.S. was a huge hassle, and he wasn’t sure if his excavator would ever work again.

To save money, you’ll need to cut some steps out.

I’d be happy to help you with all of this.

Three years ago, when our company was still in Songjiang, Shanghai, a colleague of mine spent six months working on a deal for 60 excavators and got a deposit from the client. But she didn't fully grasp how things worked behind the scenes in the industry.

When the third-party auditing company came to do the check, the auditor asked her for a bribe, and she refused. That really ticked them off. A few days later, she got a notice saying that the buyer was backing out of the deal. The reason? The auditor had submitted a fake report and had passed the order along to another company.

She had poured six months of her time and energy into this deal, only to have it fall apart in the end. It was a huge blow. She felt like the industry was just too shady, so she quit her job.

As someone with a management master's degree in China, I’ve never trusted consulting companies. Even though I’ve had years of Western management education and know some of it’s useful, I’ve also realized that when these concepts are brought to China, they get twisted in strange ways.

In China, third-party fraud is pretty standard. Take data survey companies, for example. They rarely actually go out and do surveys. Instead, they sit in their office, make up data that sounds reasonable, and create a report that satisfies the client. Making money this way is easy. Want real data? Sorry, you won’t find it! In China, there’s a whole system for faking data. Heck, even academic paper fraud has become industrialized. When I was working on my master’s thesis, a classmate told me that for 7,000 RMB, you could buy a paper and graduate without a hitch. I even visited one of these "paper factories" at another university.

Once, a high school friend invited me to do a survey interview. As a respondent, all we had to do was answer the pre-written questions and film a video to get 400 RMB. I thought it was ridiculous—it wasn’t a survey, it was just a performance, so I said no. But my friend got the 400 RMB.

China is full of these hidden rules. If you refuse to play along, you’ll likely end up as a failure. And yeah, I’m one of those failures.

Third-party audits are part of what survey companies do. In China, they take your commission and also accept benefits from the company being audited. Typically, the company being audited will pay them to say nice things about them. The more they get paid, the more they praise the company or prioritize them.

There are also old-school business habits, like drinking together until they're drunk, and then arranging for the auditors to have a good time afterward. The bigger the contract, the more these things happen. Of course, you’re the one paying for it all. The further north you go in China, the worse these hidden rules get. That’s why I prefer doing business with companies south of Shanghai, unless they really don’t have what I need. Think of Shanghai and the Yangtze River as a dividing line—north of Shanghai represents traditional China, and south of Shanghai represents a more modern and open China.

A lot of people go to places like Beijing or Xinjiang to shoot videos, thinking everything looks great and the people are so down-to-earth. But in reality, the people filming the videos and the ones in them are probably national security officers or actors. I’ve never seen ordinary Chinese people as energetic and lively as they appear in those videos. The life of an average Chinese person is exhausting. Really exhausting.

I’m not a fan of drinking, even though many people think drinking baijiu means you're outgoing and drinking red wine means you’re classy. But I just can't stomach it. I'd rather grab a bottle of Coke from a corner shop and sit quietly at my computer by myself.

When I do third-party audits for foreign clients, I always do it under my personal name, not as a company rep. I believe personal reputation is more important than a company’s brand because a company can shut down anytime or shift the blame, but once your personal reputation is damaged, it can ruin your whole life. I don’t accept bribes from the company being audited. When you hire me, you’re my only employer. In China, third-party companies might betray their clients for bribe, or if they don’t get a bribe, they may try to sabotage the sales company. The hidden rules are everywhere. That’s why I’ve focused my energy on foreign trade. I want things to be simple and transparent, without all the hidden rules pulling the strings.

I have great respect for Mr. Jack Ma. He built an amazing company that made global trade so much simpler. Unfortunately, his era has passed—he’s now retired, and people often see him cycling in parks or taking walks.

Today, Alibaba is effectively a state-owned company. With Jack Ma stepping back, the company is quietly changing.

You might trust Alibaba, but what I’m about to share might change your perspective.

Alibaba’s third-party escrow system still works. Honestly, it’s probably the most useful part of the whole platform.

But if you’re looking for excavators or their parts on Alibaba, believe me, most of them are probably not actually in stock. Most of the pictures are two years old. Unlike Amazon, which only lists items that are actually in its warehouses, Alibaba doesn’t work that way. This is more a feature of B2B marketplaces than a problem with Alibaba itself.

Here’s the thing: Alibaba’s system rewards users who constantly update their products and keep their accounts active—it’s similar to Google SEO. Almost every company keeps uploading new listings to avoid being outranked by competitors.

But what if a company only has a dozen excavators? How do they keep up? Usually, they do things like this:

1. Take photos of the same excavator from different views and give each group of photos a different title.
2. Use competitors’ excavators to pad their own listings.
3. Copy pictures from other accounts or platforms.

When a customer asks if an excavator is in stock, the answer is almost always: YES!

Because the market is open, any salesperson can quickly find a matching excavator to show a customer. Even if the customer comes in person, there will be a machine to show.

Think about it—what single company could realistically stock hundreds of excavators? If it existed, it would be massive, and you’d see its ads all over the world. The truth is, such companies don’t exist.

Another point: Alibaba’s ranking favors account spending over effort. A company that spends 700,000 RMB a year can easily rank in the top three in its industry. Whenever you search “Excavator” on Alibaba, you’ll see it. But a company that spends only 100,000 RMB a year will struggle to rank high, no matter how hard they try. Most small business owners don’t want to waste money on heavy promotion. Still, effort is better than doing nothing.

If I were to set up an Alibaba account again, I’d upload very few products but improve video quality, with English explanations for each model. My main focus would be using Alibaba’s third-party escrow system. Honestly, it’s better to spend marketing budgets on Google or Meta—they’re more reliable.

Later, when you see an excavator on Alibaba that you like, you can ask the seller to shoot a short video of himself or herself with the machine. That way, you can test whether the seller is being honest. It’s a pretty simple method, right?

Once, I told a customer: “The nameplate on this excavator was painted over during refurbishment. We’ll replace it with a matching one.” Meanwhile, another salesperson said: “We removed the nameplate to prevent misuse by others.” Which one sounds like a sales pitch, and which one sounds like the truth?

In my view, if you start with a lie, you need more lies to cover it. When you get used to living in lies, it’s impossible to stay genuine. If you ask me whether I’ve ever lied to a customer, the answer is: yes. But it makes me feel really guilty. I believe I could probably sell you an excavator using those sales tactics—but we couldn’t be friends. And once you know the truth, you might never trust me again. Life is long, though, and I want myself and those around me to live honestly and freely, without the burden of lies.

Sadly, in China, people who lie skillfully are often seen as “high EQ.” Well, my EQ is zero.

Thanks for watching. If you have any questions, please leave a comment.

I’m Mike Phua.

Many companies don't distinguish between "used" and "refurbished"; they use "used" and "refurbished" interchangeably. The reason I want to differentiate between "used" and "refurbished" is that "used" is roughly equivalent to "original", you can repair or modify it according to your own preferences. Therefore, it doesn't come with a warranty (although it's implicitly covered). While "refurbished" means that some parts have been replaced, the paint has been refreshed, and the operating hours have been reset. We must assume responsibility for the warranty after the repair.

The operating hours on refurbished excavators are typically reset to 500 hours. This is a common practice and the current reality in China's used heavy equipment industry, and we are powerless to change it. To distinguish them from new excavators, those with operating hours between 1000 and 4000 hours are set to 500 hours after refurbishment. Excavators with over 5000 hours are not worth refurbishing due to performance decline. Refurbished machines come with warranties, starting from the 500-hour mark, similar to a new machine.

If a salesperson tells you that their used excavator has only been used for less than 500 hours, that the hour meter hasn't been tampered with, and that the price is very cheap, congratulations, you've encountered a very skilled salesperson.

It's also possible that he/she is very new and knows nothing, so he/she doesn't feel guilty about talking nonsense when he/she doesn't understand. Because of this, newguys can easily get orders, but they are also more likely to receive complaints.

If you would like to learn more about the Chinese excavator market, please visit www.panyh.com

I'm Mike Phua, and I look forward to hearing from you.

Share this video with your friends so they can know the truth.

Hi everyone, I’m Mike Phua. I hope this video helps you learn something about the excavator market in China.

Over the past 40 years, China has become the largest infrastructure market in the world. And as one of the most efficient tools in this industry, excavators have also experienced explosive growth. Not only has China manufactured a huge number of excavators, it has also imported a lot from other countries.

We all know that excavators are super durable — their actual working life often goes well beyond 20 years.

Around 2022, China’s infrastructure market began to shrink, which forced a large number of excavators into retirement. In fact, even some machines that were nearly brand-new entered the second-hand market. So if you're wondering where to buy excavators at the lowest prices, the answer is clear: China. That’s why most of the used machines you see online are originally from here.

There are several cities in China with large-scale used excavator markets, such as Shanghai, Jining , Changsha, Kunshan, Guangzhou, Hefei, and Liuzhou.

The place you see in this video is in Hefei, Anhui. It's actually the biggest excavator market in the world. Yes, you heard me right — the biggest. This market has over 200 companies. While the parking area only holds around 600 machines, that's just the display section for trading. Each company has its own storage. In total, more than 10,000 units are available. So no matter what model you're looking for — as long as it's 65 tons or less — you’ll find it here.

Generally, there are two types of used excavators.

The first type just came out of service and hasn’t had any repairs. You can see all the wear and tear, or any issues it may have. In China, it’s easy to get machines repaired, so most local buyers prefer this kind. They fix it themselves. Usually, these units don’t come with any warranty — customers just take care of it on their own.

The second type has been fully repaired — all problems fixed and given a fresh paint job. These are typically sold to overseas buyers, since it’s not always as easy to get spare parts in other countries. These machines usually come with a 1 to 2-year warranty on major components.

Shipping can be a problem — it's usually expensive. That’s why countries in Southeast Asia benefit the most right now, especially Vietnam, Myanmar, and Cambodia, followed by the five Central Asian countries. Many of my colleagues have even set up branch offices in those places.

So if you watch TikTok, you’ll often see that the most common machines in Southeast Asia and India are SANY and XCMG.

Besides used excavators, this market also sells parts — like buckets, hydraulic breakers, engines, distributors, booms, arms, tracks, blades, and lots of smaller accessories. So if you have any customization requests, we can modify the machines to fit your needs.

Excavators under 15 tons don’t usually come with blades, but if you need one, we can even add a blade to a 65-ton machine.

Shanghai is almost a symbol of China, so many people think of starting their machine search there. But since 2022, due to environmental regulations, the used excavator market in Shanghai has been moved out. Most of the companies in Hefei actually came from Shanghai. So now, Shanghai mainly acts as an export hub. While you can still buy used excavators there, it might not be the best choice.

By the way, I’m a local — I’m from Pudong, Shanghai.

As I mentioned earlier, the main cost of buying a used excavator is shipping. So if your budget is limited, just check Google Maps to find the city closest to you. Most personal buyers don’t have a huge budget. For example, if you're in Vietnam, you might want to focus on buying from Liuzhou in Guangxi.

But if you’re buying more than two machines, you can usually save about one-third of the shipping cost.

If you want the best after-sales service at the lowest cost, then the Hefei market is definitely the best choice. It has the most complete excavator supply chain in China. In other cities, the supply chain is usually focused on a few local brands. But in Hefei, it’s brand-independent. You can find Caterpillar, Komatsu, Kobelco, Kubota, Volvo, Sany, XCMG, LiuGong, Lovol, Sunward, and many more brands here.

If you can’t find the model you want here, chances are it’s really rare in China — like those giant Liebherr machines.

Seeing is believing. Every day, customers from all over the world come here to inspect machines in person. You can get in the cab and test drive any excavator yourself. Find the one that suits you best.

If you’re looking for a reliable long-term partner, reach out to me.

You can send me an email to get a standard excavator price list.

Thanks for watching this video. I’m Mike Phua. Looking forward to hearing from you.