another question---4WD or hp?

[scrimshaw33]

Which is a better option to have 4WD or more hp?

Was weighing getting a New Holland TC33AD 4WD/hydrostatic versus a 45 to 80 hp 2WD New Holland each with front end loader...is a 4WD necessary or more important than having more hp? Not sure I can afford more hp and 4WD, atleast haven't find one yet, but a 4 WD with less hp or a 2 WD with more hp is in my price range.

 

[brandoro]

HP isn't much use if you can't get it to the ground, I wouldn't own a CUT that was 2wd. Many times I have been working the tractor and had the wheels slip, just reach down and slide the lever up to connect the front wheels and keep on going. Enough power is seldom an issue, applying the power can be.
The tractors you are talking about are larger than that and heavier so might work well enough in 2wd. It will depend somewhat on the uses you plan for the tractor and ground conditions in your area.

 

[rus_geek]

I went through this same dilemma. I ended up going with 4WD because of the smaller form factor of the tractor. I intend to do a lot of woods work, so the maneuverability and size of the tractor came into play. 4WD also makes sense in those environments.

We'll need to know more about the intended uses for the tractor. If you're using the loader on a concrete barn floor, that's different than if you're hubs-deep in mud/manure/snow trying to use the loader, where 4WD would be helpful.

If this is primarily a pulling/field tractor, 4WD provides less benefits.

-rus-

 

[goatman 1]

IMHO, if using the tractor for mostly traction applications, go with the highest horsepower/4wd combo you can afford. However, if you need PTO applications more than ground work, high HP is a better way to go. Also, if you are on steep or hilly ground, 4wd is better and safer.

 

[20 20]

It all depends on what your going to do with it. Sometimes the hp is needed to run implemets. A guy up the way from me bought HP because he thought it would make his tractor tougher then mine. Well we both use our machines for close to the same stuff, quess what, he can have his HP especially when I'm passing him by with my 4 wheel drive. Personally I'd never go back to 2wheel for "what I do"{key words}

 

[roamerr]

100% Depends on the tractor. My little Kubota BX2230 needs 4wd or it will spin the turf tires too easily. My Dad's MF 245 is 2wd but never gets stuck or spins -- it weighs enough to hook-up and go.

On a bigger tractor they weigh enough that 2wd is fine for most. On the little CUT or subCUT tractors 4wd is required...

 

[Soundguy]

Which is a better option to have 4WD or more hp?

Was weighing getting a New Holland TC33AD 4WD/hydrostatic versus a 45 to 80 hp 2WD New Holland each with front end loader...is a 4WD necessary or more important than having more hp? Not sure I can afford more hp and 4WD, atleast haven't find one yet, but a 4 WD with less hp or a 2 WD with more hp is in my price range.

depends on what you are doing... a big 2wd machine can pull big implements. a small 4wd machine can't pull those same implements. big machines and big implements have their own pro's and cons.

bigger machines get more traction by having larger tires with more ground contact, even dual rears, and flotation fronts that don't get burried but skid over wet areas while diffy loced dual rears plow you thru. gets you there.. might make a mess of a feedlot or pasture in monsoon season though..

In flat areas where bigger work can benefit you.. it may be beneficial to have a large 2wd vs a smaller 4wd.

I live in florida.. I was mowing with a nice compact 32hp NH 1920 4wd and 5' mower... took me forever to mow 13ac with it... I traded up to a ~95 hp machine/15' mower and droped mowing time by 2/3's.. cost me a lil.. but was SOOOOOOOOOOOOO worth it. I had only used that compact in 4wd 1-2 times.. both of them I got stuck anyway.. so that 4wd didn't help me any. ironically.. never had the large 2wd stuck.. and have taken it thru places that swallowed my gmc yukon up to the frame so bad it had to be DUG out...

you need to look at your tasks and decide frame size.

If I was doing big work.. i'd get the big tractor... etc.

If I was doing lots of loader / landscaping work.. the smaller 4wd might be better for many reasons.... IE.. I'm not going to mow next to my house with the batwing.. however one of my compacts with a loader I have no problem pulling alongsid ethe house without fear of say.. knocking down a wall!

soundguy

 

[smfcpacfp]

IMHO, if using the tractor for mostly traction applications, go with the highest horsepower/4wd combo you can afford.

That might have been my answer a few years ago, but my answer is different now. I prefer to get just the hp that I need and no more. Smaller hp tractors are more nimble that larger tractors, and to me nimbleness is most important if you are using the tractor for many tasks. If I were plowing thousands of acres of land, and time was a factor, I would tend to agree with you. This rule only applies to tractors, not my cars and motorcycles.

As to 4WD... I always have mine in 4WD. I suppose if I were just driving it down the road to go somewhere, I would switch to 2WD.

 

[mjncad]

I'll take 4WD over more HP. Rear differential locks are a blessing too.

 

[Ken45101]

I used to have a Kubota M4700 2WD (45 hp) that I added a FEL to. One of the dumbest purchasing decisions I ever made! The bucket was virtually useless and spent most of it's life in disconnected in the barn. Now maybe if you moved up to a big tractor with heavily loaded rear end, it would be okay for lighter duty work (e.g. scraping manure, etc.)

Also realize that on going down any steep hill, a light rear end means no brakes.

Last year I finally traded the M4700 for a 4wd M5040. Much, much better. Of course, I got hit on the trade in since there isn't much market for a 2wd tractor with a loader on it.

 

[RalphVa]

I vote for 4wd. My 1400 # tractor with 18.5 hp has the pulling power of the old JD M with twice the weight but about the same hp. More hp would just generate more spin capability. Don't need that.

Ralph

 

[greggh]

Like most have said, it depends on the application. I don't remember seeing what you said your application was going to be. If that information was available, maybe we could give you a more definitive answer. My answer for my uses would be more HP.

 

[Gary Fowler]

Maybe someone already mentioned it, if so, I second the motion. Without knowing what you plan to use it for, I would go with the largest HP tractor I could afford that has 4 WD. It is just like a 4 WD truck. IF you need it it is there. IF you dont need it, disengage it and run 2 WD for less wear and tear and sharper turn radius.

 

[Diamondpilot]

If you are just mowing or something similar 2 Wheel Drive is fine but when it comes to pulling in the mud and muck 4 wheel drive is the only way to go. Just like in a pick-up truck.

Just a example but my 28HP 4 wheel drive tractor will out work my 45 HP 2 wheel drive tractor on everything I do but Bush Hogging.

Chris

 

[Ken45101]

If you are just mowing or something similar 2 Wheel Drive is fine

It all depends. A few times while mowing the yard with our B2710 (1800#, MMM), it was accidently in 2WD and I lost control going downhill (no braking). I was stopped by the fence (busted one post, popped the staples out of another.)

4wd gives you 4 wheel braking. OTOH, I never had problems with the a heavier 2WD with a rear mount cutter and ag tires.

Going down a steep hill shifts weight forward, off the rear (braking) wheels.

Ken

 

[Soundguy]

Reading these posts .. seems like some people are not ballasting 2wd tractors with loaders correctly.. then complaining about it..

soundguy

 

[Gary Fowler]

Right on Sound guy. I cant imagine going down a hilll that is so steep that the brakes would not stop unless maybe you were on wet grass or something. I have a pond dam that is at least a 45 degree angle that I back up with my bush hog to mow it and even on that slope, my brakes will hold me. I am not sure that even in 4wd that the engine would hold the tractor back if you were in such a steep slope as to skid the rear tires all the way to the bottom. Going down a VERY steep hill with a loaded FEL and 2 wd might be a little scary regardless of whether you are going in forward or reverse. I think that if I were skidding down a hill and I had a FEL on front, I would drop the load and let the FEL do the stopping

 

[Soundguy]

Ditto that.. fel on a tractor is an awesome front emergency brake.

soundguy

 

[wolc123]

Yeah, it is too bad this guy wont tell us what he intends to do with the tractor. Obviously no one can answer the question without that info although I see many have tried. Personnally, I run (3) 2wd's and (1) 4wd. The 4wd is my largest tractor, and the only one with a loader. I use the 2wd's any time I can without loosing much efficiency, but the 4wd ends up with about 3/4 of the work. I am suprised nobody mentioned the fuel savings 4wd gives you when operating on soft or tilled ground. Pushing that "dead" front axle is not free, and sucks up a lot of energy, which must be paid for, in terms of more fuel burned. For discing or loader work, I would say plan on burning 25% more to do the same work with 2wd. Now obviously if you are working on a hard hayfield, pasture, or such then that does not come into play (This is where SG comes in). 4wd will cost you a good chunk more up front, but check the sell prices of used tractors and you see that you will get it back and then some when it is time to sell. Since the big explosion in fuel prices a couple years ago, 2wd's in the 20-100 hp range are selling for pennies on the dollar compared to 4wd's. Used 4wd's are tough to find cheap even in today's pitifull economy. They almost had to give away the 2wds at a couple consignment auctions I heard about this spring.