When buying a tractor, it’s difficult to know whether to go for a brand new one or a second-hand model. Jane Brooks explores the pros and cons in this extract from the May 2024 issue of The Country Smallholder magazine.
Looking at new agricultural tractor registrations in 2023, figures from the Agricultural Engineers Association (AEA) for 50hp plus tractors show that 693 new tractors were registered in December 2023, 10% more than in the same month of 2022, although below the average for December in the last five years.
A total of 11,816 agricultural tractors over 50hp were registered during 2023. A slight increase of 2% on 2022. In fact, with the exception of the pandemic affected year of 2020, the over 50hp tractor market has been remarkably stable, with annual registrations falling between 11,580 and 12,040 in six of the last seven years.
LEADING BRANDS IN THE UK MARKET
Back in 2021 John Deere was the best-selling single make tractor brand but if you look at all the manufacturers then CNH were ahead with 4,037 tractors (New Holland 2,682 and Case IH 1,355) out of the14,071 new tractors registered, which gave them a 28.7% share of the market. Hence John Deere were second spot with 3,558 tractors (25.3% of the market ) and AGCO were third with 3,087 tractors (21.9% share of the total market).
Top of the AGCO brands was Massey Ferguson which sold 1,530 units, followed by Fendt 911 units and then Valtra at 646 tractors. In fourth place was Kubota which sold 947 tractors, then Claas with 557 tractors and a 4.0% market share, followed by JCB, Same Deutz Fahr and Agri Argo – (McCormick and Landini). Other brands sold 1,167 tractors (8.3%) of the total.These figures included compact tractors below 50hp. The AEA is not able to publish market share figures for tractors until 12 months have elapsed due to competition law restrictions.
Compact tractors, which generally offer 15 to 50hp, are often popular with smallholders due to their size and manoeuvrability. Unlike larger tractors, compacts navigate easily through small tight spaces, whilst offering the power and functionality to handle many tasks, while being quite cost-effective to purchase new.
LEADING COMPACT BRANDS IN THE UK
The UK is a market that demands high-quality small machinery that meets all the current emissions regulations whilst not skimping on power. There are a few notable brands that have come to the forefront in recent years by filling the demand for providing high-quality compact tractors. Among these, John Deere, Kubota Kioti and TYM Tractors, are capturing the market, together with Solis, Siromer, Iseki and Massey Ferguson.
The market for compact tractors is very consumer driven and there are a number of other well regarded international manufacturers constantly improving their offering within in the UK, particularly in the field of electric vehicles.
BUYING A SECOND-HAND COMPACT TRACTOR
Investing in a used compact tractor can be a cost-effective choice they have a reputation for being robust and versatile. The first few years of any machine’s life are generally those where they tend to lose the most value, so it’s possible to buy something at a fraction of its new cost. However, it is vital to look at the age, condition and maintenance history of the tractor (has it been regularly serviced?), as well as being certain that it will do all the tasks you need it too. The size and horsepower, what attachments it will take, the availability of spare parts and the reputation of the manufacturer and how reliable their products are, all need to be taken into consideration.
This article extract was taken from the May 2024 edition of The Country Smallholder. To read on, you can buy the issue here.
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