Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Utility vehicles are handy for chores if you have to carry feed a fair distance or need
to check on pasture horses. There are several manufacturers, and each offers different
options and accessories. Most are four-wheel drive, and some feature a cargo box like
a small pickup bed that has room for hay and grain and can haul and dump up to 1000
pounds on some models.
TRACTOR OPTIONS
Certain features on a tractor are a must, others can be added according to personal preferen-
ce, and some may be unnecessary for your particular needs. Learn all you can about tractor
options before you go shopping.
Gas or Diesel
Since 1974, all tractors (except for lawn and garden tractors) manufactured in the United
States have had diesel engines. That is because a diesel tractor engine is two to three times
more economical to run and produces more torque per cubic inch than a gas engine tract-
or. As far as the environmental benefits, diesels have lower greenhouse gas emissions, and
they emit less carbon monoxide and unburned hydrocarbons than do gas engines. However,
there is concern that a diesel engine's higher emission of nitrogen oxides and diesel particu-
lates pollutes the environment. Using new particulate filters and low-sulfur diesel fuel may
correct these problems so that diesel engines can meet the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency's standards for particulate matter (PM) and hydrocarbons (HC). Keep updated on
these options by talking with your tractor dealer.
Make
Some types of tractors should be avoided because they are so rare that it is difficult, if
not impossible, to find parts for them. Do not buy any make of narrow-front-end tractor.
Dry-land tractors, those without a three-point hitch, are very impractical. Buying an old
Minneapolis-Moline for $200 may seem like a great deal, but when you realize that the
drawbar on the back limits you to using a pull-type disc, it might not seem so wonderful.
And when you try to find parts to repair it, they will be difficult to locate.
Generally, most models of Ford, Massey Ferguson, John Deere, International Harvester,
and Allis Chalmers still have parts available and would likely make good choices. Because
of a renewed interest in restoring old tractors, after-market companies now offer parts and
manuals for older tractors. These parts are not original manufacturer's equipment (OME),
