Continental has launched its largest tractor tyre to date, the VF TractorMaster in size VF900/60R42. With a diameter of 214.7 centimetres, the tyre is larger than a door frame and weighs 450 kilogrammes. It has a load index of 189 (10,300 kilogrammes). Continental has developed the tyre size specifically to carry the weight of agricultural machinery producing more than 300 horsepower.
They are a stoic bunch and nobody has come forward to seek professional help so far, but participants in the Tour de France 2022 may be forgiven for wondering if they’d experienced a collective hallucination during the gruelling 2,081-mile race. For at a strategic location along the 21-stage route between Copenhagen and Paris, cyclists were confronted by the looming presence of an oversized agricultural tyre.
Continental is now supplying original equipment tyres to all brands within CNH Industrial Group following the approval of the TractorMaster and VF TractorMaster for the New Holland T5, T6 and T7 tractor series. Jens Mund, key account manager for agricultural tyre original equipment at Continental Commercial Specialty Tires, says the cooperation with New Holland “underlines Continental’s growth ambitions in the agricultural sector.”
John Deere has approved further Continental tyres as original equipment for its tractors, with the 6M and 6R available fitted with Continental TractorMaster and VF TractorMaster tyres from 1 November. Both product lines are manufactured at Continental’s plant in Lousado, Portugal.
With immediate effect, the Steyr Expert CVT, Profi Series, Impuls CVT and Absolut CVT tractor ranges are available with factory-fitted Continental TractorMaster and VF TractorMaster tyres. Steyr is a CNH Industrial brand; Continental also supplies tyres to its sister company, Case IH.
Tractor manufacturer Fendt has approved the Continental TractorMaster tyre combinations 600/65R38 and 540/65R24 as well as 540/65R34 and 440/65R24 for its 200 Vario and 300 Vario series tractors. Continental says further approvals “could follow.”
Deploying the pun ‘best in the field’, Continental has shared results of recent testing conducted by the German Agricultural Society (DLG). In these tests, Continental TractorMaster tyres were compared with “all comparable” products from other established European premium tyre manufacturers as part of the DLG’s ‘Performance Review in Premium Class’ test series. Continental reports that its TractorMaster “won out” over the entire competition. The Continental tyre has now gained DLG certification for a five-year period.
An addition to the Continental TractorMaster range will be presented at next week’s Agritechnica show. Called the TractorMaster Hybrid, the new tyre comes with built-in pressure sensors. The pressure and temperature information these provide enables operators to adjust tyre pressure to match the task at hand. Continental’s aim is to deliver a tyre that offers traction with lower soil compaction in the field and greater comfort on the road.
With the arrival of the TractorMaster in its agricultural tyre portfolio, Continental now offers three model lines in this segment. It positions the new arrival as an “advanced radial tyre,” a technological cut above its 2017-launched “standard” Tractor70 and Tractor85 radials.
The ‘Master’ suffix seen on Continental port and earthmover tyres will also be used on two extensions to the new Continental agricultural tyre range that will arrive in the summer. These are the TractorMaster, a 65-series tractor tyre that will complement the standard Tractor70 and Tractor85, and the CombineMaster, a harvester tyre that will be launched in size 800/65R32 178 A8.
