Green no more?
OPINION: Your old mate has long dismissed the Greens as wooden bicycle enthusiasts with their heads in the clouds, but it looks like the ‘new Greens’ may actually be hard-nosed pragmatists when it comes to following voters.
With Stage V emissions regulations coming into force across Europe, Valtra has taken the opportunity to include some new features on its updated models.
These models include the N Series (3 models; 145-201 max hp), T Series (6 models; 180-271 max hp) and the S Series (6 models; 300 to 405 max hp).
Engine changes, focused on meeting stricter emissions regulations, follow AGCO Power’s philosophy of after-treatment only. A new unit, tucked away under the right corner of the cabin, creates a slim-line exhaust that can hardly be seen past the A-pillar.
The smallest Valtra tractors to receive this change are the N4 series with the updated four-cylinder, 4.9-litre engine.
The latest N134, N154 and N174 models are fitted with a single air-bag version of the Aires pneumatic front suspension. The dual airbag version has been fitted to six-cylinder T-series models for a few generations.
Valtra T4 series tractors are fitted with 6.6-litre or 7.4-litre, six-cylinder engines. With the change to Stage V, Valtra has dropped the T144 from its ANZ line-up. However, the company has bolstered its range with the addition of Tier 3 (non-SCR) T154, T174E, T194 and T234 models with Powershift transmissions.
Other new features, common to both series, include the front linkage position display through the SmartTouch terminal, and new tyre choice options that now include Bridgestone and Continental, plus some new options from Mitas, Michelin and Trelleborg.
Lower-spec Hitech and Active variants can now be optioned with an auxiliary SmartTouch ISOBUS terminal and the AGCO Common Electronic Architecture (CEA) Valtra Guide system, which is used in the Versu and Direct models.
The S4 range, Valtra’s highest horsepower offering, has also undergone some changes with the move to Stage V engines. S4 tractors come in black, and they combine the 8.4 litre AGCO Power engine with the AGCO CVT transmission and the SmartTouch user interface.
Like its smaller siblings, the after-treatment system is located under the right side of the cab at the expense of the fuel tank, countered by an increase in capacity of the left side fuel tank. This redesign includes new stairs and handrail, a more accessible toolbox, and a new battery box.
Valtra will continue to offer the S4 with the option of a non-SCR Tier 2 engine. It uses an older version of the turbocharging system and does not produce the additional 30 hp of boost of the Stage V engine versions.
The proposed retrenchment of Heinz Wattied's manufacturing presenced in New Zealand will be a blow to the wallets of more than 200 Canterbury vegetable growers.
The cost of running a New Zealand farm is now 27% higher than it was before Covid, putting sustained pressure on profitability acrfoss the sector, according to new ANZ research.
Rural contractors are getting guidance on how to deal with recent rising fuel prices.
An Ōpunake farmer with a poor effluent system has been fined $35,000 with a discount on the penalty discarded after he charged at a Taranaki Regional Council officer inspecting the ‘systematic problems’ on his farm.
The horticulture sector is under threat because of vulnerabilities of the country's transport infrastructure, according to a report commissioned by a collective representing a range of groups in the sector.
Silver Fern Farms chief executive Dan Boulton says the meat processor wants to find ways of getting product destined for Middle East markets into those markets as opposed to try and place them elsewhere.