Czech Republic-based Zetor Tractors has announced a deal with Germany’s Deutz AG for the supply of four- and six-cylinder diesel engines beginning in 2015. The engine manufacturer will supply its TCD 2.9-litre L4 and TCD 6.1-litre L6 engines for new Zetor models due to be introduced in 2015 and 2016.
The Stage IV-compliant engines from Deutz will compliment Zetor’s own four-cylinder engines that have also been developed so they meet the tighter emissions standard, but these remain largely mechanically based power units. Zetor has said the engines it will buy in will not only feature common rail injection systems, but will be equipped with the Deutz Variable Emission Reduction Technology and communicate with other tractor components (gearbox, dashboard, hydraulics) using Canbus technology.
This suggests a new level of sophostication for Zetor’s new models, which were discussed by the company’s technical director, Jiří Smíšek, at the opening of the new Zetor Gallery at the company’s Brno factory miod-2013 when he said the aim was to add three new ranges to provide a comprehensive offering of tractors from 50 to 200hp.
“By 2015 we plan to have six ranges,” he said. “The Super will be added to sit between the current Major and Proxima ranges, while new Crystal and Maxterra (a prototype Maxterra 165 from 2009 is pictured above) tractors will be introduced as higher-horsepower models above the existing Forterra.”
Mr Smíšek said that Super and Crystal were simply being used as project names at the moment, but judging by the success of the reintroduced Major, there’s a good chance that these classic models could also make a comeback.
Zetor’s deputy executive director, Marián Lipovský, said at the time the new models were part of the firm’s research and development programme and that Czech-based design houses were currently working on ideas for the new tractors, taking into account requirements from the market that were being fed into the process from the company’s sales teams.
He added it was still too early at that stage to say whether the engines for the new tractors would be built in-house or bought-in, but he confirmed that both the Crystal and the range-topping Maxterra would most likely feature six-cylinder diesels.
For more information visit: www.zetor.co.uk.
