Electric Tractor Manufacturer Ramps Up Production

[California]

Local business news, Northern California. The article is all I know about it.

Sonoma County electric tractor maker expanding nationwide

The parent company of Solectrac inks a distribution deal with Brim Tractor of Washington state.

www.northbaybusinessjournal.com

Solectrac carries zero-emissions tractors ranging in horsepower from 25 to 70. They primarily market the tractors to hobby farms and vineyards [ie, intermittent use]... prices start at about $25,000 and range to at least double that. The goal is to sell at least 2,000 annually ... For the everyday farmer, Heckeroth plans to design a more affordable version hoping to expand its market and the technology to smaller operators.

And looking for Brim Tractor I see they are a large operation in multiple locations carrying multiple lines, so they add some credibility to the Selectrac startup.
"Brim Tractor offers New Holland, Yanmar, Alamo, Bad Boy, Braber Equipment, JCB, Millcreek, Diamond Mowers, Supreme, and Woods."

It will be interesting to see if this gets any traction.

 

[bmaverick]

It will be interesting to see if this gets any traction.

Hahahahahahaha.

 

[California]

 

[5030]

Reminds me of Deere with their 225 grand utility tractor with a 6 hour run time.

 

[California]

Reminds me of Deere with their 225 grand utility tractor with a 6 hour run time.

At a tenth the price.

There's a weekend hobby farmer type who would buy an electric tractor for his hobby vineyard, maybe the guy who already owns a Tesla.

This isn't marketed for real farmers who are on their tractor for many hours in a day.

 

[lman]

You're good as long as the tractor is plugged into the diesel powered generator pulled by the tractor.

 

[TheMan419]

At a tenth the price.

There's a weekend hobby farmer type who would buy an electric tractor for his hobby vineyard, maybe the guy who already owns a Tesla.

This isn't marketed for real farmers who are on their tractor for many hours in a day.

We are not a hobby farm. We are a small horse boarding/training operation. I would def buy an electric tractor due to less need for mainteance and for environmental concerns.

You are correct that right now it does not seem practical for someone who runs their tractor 12 hours a day, especially if they are using ground engaging equipment, to have an electric tractor.

However starting to develop them for the smaller operation like mine will give them data and real world info on how to make them better and get them to the point that they can be used on a larger commercial farming application.

Just like electric cars started out with a range of 60 miles and now we have cars with a range of 300 miles. Tractors will get there too. It will just take time to develop.

The cost of batteries for electric vehicles has dropped significantly as well, thus allowing for the greater range on those vehicles without the price going up to the price of a Ferarri.

 

[California]

We are not a hobby farm. We are a small horse boarding/training operation. I would def buy an electric tractor due to less need for maintence and for environmental concerns.

Yes! That's a perfect application where some sort of tractor is needed but not row-crop horsepower.

Even though I have an apple orchard I got rid of my last chainsaw and replaced it with a battery chainsaw. Now, no gasoline stored here, no expensive premix or the need for fuel system maintenance, the saw stops instantly when I release the trigger. Life is simpler after this upgrade.

I need my larger (24hp) tractor for its backhoe but the smaller one, that I use 90% of the time, could be battery after they cost less. I'm never on it for hours at a time.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

At a tenth the price.

There's a weekend hobby farmer type who would buy an electric tractor for his hobby vineyard, maybe the guy who already owns a Tesla.

This isn't marketed for real farmers who are on their tractor for many hours in a day.

Low usage tractors stay in service for 30 years or more. It's going to be hard for an electric tractor to match that longevity.

 

[ericm979]

Here's a study that showed that Teslas lose about 10% of their battery capacity after 160k miles. At an average of 35 mph that's about 4500 hours. Which would be a lot for a tractor that's not used all day every day. By that time a fossil fuel tractor has a good chance of needing some major maintenance like a clutch or cylinder head or engine rebuild.

https://electrek.co/2018/04/14/tesla-battery-degradation-data/

A lot depends on the software that controls the battery charging and discharging. If it's dumb and lets the batteries get fully or over charged or totally depleted they won't last as long.