I'll be looking forward to the review to see how it compares to my 55. I'm most curios about regen cycle as mine has not had one yet in 96 hrs. have fun!
Hydro to CVT?
- Thread starter jk96
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jaydee325
Veteran Member
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- May 21, 2013
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- Casco, Mi
- Tractor
- John Deere X584 Garden Tractor & LS R3039H
According to the Case website, the 55c don't have a Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF) to regen. It uses a Diesel Oxidation Catalyst (DOC) with Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR). Hence, no regen.
Confirmed through my owners manual.
Your 55 must be a 2015 model, mine is a 2016 with a DPF. I was doing some logging this morning, low RPM stuff and it went through a regen finally. The process took about 7-8 minutes to complete. it had a symbol on the dash letting me know what was going on.
One of the mechanics at my CNH dealership has a 55 CVT and he just putts around with it. He says his does a regen every 7-8 hours cuz he's not working it. That is what I ran into this morning just cruising through my woods at about 1500 rpms and the regen started. The more rpms you give it the shorter the process.
Yes - 2015
After spending the weekend on the tractor here's my review so far.
First off, fit and finish are really nice on this tractor. It is very similar to my 2008 DX45. Same size, same loader. The interior is similar with several new switches including electronic 4wheel drive, speed range selections, anti-stall, new preset speed option for cruise control. The dash has gone partially digital and there are new controls on the dash to access programming options, most of which relate to the CVT transmission. There are a total of 8 hvac vents and if it is anything like my 45 they will do a really fine job of keeping things cool in the summer and the glass fog and ice free in the winter. On the exterior the hydraulic hoses on the 55 are routed a much better way than my 45 with metal loops to keep things where they should be. There are some added metal guards on the sides of the engine and in front of the tie rods. My dealer did an excellent job adding the front loader mounted hydraulic lines for my grapple. Looks like a factory install. The clear view roof is nice for being able to see the loader at full height. Same as my 45 but nice if you've never seen it in person.
Direction Changes - Any concerns I initially had about moving from a hydro to CVT transmission are gone. I had 1,600 hours operating my 2008 DX45 hydro and another 900 hours on a DX33 so I've logged a few hours on hydro tractors. Frequent direction changes were a concern, especially when it came to moving pallets and loader work. With the CVT transmission direction changes are almost instant, and the transition from forward to reverse is actually smoother. The delay is so small if any that its really not even worth mentioning. This part surprised me as it was my biggest concern. Creeping or inching forward is no different than my hydro. In fact the slowest I was able to creep with cruise control set was 0.06 mph. Below is a video showing me moving some firewood cages to demonstrate the forward/reverse and slow positioning ability of the CVT.
YouTube
Speed Changes and 4wheel drive- The ease at which you can change speeds is the nicest features I've found on the 55. The 55 is equipped with 3 speed ranges and electronic 4wheel drive. The selector switch for the speed ranges and 4wheel drive are located at leg height on the left side of the operator platform. It is really easy to reach and the whole operator station is laid out really well.
CaseIH 55C speed changes - YouTube
Power - The power difference between my DX45 and the new 55C is substantial. The combination of of CVT trans and additional 10hp makes for a huge difference. Where my DX45 would slow down to a crawl and really work when my boxblade filled up the 55 just keeps plugging along like its not even there. I've used the 55 as well to dig out a few small trees. The 45 didn't quite have the power to break the roots. Another bonus is the speed at which the loader works. I'm not sure if the pump output has been increased or its a benefit of not sending fluid to the hydro but the loader speed is much faster. Here's a video digging out a tree with the 55. The tree doesn't look very impressive but was just over 3-1/2" diameter. My 45 would not been able to completely remove it or would have taken much longer. In the video you can see that the 55 has enough torque to spin the wheels even with loaded rear tires and a 600 lb scraper on the rear.
CaseIH 55C 2 - YouTube
CVT on a downhill slope - This was also surprising to me. The CVT simply does not move when in drive if your foot is off of the pedal. My hydro held fairly well but would slowly creep forward on a slope. With the CVT if you let off the gas it slows to a stop and simply stays there, no brake needed. Here is a link to a video on a fairly steep slope. I had the land grader on back and filled the bucket completely full of gravel for added weight. When I come to a stop on the video I do not have my foot on the brake or emergency brake set.
CaseIH 55C CVT slope - YouTube
Noise - This tractor is so quiet compared to my hydro. There is also no hydro whine which is really nice. Most jobs can be done at lower rpms. My 45 was so noisy that when listing to the radio I usually connected head phones to it. With the 55 I can enjoy the radio without headphones. I did make a mistake in an initial comment after test driving the tractor. It does have a manual throttle if you need to maintain a higher rpm for mowing, tilling, etc.
With all of the above said this tractor is simply amazing. In fact I'm so impressed that I'm really surprised I haven't seen this model discussed more on TBN. My dealer sells both Kubota and Case. I was originally inquiring about trading for a Kubota when he told me I needed to take a look at the 55C due to the CVT transmission. My concerns about ease of use with the CVT are gone. It only took a few hours of operating before it became second nature. Everything on this tractor is faster, smoother, quieter, and easier than my hydro. I am now in farmall40's camp. I will never own another hydro if CVT is an option.
There are only two things so far I don't care for. The cupholder is so shallow its almost worthless and Case has still not changed the design of the cab top so that just the cap can be removed if there is damage. The entire top has to be removed and replaced, not just the top cover. This means that all of the internals have to be removed from the damaged top and reinstalled into the new one, HVAC, wiring harnesses, vents, radio, etc etc. Its was the same on my 2008 and is probably one of the worst designs they could have for damage. The entire top shell runs about $1,000 and requires about 30 shop hours to remove the old components and reinstall in the new one. Total bill $3500. I have never loaned my tractor out to someone since then.
I will follow up after logging a few hundred hours if anything changes.
First off, fit and finish are really nice on this tractor. It is very similar to my 2008 DX45. Same size, same loader. The interior is similar with several new switches including electronic 4wheel drive, speed range selections, anti-stall, new preset speed option for cruise control. The dash has gone partially digital and there are new controls on the dash to access programming options, most of which relate to the CVT transmission. There are a total of 8 hvac vents and if it is anything like my 45 they will do a really fine job of keeping things cool in the summer and the glass fog and ice free in the winter. On the exterior the hydraulic hoses on the 55 are routed a much better way than my 45 with metal loops to keep things where they should be. There are some added metal guards on the sides of the engine and in front of the tie rods. My dealer did an excellent job adding the front loader mounted hydraulic lines for my grapple. Looks like a factory install. The clear view roof is nice for being able to see the loader at full height. Same as my 45 but nice if you've never seen it in person.
Direction Changes - Any concerns I initially had about moving from a hydro to CVT transmission are gone. I had 1,600 hours operating my 2008 DX45 hydro and another 900 hours on a DX33 so I've logged a few hours on hydro tractors. Frequent direction changes were a concern, especially when it came to moving pallets and loader work. With the CVT transmission direction changes are almost instant, and the transition from forward to reverse is actually smoother. The delay is so small if any that its really not even worth mentioning. This part surprised me as it was my biggest concern. Creeping or inching forward is no different than my hydro. In fact the slowest I was able to creep with cruise control set was 0.06 mph. Below is a video showing me moving some firewood cages to demonstrate the forward/reverse and slow positioning ability of the CVT.
YouTube
Speed Changes and 4wheel drive- The ease at which you can change speeds is the nicest features I've found on the 55. The 55 is equipped with 3 speed ranges and electronic 4wheel drive. The selector switch for the speed ranges and 4wheel drive are located at leg height on the left side of the operator platform. It is really easy to reach and the whole operator station is laid out really well.
CaseIH 55C speed changes - YouTube
Power - The power difference between my DX45 and the new 55C is substantial. The combination of of CVT trans and additional 10hp makes for a huge difference. Where my DX45 would slow down to a crawl and really work when my boxblade filled up the 55 just keeps plugging along like its not even there. I've used the 55 as well to dig out a few small trees. The 45 didn't quite have the power to break the roots. Another bonus is the speed at which the loader works. I'm not sure if the pump output has been increased or its a benefit of not sending fluid to the hydro but the loader speed is much faster. Here's a video digging out a tree with the 55. The tree doesn't look very impressive but was just over 3-1/2" diameter. My 45 would not been able to completely remove it or would have taken much longer. In the video you can see that the 55 has enough torque to spin the wheels even with loaded rear tires and a 600 lb scraper on the rear.
CaseIH 55C 2 - YouTube
CVT on a downhill slope - This was also surprising to me. The CVT simply does not move when in drive if your foot is off of the pedal. My hydro held fairly well but would slowly creep forward on a slope. With the CVT if you let off the gas it slows to a stop and simply stays there, no brake needed. Here is a link to a video on a fairly steep slope. I had the land grader on back and filled the bucket completely full of gravel for added weight. When I come to a stop on the video I do not have my foot on the brake or emergency brake set.
CaseIH 55C CVT slope - YouTube
Noise - This tractor is so quiet compared to my hydro. There is also no hydro whine which is really nice. Most jobs can be done at lower rpms. My 45 was so noisy that when listing to the radio I usually connected head phones to it. With the 55 I can enjoy the radio without headphones. I did make a mistake in an initial comment after test driving the tractor. It does have a manual throttle if you need to maintain a higher rpm for mowing, tilling, etc.
With all of the above said this tractor is simply amazing. In fact I'm so impressed that I'm really surprised I haven't seen this model discussed more on TBN. My dealer sells both Kubota and Case. I was originally inquiring about trading for a Kubota when he told me I needed to take a look at the 55C due to the CVT transmission. My concerns about ease of use with the CVT are gone. It only took a few hours of operating before it became second nature. Everything on this tractor is faster, smoother, quieter, and easier than my hydro. I am now in farmall40's camp. I will never own another hydro if CVT is an option.
There are only two things so far I don't care for. The cupholder is so shallow its almost worthless and Case has still not changed the design of the cab top so that just the cap can be removed if there is damage. The entire top has to be removed and replaced, not just the top cover. This means that all of the internals have to be removed from the damaged top and reinstalled into the new one, HVAC, wiring harnesses, vents, radio, etc etc. Its was the same on my 2008 and is probably one of the worst designs they could have for damage. The entire top shell runs about $1,000 and requires about 30 shop hours to remove the old components and reinstall in the new one. Total bill $3500. I have never loaned my tractor out to someone since then.
I will follow up after logging a few hundred hours if anything changes.
TSO
Elite Member
jk96 - thanks for posting those videos. The tractor looks really nice. When I've tested the Case-NH cab models, I recall liking that glass portion on the roof that allows for "up" visibility. Regarding your usage observations, I will say that it is pretty cool that you can shift-on-the-fly between speed ranges. I would love to be able to do that on my Massey HST. Today I was grading a subdivision (gravel) and there were times when in High range HST (using my LandPride 84" dual-scraper) that I couldn't maintain full speed (up to 14-17mph) so I had to use my hydraulic top-link to adjust pitch of the grader to maintain the range ... if I could have shifted on the fly to Medium range for a moment, it may have helped (this occurs when going uphill pulling gravel). I will also say that my HST will not hold the grade and come to a stop going down-hill without using the brakes, in such a drastic pitch as you demonstrated in that video. It doesn't alarm me, as that is what brakes are for... but just a point to mention.
However, even though it may be an upgrade from your DX45 HST, that sapling you pushed out... I have dug and pushed out many, many saplings like that with seemingly less effort with my Massey HST. Now, a contributing factor may be that the loader on the Massey units is (on paper anyhow) stronger. But with that said, I can easily spin the tires, in 2wd or 4wd, in Lo or Med range when pushing into things.
Regarding the noise level, I also noticed (when I've test-driven the Case-NH CVT's) that they are significantly quieter than my HST during operation... a definite advantage.
Overall, congrats on your purchase. I would still not choose CVT over HST for my uses, but it's easy to see that you prefer the CVT and you've made the most of the change. Nice looking tractor -- Tractor's look best in red !!
However, even though it may be an upgrade from your DX45 HST, that sapling you pushed out... I have dug and pushed out many, many saplings like that with seemingly less effort with my Massey HST. Now, a contributing factor may be that the loader on the Massey units is (on paper anyhow) stronger. But with that said, I can easily spin the tires, in 2wd or 4wd, in Lo or Med range when pushing into things.
Regarding the noise level, I also noticed (when I've test-driven the Case-NH CVT's) that they are significantly quieter than my HST during operation... a definite advantage.
Overall, congrats on your purchase. I would still not choose CVT over HST for my uses, but it's easy to see that you prefer the CVT and you've made the most of the change. Nice looking tractor -- Tractor's look best in red !!
I'm surprised you can spin your tires in 4wd high range. My 45 hydro would spin tires in low but not easily. It seemed to go into relief before using all available power. Are you rear tires loaded?