A team of drivers from Italy’s Carabinieri national security force and four McCormick tractors (two 206/225hp X7.690 P6-Drive models and a pair of 286hp X8.670 VT-Drive tractors) have begun the 2018 Xtractor Around the World challenge and a 6000km adventure across southern Africa.
From the starting point in Cape Town in south-west South Africa, the tractors and support crew visit the Cape of Good Hope before making their way through the vineyards of the Western Cape, along the famous Garden Route to Port Elizabeth in the south-east before turning inland to push deep into the semi-desert interior of the Great Karoo.
After negotiating the Kalahari desert the team will turn eastwards, aiming for the summits of the small mountain kingdom of Lesotho before a steep descent down the slopes of the eastern Drakensberg mountains to the Indian Ocean. The finishing stretch will take the four tractors to Johannesburg and Pretoria and the team expect to complete the journey in 55 days.
Closer to home, the AgriArgo order book is open and dealer demonstrations are underway for the X8 VT-Drive tractor in the UK. Available with three engine power outputs of 264hp, 286hp and 310hp, key features include a CVT, 12.0t rear lift capacity, and the possibility to fit 900/60 R42 boots on the rear axle.
A 264hp X8.660 VT-Drive finished in metallic red is doing the rounds of McCormick dealers to give farmers and contractors a closer look at the new tractor. Locations and dates are detailed on the McCormick Agri UK Facebook page.
