Doosan DH70 Mini Excavator — 500-Hour User Report
I’ve owned this machine for about three months now. Since I also operate a Yuchai 35-6, I haven’t spent as much time on the DH70 as I could have, but I’ve used it enough to sum up its strengths and weaknesses based on around 500 working hours.
Advantages
- The exterior looks compact and simple. In my opinion, it’s close to a short-tail design.
- It has strong digging force.
- Swing speed is fast (about 11 revolutions per minute).
- Single movements are quick and responsive.
Shortcomings
- Combined (multi-function) operations are slower than you might expect.
- The air conditioning doesn’t have an external circulation mode, and the only windows that open are near the door — you can’t lean your head outside.
- The interior plastic has a very strong smell, which is quite unpleasant and hard to tolerate.
- The cab design is poor — there’s hardly any storage space (just one small spot), and small parts often end up on the cab floor. It’s unclear whether they vibrate loose or were left behind during assembly.
- When digging hard soil, the boom and arm make noticeable banging noises (this is definitely not due to insufficient grease).
- After about 300 hours, the swing started making strange noises, which disappeared by around 310 hours.
- The engine is a Kubota, but it shows signs of burning oil. The oil filler port is poorly positioned and inconvenient to use — a bad design in my opinion. I later added an electric pump myself to make refueling easier.
- There’s no designated storage for a grease gun anywhere on the machine. I’ve had to keep mine on the cab floor since day one.
Overall:
The DH70 has decent power and fast basic functions but falls short in cab design, comfort, and user-friendly details. Some issues can be improved with simple DIY modifications, but it would be nice if the manufacturer addressed them in future models.