Several years ago, Deere announced the development of a new 18-litre, six-cylinder motor that would span 700-900hp. The new 9500 and 9600 choppers are the first machines to get the big block powerplant

What is the ideal horsepower jump between forager models, should it be 50hp, 75hp, 100hp…? For Deere the 145hp hop between the 8600 and 9600 that share the same 625hp, 13.5-litre motor, and the 770hp 9700 with the Liebherr V12 was seen as too big. Enter the 18-litre, inline-six DPS JD18X engine which will be used in the new 9500 and 9600.