REVIEW
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TV READY With a secret appreciation for MTV’s Pimp My Ride, when there was the whisper of tractors getting blinged out down in the Manawatu, it didn’t take much to convince Farm Trader NZ’s Jaiden Drought to find out more. When told that this would also afford the opportunity to get behind the wheel of the Valtra T174EV, he was there even faster
This is a seriously cool looking tractor: I’m a big fan of the TRC Edition concept, as well as the option for Valtra Unlimited.
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here’s no denying a bit of chrome, flashing LED lights and some sweet tints bring out the magpie in many car and machinery enthusiasts. I’m not going to lie – I’m partial to some tractor bling, so arriving in Feilding to discover the tractor customisation going on at TRC Tractors was a bit of a sweet gig. The level of customisation available affords some pretty unique options. I’m not sure whether I entirely love the black on black rims on the Valtra T174EV. I do, however, like the Massey Ferguson 7720S with a red stripe around the outside, which I feel breaks it up a little better. Both creations are the work of the new TRC Edition service. Just don’t get me started on air horns and lighting the thing up like a Christmas tree, but each to their own I guess, and this is the beauty of customisation.
TRC EDITION The concept behind the TRC Edition is to offer a customised approach to creating something a little more head-turning than your standard tractor (aka embracing your inner magpie). Going back a step, if you really want to get carried away, you could also opt for the Valtra Unlimited service directly from the factory. Among other things, this allows for the addition of things such as candy paint, customised headlights, various LED options, leather trim and even your favourite animal picture printed on the surface of the tractor. Heck, why not get the whole thing painted like a tiger to channel your lockdown Tiger King obsession? Anyway, back to Feilding, at TRC Tractors HQ, the enthusiastic team got together and decided that the TRC Edition can offer the same type of bling, but it can be done in New Zealand for the complete customer experience. Doing this in New Zealand means that a customer can decide to upgrade to the TRC Edition if they don’t want to face a potentially longer wait for their genuine limited, indent ordered tractor.
BACK TO BUSINESS Enough about pimping your ride and back to the business of tractor testing – specifically the Valtra Engine T174EV. Now the eagle-eyed reader may have picked out the ‘E’ in the title of the T174. This allows you to simply push a button for the choice between power or economy, aptly named Eco Power. Eco Power is ideal for road transport (53km/h at 1,650 rpm), giving plenty of wiggle room when encountering pesky hills, and the Sigma Power is the boost feature that gives 15 extra stallions when needed. Sigma power engages the boost based solely on power take-off (PTO) load, even when the tractor is static. Boost is also engaged separately in C and D ranges for transport or by hydraulic demand. The Valtra T174E is the only T4 model to be equipped with Eco engine mode. It has a wide, constant torque curve and also reduces fuel consumption by 10 per cent. Maximum power of 190hp (142kW) for the T174Eco is between 1,100rpm and 1,200rpm. This is achieved by reducing piston speed by 20 per cent. Engine torque then increases – a great feature common on high horsepower tractors in the Agco stable, which use this low rev, high torque concept. The after-treatment system on the Valtra T series is now into the fourth generation, making them super-efficient. The Stage V-compliant Valtras use a diesel particulate filter as well as the selective catalytic reduction and diesel oxidation catalyst, although still no exhaust gas recirculation. Most of the T4 Powershift models, like the one tested, are available with Tier 3 engine, which has no after-treatment at all.
VERSU TRANSMISSION I’ve always found the names of the transmissions confusing on the Valtra. The Versu is the Powershift, although the V, to me, is more like continuously variable transmission (CVT); and the
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22/10/2020 10:50:28 AM
