The real surprise in AGCO’s unveiling of the new IDEAL combine was the name it was wearing when it made its North American debut.

The new AGCO strategy

The company gets serious about launching FENDT as its high-tech brand in North America

Reading Time: 6 minutes When I received my invitation from AGCO to attend a media event earlier this summer, I was told there would be a surprise. It was, said the company’s PR agent, to be the unveiling of the new IDEAL combine. Hardly a surprise, I muttered to myself. AGCO had debuted the IDEAL in Germany last November, […] Read more

AGCO is putting more distance between its major brands at the dealership level.

What’s next for Massey Ferguson?

AGCO injects new life into the MF brand in Europe, promising to add “an avalanche” of new products in bright red paint

Reading Time: 8 minutes The attitude of marketing staff and the overall experience of just being at AGCO’s giant display at Agritechnica this year was different than I’d seen in past years. The stand was clearly divided between the company’s two primary brands sold in Europe: Massey Ferguson and Fendt. Then, an incident really drove home the reality of […] Read more


AGCO’s new “IDEAL” combine will debut in Germany in November. Built on a global platform, it will incorporate the highest level of digital technology of any combine to ever wear MF, Challenger or Fendt nameplates.

Dawn of the ‘smart’ combine

Automated and self-adjusting threshing systems become the norm

Reading Time: 3 minutes Combine manufacturers have made giant strides toward machine automation. Yes, there still needs to be an operator in the cab (and we’re likely some distance away from changing that), but a growing number of today’s combines are making their own decisions about how to adjust their operations on the go for maximum threshing efficiency and […] Read more

AGCO bets big on China

AGCO bets big on China

While the war of words heats up between Beijing and Washington, AGCO is becoming a major player in the Chinese economy

Reading Time: 6 minutes One of the world’s largest farm equipment manufacturers is predicting a bright future in China, and it is putting its money behind that belief. AGCO, parent company of well-known brands Massey Ferguson, Fendt, Valtra, GSI, and Challenger, has opened a new state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Changzhou to serve both its international needs and what it […] Read more


A 4709 on display at AGCO’s exhibit during Agritechnica in November. The “Tractor of the Year” award decal is visible on the 5713SL behind it.

Farm tractors with global design in mind

AGCO’s new MF utility tractors are designed for worldwide appeal

Reading Time: 3 minutes Back in early 1970, International Harvester released two tractors that made up what it called its Worldwide Series. The idea was to use shared platforms to build tractors that could appeal to farmers in every market where the brand had a presence. They would meet a global need — or that was the hope. Standardized […] Read more

New Holland ‘Golden Jubilee’ T7

PHOTOS: Mid-size tractors surprise with speed, efficiency

Machinery Guide: Massey Ferguson 8700 Series, New Holland 'Golden Jubilee' T7, New Holland Genesis T8 SmartTrax

Reading Time: < 1 minute With the horses to tackle heavy-going conditions, yet fast and flexible enough to adapt to an amazing range of jobs on your farm, today’s so-called “mid-size” tractors are getting smarter by leaps and bounds, and more capable too. If you haven’t put a new model through its paces in the last two or three years, […] Read more


It was last August that Claas of America introduced its latest entry, this time into the all-purpose tractor market. Claas is widely known for its Lexion combines and, with the Xerion tractor series, the company is forecasting it will achieve the same success in the high-horsepower market. Not only is the Xerion series powerful, it also provides speed for efficient transport, plus reduced compaction and overall enhanced manoeuverability. The company says its designers have worked hard to create something new specifically for the needs of North American farmers, which includes improved power transmission, dual wheels and enhanced hydraulics. The Xerion design includes three different models, all with a Mercedes-Benz engine: the 5000 and 4500 are equipped with a 12.8-litre engine and the 4000 comes with 10.6-litre engine, capable of running at 530, 490 and 435 hp, respectively. In spite of all that power, the Xerion line is still easy to operate, with six steering modes and three driving programs.

PHOTOS: Tractors with BIG horsepower

Machinery Guide looks at offerings from New Holland, Claas, Massey Ferguson, John Deere and Case IH

Reading Time: < 1 minute There’s really no telling how much bigger these machines will get. Just when it appeared that 500 hp was a safe upper limit, manufacturers pushed right through. Below, Machinery Guide looks at five big tractor series, some with tracked technology and others with cab or transmission enhancements for 2015. All boast big horsepower, which in […] Read more

expedition team at South Pole

To the South Pole and back, on a Massey Ferguson

A modified MF 5610 and its crew gets a chance to prove their stuff, retracing the route of Sir Edmund Hillary’s historic 1958 adventure to the Antarctic

Reading Time: 4 minutes At the North Pole, it was December 9, and the jolly old elf in the bright red suit was preparing as usual for his annual Christmas Eve sleigh ride. A world away, meanwhile, and even more incredibly, an expedition aboard a bright red Massey Ferguson 5610 tractor was powering its way to the geographic South […] Read more


Four middle-range tractors to get the job done

Four middle-range tractors to get the job done

John Deere 7R, Massey Ferguson 8700, Fendt 800 and 900, and Case IH Puma series models

Reading Time: 3 minutes In an era when everything seems to be getting bigger, equipment manufacturers are investing heavily in updating and upgrading the middle of the pack. These are tractors in the 220- to 325-horsepower category, which means they’re big enough to haul and to load, and to dig into most of the toughest jobs on the farm, […] Read more