Any news on gas engine CUTS?

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   / Any news on gas engine CUTS? #1  

ME83

Silver Member
Joined
Sep 26, 2007
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152
Location
Western MA
Tractor
JD 110 TLB
With everything I read about how much more expensive the new diesels are, how it is not good to run them for short periods of time, and the expense of things break, are any of the brands going to start offering gas powered tractors again in the 50 hp range?

With all the advancements in fuel injection and turbocharging, a gas engine could perform very well in a tractor, particularly for a home owner. They can produce a lot of torque with turbos and be EPA friendly while hopefully being cheaper.

I know it will use more fuel, but there are times I go a few months before fueling my 110 tlb. I had an older Ford 3500 with the 3 cyl gas and never had any complaints with it being gas.
 
   / Any news on gas engine CUTS? #2  
With the terrible quality of gasoline these days, I cannot imagine in my wildest dreams anyone wanting a gas engine on a tractor. Heck, we didn't even want gas engines on them back when we had good gasoline to use.

I'd be a lot more interested in propane engines than gasoline. Back on the farm, all of our tractors ran on propane . . . mainly because propane was dirt cheap back then. But propane doesn't produce as much power. Then propane got almost as expensive as gas and propane tractors went the way of the dodo bird.

In my opinion, an excellent way for a tractor manufacturer to turn a large fortune into a small one would be to invest heavily in producing tractors with gasoline engines.
 
   / Any news on gas engine CUTS? #3  
With the terrible quality of gasoline these days, I cannot imagine in my wildest dreams anyone wanting a gas engine on a tractor. Heck, we didn't even want gas engines on them back when we had good gasoline to use.

I'd be a lot more interested in propane engines than gasoline. Back on the farm, all of our tractors ran on propane . . . mainly because propane was dirt cheap back then. But propane doesn't produce as much power. Then propane got almost as expensive as gas and propane tractors went the way of the dodo bird.

In my opinion, an excellent way for a tractor manufacturer to turn a large fortune into a small one would be to invest heavily in producing tractors with gasoline engines.

Agreed. Gas would not hold up with the demands of torque requirements on tractors. Would consume a lot of fuel with little payback.
If you don't like the new engines I would look at a 5 year old tractor.
 
   / Any news on gas engine CUTS? #4  
I had a gas engine in my late 70's IH2500b. 50PTO HP. Ran fine. I just made sure to use fuel stabilizer if it was going to sit over the winter, and always drain the water bowl before each use. Ran for 35 years, so no problem.
 
   / Any news on gas engine CUTS? #5  
Also modern petrol/gasoline has a short shelf life and many tractors tend to sit months with half a tank of what will be stale fuel, a potential problem to be avoided.
 
   / Any news on gas engine CUTS?
  • Thread Starter
#6  
Gasoline has a recommended shelf life of 3 months, but many people have no issues using past 3 months. A tractor engine is severely detuned so that it can run hours on end at higher rpm, but with that low output it could probably run on non treated gas that is over a year old! Regardless, the longest I have gone between fueling my tractor would be maybe 3 months. That was because I moved our belongings and setup everything in our new house while my wife was in her third trimester and couldn't take any vacation time from work.

As far as the torque output, if you look at dyno charts of a new 2.0L VW TDI and 2.0L turbo gas engine (GTI) the output is very good. I chose the 2.0L size since that is a common size in CUTs. Even when those engines are tuned, the diesel will have 10-15% more peak torque, but that torque drops as the rpms increase. The gas engine has a flatter torque profile and sustains it's torque better at higher rpm. A turbocharged gas engine is definitely up to the task, possibly even better than a diesel if you look at the area under the dyno chart. The only downside is it would used a lot more volume in gas than diesel, but the amount an average homeowner uses it may never pay itself back due to the extra cost of the diesel fuel itself and the extra cost of the diesel engine.
 
   / Any news on gas engine CUTS? #7  
I always use pure gas and add Sta-Bil to keep it fresh. Asto gas vs diesel my 22hp gas is no comparison to my 22hp diesel in power when cutting tall grass.
Use less diesel when cutting as well compared to the gas engine.
 
   / Any news on gas engine CUTS? #8  
25hp is 25 hp is 25hp.... same for gas or diesel. Its the ability of the diesel with most likely a larger displacement and longer crank arms to keep itself in the torque range easier than a gas engine that makes it able to not bog down when you hit tall grass.
 
   / Any news on gas engine CUTS? #9  
As for the life of gasoline... treat it with stabil and its good for a long time. Boat engines, tractors, lawn equipment, etc... that may be not run for a long time. With that said, I don't use it in anything but my generator because it sits for months without being run and still starts rather easily.
 
   / Any news on gas engine CUTS? #10  
A lot of work has been done by gas tractors. I'd rather rebuild a 1 barrel carb than an injector pump. My 1940 and 1941 MMs and my 35 yr old homemade tractor with a Chevy 230 will still do the job. A new modern gas tractor might well be a good seller with gas being a lot cheaper than diesel, and the tractor cheaper to start with.
 
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