New Holland Boomer 8N

[creekbend]

Jay Leno was given one. I will attempt to post the video shortly. Hugh's Net is acting up.

 

[creekbend]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3WLnRhoccAE]A Biodiesel Discussion and a New Holland Tractor in Jay Leno's Garage and - YouTube[/ame]

 

[eagle107]

Saw a post on craigslist for a Boomer 8N that was for sale in Ohio. According to the ad, it only had 14.2 hours, and the asking price was like $17.9K, which I guess is good considering new it was close to $30K. I think it was being sold by a dealer or a business rather than a private individual. I saw it on a local craigslist here in SC, so I guess the seller is really trying to reach a big audience. I haven't looked but it may be on tractorhouse too? I don't imagine too many of those come up for resale.

The Boomer 8N tractor is a nice tractor and the CVT was a great concept, but there are some things to consider when buying this tractor with a CVT and a reason why there are a lot of these tractors out on the market for sale.

1. This is a generation 1 transmission that is not being made anymore. I heard a generation 2 CVT was on the drawing board, but I do not think that is going to happen for the compact tractors now.

2. The CVT (a good transmission) has had issues. The current version of software loaded on the tractor should fix most of the issues, but software development for the CVT might have stopped which could have solved more issues. Make sure the tractor has the latest load of the software if you buy it!

3. Because the CVT is not electronically linked to the engine, some owners told me you can feel the transmission getting ahead of the engine sometimes (or was it vice versa?). I heard the generation 2 CVT, was supposed to fix this - you get the most benefits from the CVT when it is electronically linked to the engine.

4. The CVT does have a safety issue where it can roll down a hill or off a truck without the parking brake on, even when the CVT is supposed to be in gear/engaged (while the tractor is shutoff). My NH dealer told me one of his guys almost got hit/run over by one of these tractors because he forgot to put the parking brake on.

5. Make sure the dealer you purchase the tractor from will support the CVT if it develops issues. Also, ask the dealer how many he has sold with the CVT and are working in the field. That will give you a good indication how well he might be able to support that transmission.

6. Down the road, if you want to trade the tractor in for another brand of tractor, it might be difficult because non-NH/Case dealers might not want the tractor. Non-NH/Case dealers do not know how to fix/support the CVT transmission and the transmission was only made for about two years, so parts, over time, could be a possible issue.

Bottom line, it is a good tractor. Just make sure you know what you are getting into. I was close to buying a Boomer 3045 CAB with a CVT, but after I asked questions about the CVT with two different dealers, I decided not to go with that type of tractor.