Does a cab enclosure increase skid steer resale value?

Yes. An enclosed cab is one of the first things buyers and dealers look for on a used machine, and enclosed machines tend to list higher and draw more serious interest. It signals a machine that can work year-round and an owner who took care of his equipment.

What do dealers look for when valuing a used skid steer?

Dealers look at hours, tires or tracks, hydraulics, service records, and the cab. A machine with a solid door and enclosure is easier for them to resell because it works in cold, dust, and rain. An open cab narrows the pool of buyers they can sell it to.

Is a polycarbonate door better than glass at sale time?

A shatterproof polycarbonate door offers protection superior to tempered glass and shows well on a sale lot. Glass can crack or shatter from one rock or branch, and a cracked door drags down the whole first impression of the machine.

Can I add a door to an older skid steer before selling it?

Yes, and older machines often gain the most from it. We build CNC-cut doors for machines nobody else covers, like the Case 1840 and 1845C. A clean enclosure helps an older machine stand out against every other bare-cab listing.

Does the door warranty transfer to the next owner?

The limited lifetime warranty covers the original owner. What transfers with the machine is the door itself, which is what the buyer sees and pays for. A solid, clear, well-fitted door adds value whether or not the paperwork moves with it.

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Guide

Skid Steer Resale Value: How a Cab Enclosure Pays You Back

SSD

Skid Steer Doors of North America

JULY 2026

Does an enclosed cab help skid steer resale value? Yes. Machines with a full enclosure tend to list higher and sell faster than the same machine with an open cab. Dealers prefer them on trade-in because they are easier to resell, and private buyers see a machine that can work in winter, dust, and rain. A cab enclosure is one of the few upgrades that pays you twice: once while you run the machine, and again when you sell it.

Here is how that works, what dealers actually check, and how to get your machine ready before you list it.

Why Enclosed Machines List Higher and Sell Faster

Scroll any used equipment site and compare two identical loaders, same hours, same tires. The one with a full cab enclosure almost always carries the higher asking price, and it is usually the one that moves first.

There are three plain reasons for that.

First, an enclosed machine works more days per year. A buyer in snow country, or one who runs a mulcher or brush cutter, will not even consider an open cab. Closing that door opens your listing to every buyer instead of just fair-weather ones.

Second, an enclosure signals care. Buyers cannot see inside your hydraulic pump. They judge the whole machine by what they can see, and a straight, clear, well-sealed door tells them the owner spent money protecting the machine and himself.

Third, dealers think about the next sale, not yours. A dealer taking your trade has to move that machine again. Enclosed machines are easier for him to sell, so he can afford to be more generous on the trade number.

What Dealers Look For on a Trade-In

Talk to anyone who values used compact equipment and the same checklist comes up. Before you sell or trade, walk your machine like a dealer would:

Hours vs. condition. Do the hours match the wear? A tidy machine with more hours on the meter often beats a rough one with fewer.
Tires or tracks. Remaining tread and track life is real money to the next owner.
Hydraulics and attachments. Clean couplers, no weeping hoses, working auxiliary flow.
The cab. Door, windows, seals, wiper, heater. Is the operator station a place someone wants to sit for eight hours?
Glass and door condition. Cracked glass or a flapping vinyl cover reads as neglect, even on a strong machine.
Service records. Receipts for maintenance and upgrades, including your door purchase.
How it presents. Washed, greased, photographed in good light.

Notice how much of that list is the cab. The operator station is where the buyer imagines himself, and it is where a modest investment shows the most.

What a Door Costs vs. What It Does for the Sale

Our doors run from $1,395 to $1,795 depending on make and model. That is the whole cost of turning an open-cab machine into an enclosed one, because each door is CNC-cut for your exact model, with no guesswork.

Compare that with the other ways money leaves your pocket at sale time. Fresh tires can cost more than a door. A paint job costs more and fools nobody. A door is a one-time buy that you use every working day until the day you sell, and then it keeps working for you in the listing photos.

There is a reason we list Value alongside Safety and Comfort as the three reasons operators buy. The lift in resale appeal starts the day the door goes on, not just the day you sell.

Every door also carries our limited lifetime warranty against door failure or breakage: one free replacement for life for the original owner, under normal conditions. Hardware is covered for 3 months. That warranty covers you while you own the machine. What the next owner gets is the door itself, and that is what he is paying for.

Older Machines Gain the Most

Here is the part most sellers miss. On a late-model machine, an enclosure helps. On an older machine, it can change the whole conversation.

Nobody expects a Case 1840 to look showroom fresh. So when one shows up washed, greased, and wearing a straight polycarbonate door with clean seals, it jumps out of the listings. We build doors for older and obsolete machines nobody else makes enclosures for, including the Case 1840 and 1845C, and the 1840 door is $1,395.

An old loader with a bare cab says “used up.” The same loader with a fresh enclosure says “still earning.” If you plan to sell an older machine, read our guide to doors for older skid steers first. The upgrade often costs less than the difference in offers.

Glass, Vinyl, or Polycarbonate: How Each Shows at Sale Time

Not all enclosures present the same way when a buyer walks up. Here is how the common setups compare on the lot:

Cab setup	First impression	Risk before the sale	What the buyer thinks
Open cab, no door	Bare, seasonal machine	Weather and debris hit the operator	“Fair-weather machine, lowball it”
Vinyl or fabric cover	Temporary fix	Rips, fogs, flaps in wind	“Owner cut corners”
OEM tempered glass	Factory look	One rock or branch can shatter it	“Nice, but what if it breaks?”
Polycarbonate (Lexan) door	Clear, solid, purpose-built	Shatterproof, protection superior to tempered glass	“This machine was cared for”

We build the Original Shatterproof Polycarbonate (Lexan) Door, first to market. If you want proof of how it holds up, watch our owner Leighton swing a hammer into our 1/2 inch thick CAT D Series door on camera, unedited. That is the story a glass door can never tell in a listing.

What Comes With the Door

Buyers ask what “enclosed” really includes, so it helps to know what you are bolting on. Every door ships as a complete kit for your specific model:

Precision CNC-cut heavy-duty polycarbonate door for your exact make and model
Handle and locking latch with keys
Hinges and mounting hardware, all nuts, bolts, and washers
Weather seal gasket

The panel is CNC-cut for the exact model, but mounting varies: some kits bolt straight on and others require drilling and bolting. Follow the printed instructions in the box, and see how installation works for the general process before you order.

That lock matters at sale time too. A lockable cab protects the machine on your yard and tells the buyer he can protect it on his.

Getting Your Machine Ready to Sell

A week of prep can move a listing from ignored to sold. Work this list:

Wash it, top to bottom. Degrease the engine bay and undercarriage.
Fix the cheap stuff. Bulbs, mirrors, seat tears, missing knobs.
Close the cab. If your machine never had a door, or the glass is cracked, put a polycarbonate door on it. A Bobcat M Series door is $1,695, covers the S450 through T870 range, and ships with all hardware included.
Show the extras. A wiper kit, cab heater, or side windows all photograph well and support a higher ask.
Photograph it enclosed. Door shut, glass clean, cab tidy. Shoot the machine the way the next owner wants to run it.
Stack your receipts. Door, tires, service. Paper answers doubts before they turn into discounts.

Worried a door will not arrive in time? Shipping is UPS 3 Day Air, $150 flat, typically 3 business days (not guaranteed), across the US and Canada. That leaves time to install and photograph the machine before most listings even get their first call.

We build doors for ASV, Bobcat, CAT, Case, Gehl, John Deere, Kubota, Mustang, Manitou, New Holland, Takeuchi, and Terex machines. For a full breakdown of what an enclosure should cost you, see our cab enclosure cost guide.

The Bottom Line

You cannot roll back hours or make old tires new. But you can control how your machine presents, how many buyers it appeals to, and what it says about how you ran it. An enclosed cab does all three, and it makes every cold, dusty workday better between now and the sale.

Find your door in 30 seconds. Pick your machine’s make and model and see the exact door built for it: [Find Your Door]. Questions? Call or text (800) 781-8000, Mon–Fri 7am–4pm CST.