Monday, 25 May 2020 13:38

Case offers double-clutch gearbox

Written by Mark Daniel

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Case IX Maxxum range now features double-clutch technology.

Now available in New Zealand, the new Case IH Maxxum range offers double-clutch technology.

The range includes an upgraded continuously variable transmission (CVT) and for the first time, the ActiveDrive 8 transmission featuring double-clutch technology.

The two models, AD8 and CVT, offer new styling, revised wheelbase and other enhancements. They join the 16x16 semi-powershift transmission already on offer.

A new design aligns the Maxxum with the Optum CVT, featuring an updated roofline and LED work lights in the front grill. Comfort has been improved with a choice of Deluxe seats, enhanced cab features and a single-piece front screen, while for increased efficiency, the Maxxum series has improved brake to clutch functionality and options for ISOBUS II and ISOBUS III.

It won 2019 Tractor of the Year Award, and in so doing, achieved the best rating ever for fuel efficiency by a four-cylinder model. The range also offers a 6-cylinder engine for Maxxum 150 CVT and Multicontroller for applications, where power counts.

The ActiveDrive 8 transmission has three ranges and a total of 24 speeds in both forward and reverse. The double-clutch technology results in less torque interruption, while pedal clutching is not necessary for range changes, making this transmission ideal for power-hungry tasks where momentum is important.

The series also includes options for adaptive steering, for faster turns with fewer steering movements, and Headland Management Control II (HMC II) technology. HMC II automates headland turns with the benefits of reduced driver fatigue and improved productivity. AFS AccuGuide and new AFS AccuTurn are also available.

Farm manager Sam LeCren has been putting his new Maxxum ActiveDrive 8 through its paces for a month at Karapiro in South Waikato, where he manages an Angus bull farm and another property for the Auckland-based Plaw family.

The home farm comprises three original farms that run along 3km of the Karapiro lakefront, plus a further lease block that runs from the lake to the fence at the Maungatautari Ecological Reserve.

As well as the traditional farming operation the area also includes a fully developed equestrian events centre, a horse breeding operation, vineyards and a market garden. Forty per cent of the 320ha total is farmed, with the remainder set aside as parkland and the equestrian areas.

“Part of the reason for buying this tractor was that we’d taken over the new lease,” says LeCren. “We effectively tripled our area, so I needed another tractor. I like the simplicity of a CVT, but I also like having the driver control. This AD8 is almost like a cross-between the two.

“You can set it in automatic and away it goes. You don’t feel the gear changes like in a conventional powershift-transmission, as it’s already in the next gear that you want to change into.”

www.caseih.co.nz

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Case IH Wins EIMA Award for Optum Suspension System

With the biannual Italian EIMA machinery Expo less than a month away, Case IH has taken out a Technical Evolution award for the Advanced Vehicle Suspension system available on its Optum 360–440 series tractors.

The Advanced Vehicle Suspension system, available on Optum 360, 390, and 440 models, responds to changing conditions, automatically adjusting how the suspension reacts to absorbs shocks and controlling vehicle movement.

In operation, sensors monitor the vibrations transmitted from the tractor chassis to the operator cabin, allowing the system to adjust suspension damping in real time. The control system incorporates key priorities, such as comfort at lower speeds and stability as speed increases, while also reacting to factors such as lower tyre pressures, where the tyres absorb more of the initial shock.

Case IH said as suspension requirements change throughout the working day, as tractors move between the paddock and road transport, the system manages suspension response in the background as tasks, speeds and conditions change, leaving the operator without the need to make manual adjustments.

Richard Hollins, Optum series tractors global product manager, said: “Pioneering technology must earn its place in the working day. Farmers and contractors will judge an investment by what it delivers, including manageable ownership costs, dependable up-time and the versatility to tackle different jobs. With AVS, we are putting intelligent control to work for comfort and stability, without giving the operator another setting to manage.”

Organised by FederUnacoma, the Italian Agricultural Machinery Manufacturers Federation, the contest has been part of EIMA since 1986, with the Technical Evolution distinction awarded to products that introduce original improvements to solutions already manufactured or patented.

www.caseih.com