When will a manufacturer finally create an affordable retro style tractor

[MESSMAKER]

I think you are in the minority when it comes to buying a tractor by style. It does play into it, but Kubota and New Holland are the big sellers around here. I don"t necessarily think they are the best looking. I think quality, durability and dealer support rise to the top.

 

[jenkinsph]

If you ask all the orange and red guys they will tell you that all the green guys are buying the green paint.

If you know a good tin banger and put in some time planning you should be able to come up with a retro looking one of a kind tractor.

 

[SRMN8R]

Funny, a few years from now, my grandkids will be calling my tractor retro...

 

[GManBart]

I think the number of people who want a modern FWA tractor with retro styling would be pretty small. Most people buying tractors in that size want it to have an FEL. FELs on old tractors were complicated, and pretty ugly. Adding an FEL to something like the retro 8N would have totally altered its look. I just don't see either combination being all that in demand.

 

[OldMcDonald]

Looks and paint colour (so long as it is not pink) are of no interest to me. Like probably all farmers there have been many times when most of a field is ready to plough, cultivate, sow, etc. but the odd wet patch can be tricky and the tractor needs to be able to get through that. I had that experience on 3 occasions last week, and I really appreciated the 4wd on my NH. I did not need diff lock at any stage.

If I did have a choice of a retro being produced new it would be "The Little Grey Fergie" with 4wd. I have not had an FEL since 1979 and never missed it. All the extra dead weights they add to tractors these days, and water filled tyres, so that heavy loads can be carried back and front just seem to be design faults. Harry never needed them and it takes extra fuel to haul all the extra weight when it is not needed. It will not happen any more than somebody will build a new pyramid like the old Egyptian ones.

 

[Cherokee140]

I bet a retro tractor would go over well in the Cabelas has tractors thread.....that is their client right there.

Personally I like retro. I like the Mustang, Challenger, and even the Camaro is growing on me. I like Art-Deco, so I can see how with all that is retro now this question would come up. And I am likely the symbolism over substance kind of guy that would have looked hard at the Boomer 8n. Not sure I would have bought one, but I would have looked.

I don't have a good feel for this entire tractor thing yet, but it seems most of the people that buy them look at them with different eyes. It is a tool nothing more.....some people that drive cars are like that.....others see the car as an extension of their own personality. If they did not you would not see Mustangs and Corvettes....but the world would drive a Prius. Personally I do think that if you stripped the paint there is little difference between them....and if you had a restored machine from the 50's sitting next to a bunch of bare metal new machines, it would be tell what tractor goes with what older one.

 

[drizler]

I have a few "retro" tractors. Sure they were the thing of their day. In fact they were all they had "in the day" and they did the job. Thats why I am going to buy a new one for the first time ( and probably last) in my life. The dinosaurs are cool in their way but really, their ship has sailed. Heck, if you want a retro tractor you can pic up rebuilt Fords like the 9N's and similar completely rebuilt. Someplace out there sells the for around $6K . The best part is when you hit the clutch your 3 pt is going to drop like a stone and all the other good stuff we left behind 50 years ago.:thumbdown:

 

[Blstr88]

I for one like the way the retro Boomer 8n they produced looked...if it were available in 30 HP, with a hydrostatic drive and a more reasonable pricing I'd be all over it.

 

[Cherokee140]

Why was the new 8N not well received.....I also liked the look of it, and truth be known I looked for one when I was going to buy.

I can assume from the posts that it was a failure....why did people not like it....just too expensive for what it was?

I LOVED the way it looked.

 

[super55]

The boomer 8n was not well recieved because it priced itself right out of the market. The marketing ploy was to make it a limited edition and base price for a 4wd 50 hp tractor without a bucket was listing for originally 25k or more. The other issue was it came with a CVT transmission which also added to the cost.

It just wasn't really well thought out well. 50 hp is generally a little large for the typcial CUT buyer. While CVT transmission is common I guess in 150+ hp tractors it is not in CUTs so buyers were not familiar with them. Early production models I believe had some issues with the CVT as well. Plus like little things like deluxe package with chrome rollbars also added to price.

It did have some really nice attributes though. The Retro style seat with the holes in it with a throwback look was very well recieved. I never heard anybody ever criticize the color scheme or the hood design. Personally I would have rather seen the roll bar painted red instead of chromed to match the red belly of the tractor.

I think if NH would have made the NH 30 or 35 boomer and just changed the hood, seat, color etc to resemble the 8n I personally think they would have flown off the shelf if they were within 2K of boomer of the same model. Parts would have been easier to get, mechanics would be familiar working with the model and it would have been on a proven platform.