With the same wheelbase as the old and much loved 6430, the 6120M model puts John Deere back in the game with livestock farmers wanting a manoeuvrable tractor that still packs a punch and has enough weight for tasks such as slurry tanking, fertiliser spreading and loader work. Time to see what our test team thinks of the new tractor range
With the 6MC and RC tractors not quite hitting the sales mark, John Deere decided in 2015 to go back to the drawing board for ‘project sparrow’. From day one, Deere’s engineering department sought the opinion of 13 European dealer reps who could explain exactly what their customers wanted from the new 6M tractor range. Among the project panel were a dealer from England and another from Ireland, and it was quickly decided that the 2,580mm wheelbase from the 6MC and RC tractors was just too big, whereas the 5R cab frame was too small. Reverting back to the 2,400mm wheelbase of the four-cylinder 6030 tractors was seen as a must, as well as giving farmers a more spacious cab. Fast forward to September 2019, and John Deere was ready to reveal the new, four model, 90-120hp 6M tractor range. The first units started to arrive on farm earlier this year, and among these early models was our test machine, a 6120M, which is the most powerful in the new ‘short frame’ line-up. Although it’s rated at 88kW/120hp, it really packs a punch when you add the extra boost, bringing the tractor’s maximum output up to 107kW/145hp.
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