Farmwork’s Machinery Ltd is a full-line Fendt dealer for the northeast region, based in Ballyboughal, Co Dublin.
The company was set up by Ciaran Tierney in February 2010, after Donohoe Agri – which has previously served the area – closed in 2009.
Colin explains that both he and Ciaran had worked together at Donohoe’s, which had previously been the main dealer for Fendt and Massey Ferguson.
When it shut its doors, Ciaran decided to start a new business and asked Colin to come on board.
“To his credit, it’s going from strength to strength,” Colin says.
With nearly 25 years’ experience working as a mechanic, 18 of which have been spent working on Fendt equipment, it’s fair to say that Colin has a superb knowledge and understanding of the Vario transmission.
Committed to technology
Fendt is known as a premium tractor brand that has always been committed to technology and stands out for one key reason: every tractor in the range, regardless of horsepower, comes with a continuously variable transmission (CVT), known as the ‘Vario’.
The latest TA400 second generation VarioDrive transmission which is found in the 900 Vario Gen7 and 1000 Vario Gen3/Gen4 models.
Last year marked 30 years from Fendt unveiling the Favorit 926 Vario, the first large tractor fitted with CVT (ML 200). CVT technology wasn’t always an easy sell to the Irish market, but this is something that has changed over the past decade and continues to.
“A few years ago, you could see it clearly,” Colin says. “Customers would come into the yard and there’d be an anxiety there with the gearbox and the terminology they didn’t understand.”
He believes that farmers, contractors and even mechanics who hadn’t used or repaired this type of system were naturally cautious, explaining: “It’s the fear of the unknown, I feel.”
That hesitation meant it took time for Fendt to gain a proper foothold in the Irish market.
Growing steadily
But things have changed, and the brand is growing steadily now, especially the 700 series. Colin is quick to point out that while CVT sounds complicated, it’s often overthought.
“People can overcomplicate it,” he says. “When you break it down to its bare bones, it’s a hydrostat and a planetary combined into one.”
Even for someone with his experience, the technical side can still sound confusing at times.
“I can get a bit perplexed myself when others talk about it,” he admits. “But there isn’t that much to it afterwards.”
In simple terms, the transmission uses two inputs to control the output to the wheels via a planetary unit: engine speed and the hydrostatic unit. The hydrostat consists of a variable pump and motor or two motors on larger machines, which work together with a planetary gear set.
The “Vario” cassette unit sitting inside the transmission casing with hydrostat towards the bottom of the image and planetary unit at the rear
To make it easier to understand, Colin uses a simple comparison: a person running on a treadmill.
“He’s active, but he isn’t moving forward,” he explains. If the person runs at the same speed as the belt in the opposite direction, they stay still. This is effectively neutral. To move forward, they must run faster than the belt. At top speed it’s like moving in the same direction as the belt, combining both speeds of the athlete and treadmill or a double output.
In the tractor, all of this is controlled by adjusting the angles of the pumps and motors, which in turn affects the gearing within the planetary system. While there are sensors and controllers involved, Colin says it’s much simpler in practice than it might first sound. The benefits of the Vario transmission are significant. It helps prevent rollback when pulling trailers, reduces wear and tear when moving off with heavy loads, and improves fuel efficiency.
Today, Fendt is a market leader in Ireland in the 300hp+ segment, a market which really tests out the performance and reliability of any transmission, Colin rightfully points out.
Easy to drive
The transmission power is a hydrostatic-mechanical power split drive. Hydrostatic at low speed, to full mechanical at high speed, which is a big fuel saving over other CVT transmissions from competitors, Colin believes.
The latest generation AGCO Power engines idle at just 600rpm.
“Yes, the Vario isn’t completely bulletproof, but it’s mainly down to operators being the main problem here. Overloading the transmission by being in the wrong range (eg range two) in the field while undertaking heavy draft work like ploughing and also using the transmission as a brake by pulling back on the joystick when coming up to a junction are two common misuses.”
The latter causes back loading in the transmission which is a big no-no he says.
Colin advises the use of the exhaust brake and main brakes to slow down. He says that drivers should also anticipate their approach to junctions or speed bumps and not leave braking late and then use the joystick/transmission to get them stopped at the last minute.
Transmission oils
Another issue, he says, is poor maintenance or that guys are using the wrong grade of transmission oils and cheap oils are a real problem where transmission failure was encountered.
Normal hydraulic oil will break down as this transmission operates at about three times the pressure of standard oils.
In the field Colin says that “active stand still” is a great feature when baling or at loader work, as when a tractor is in TMS mode (tractor management system) this connects the engine and transmission to optimise fuel usage and operator comfort.
It hydraulically locks up the transmission when you stop the tractor and prevents the tractor rolling forward as the cardan brake locks up after five seconds.
This leaves for no real need to use the internal brakes to bring the tractor to a stop and no need to keep your foot on the brakes in the field, these machines are all about operator comfort.
Exchange unit concept
The transmission itself is a cassette that is held on two support rods inside the transmission tub, and a Fendt tractor does not have to be split to remove it. This is the case with most other tractor brands, which makes changing the unit a lot easier than on conventional powershift tractors and significantly reduces the labour cost during repair.
Colin believes that while cab controls may appear over whelming at first, they are in fact simple and well laid out when understood.
If you had an issue with a mechanical gearbox on other brands, the process – from stripping and diagnosing the full extent of the problem, making up an accurate parts list, waiting for parts and replacing faulty parts is very time-consuming.
The exchange/replacement unit that Fendt supplies is fully factory rebuilt and tested in Germany by their best technicians and comes with a one-year warranty or 2,000 hours.
Colin says the beauty of a Fendt core exchange is that the machine can be back up and running within one to two days, if a transmission is in stock, which is a quick turnaround.
It would be difficult to achieve this kind of turnaround with any powershift box and provide a warranty as lots of components are still partially worn.
Maintenance-wise, the engine is 500 hours, the transmission is 2000 hours, but Colin says they understand each of their customer’s workload and might change the high-pressure filter between 500 and 2,000 hours, along with the transmission oil if they are doing a lot of heavy haulage and this gives them great peace of mind too.
Fendt Vario – history and magic
Fendt pioneered the CVT transmission over 30 years ago, a project led by design engineer Hans Marschall who is now considered the “father” of the Fendt Vario transmission.
Fendt still honours him as the various transmissions are denoted with a HM to represent the inventor.
After decades of R&D, the first tractor launched with the Vario transmission was the Favorit 925 model in 1995.
The Vario can go from full mechanical to fully hydraulic to suit the task so it’s at its best for high-speed work like pulling an empty trailer or slow high-torque work like ploughing
The real secret sauce for this CVT versus its competitors is down to the piston design in the pumps and motors which are shaped like a baseball bat.
They are a tapered conical piston to enable the swing angles of up to 45°and hence achieve a large displacement of oil. Competitors can’t achieve this as they use the traditional full body piston like on most pumps.
Colin explains: “This allows Fendt to swash out to 45°, creating a large oil flow and is something akin to a wide-angle PTO drive shaft versus standard which allows operators turn sharper in the field, Fendt’s Vario achieves similar with a large displacement of oil.”
Other competitors need to add clutch packs and more synchros to make up the shortfall of their limited hydrostat and so they might drive like a CVT, but they have many more components and power consuming parts via oil drag.
“The Vario can go from full mechanical to fully hydraulic to suit the task so it’s at its best for high-speed work like pulling an empty trailer or slow high-torque work like ploughing,” he says.
Are they worth the money?
“Looking at it from just a mechanics perspective, I really believe a Fendt is worth the money for several reasons,” Colin says. “Salespeople will talk resale value and how well they hold their money after investing initially and that’s all true. Like any machine, there can be niggles here and there but overall, they are reliable and robust units.
“We have a wide range of customers so I see them with tillage lads, spud guys, your vegetable grower up to the livestock farmers, plus agri contractors and plant hire people, so you see them performing in all types of environments.
“We have a few tractors out there that have between 16,000 and 19,000 hours, and two at over 25000 hours, same engine, same gearbox,” he said.
“The difference is they are owner drivers, so they can easily achieve high hours if they are well minded.
“At the end of the day, I think it’s comfort, reliability and of course the transmission and fuel savings that convert people,” he added.
“Fendt controls are well laid out and easy to understand or use, once explained. When some people sit in the seat for the first time they can be overwhelmed, but once you explain it to them and they settle in, they fall in love with the machine.”
Fendt dealership, Farmworks Machinery was set up by Ciaran Tierney in February 2010.
Brakes
Colin explains that the brakes are a multi-disc, phosphor bronze setup, versus the single-disc arrangement found on many other brands, providing superior braking performance.
The rear brakes are housed within their own separate chamber and oil compartment, which minimises contamination of the main Vario transmission oil and helps to prolong its service life.
The cardan brake on Fendt tractors serves as a parking brake or auxiliary brake on the driveshaft. In contrast, some other manufacturers use more complex systems with brakes located in the front hubs, where they are more prone to contamination, lack of maintenance, and severe operating conditions, particularly on 4WD models.
Trailer braking performance
The braking system on Fendt tractors must be capable of stopping machines travelling at over 60km/h, and it is very robust.
“However, the biggest issue we encounter, similar to other manufacturers is poor trailer braking performance. This is often due to low-quality axles, narrow brake shoes, and brakes that are not properly adjusted or regularly maintained”.
As a result, the tractor is forced to compensate for inadequate braking on trailers and slurry tankers. Sudden braking with heavy mounted equipment, such as fertiliser spreaders, which can often carry up to 5t, doesn’t help the lifespan of brakes either.
The larger HP tractors, such as the 900/1000 series models, include additional features like stability control to reduce lean, trailer brake assistant, and ABS.
Ideal loader tractor
Telehandlers are another significant cost for many farmers and are limited in terms of the work they can do compared to a tractor fitted with a good-spec loader.
“I think in some cases, the 300, 500, 600 and 700 series tractors are ideally suited to front loaders, and this setup unlocks significant potential, especially with features such as the pedal hold function.”
Some stockmen have switched to Fendt because they can realistically replace a telehandler while still retaining a fully capable farm tractor.
Torque converters don’t have the fuel efficiency of a CVT, they can be slow on the road, heavy in the field, no real suspension or ride comfort.
“Historically, Fendt was probably not considered by most as a loader tractor but they really are an all-rounder now,” says Colin.
The 300-600 series are very compact, with a short wheelbase which suits tight farmyards. They also offer high visibility and well laid-out, spacious and quiet cabs.
Fuel saving – low engine speed concept
Fendt engineers are conscious of fuel consumption and efficiency which is all part of Fendt’s new “low speed concept” as part of a fuel saving drive. Colin says the latest new 728 has its rated speed very low at only 1,700RPM.
“The latest generation engines tick over at only 600RPM and can reach 60km/h at just 1,540 rpm, 50km/h at 1,200RPM. This combined with the Vario means the forward speed is decoupled from the engine speed meaning guys moving empty trailers back to fields are very efficient and not just revved out to move fast. Fear was a big problem for new customers in the past buying their first Fendt, but they aren’t long seeing the gains today.
Perception
“Older farmers had this misconception and think Fendt were too complicated to drive and to set up, but once you spend time with any first-time operator and go through the controls, this perception changes quickly. Fendt might be more expensive initially than other brands, but the technology and fuel saving, comfort, plus resale value is where the customer ends up winning,” Colin says.
Farmwork’s Machinery Ltd is a full-line Fendt dealer for the northeast region, based in Ballyboughal, Co Dublin.
The company was set up by Ciaran Tierney in February 2010, after Donohoe Agri – which has previously served the area – closed in 2009.
Colin explains that both he and Ciaran had worked together at Donohoe’s, which had previously been the main dealer for Fendt and Massey Ferguson.
When it shut its doors, Ciaran decided to start a new business and asked Colin to come on board.
“To his credit, it’s going from strength to strength,” Colin says.
With nearly 25 years’ experience working as a mechanic, 18 of which have been spent working on Fendt equipment, it’s fair to say that Colin has a superb knowledge and understanding of the Vario transmission.
Committed to technology
Fendt is known as a premium tractor brand that has always been committed to technology and stands out for one key reason: every tractor in the range, regardless of horsepower, comes with a continuously variable transmission (CVT), known as the ‘Vario’.
The latest TA400 second generation VarioDrive transmission which is found in the 900 Vario Gen7 and 1000 Vario Gen3/Gen4 models.
Last year marked 30 years from Fendt unveiling the Favorit 926 Vario, the first large tractor fitted with CVT (ML 200). CVT technology wasn’t always an easy sell to the Irish market, but this is something that has changed over the past decade and continues to.
“A few years ago, you could see it clearly,” Colin says. “Customers would come into the yard and there’d be an anxiety there with the gearbox and the terminology they didn’t understand.”
He believes that farmers, contractors and even mechanics who hadn’t used or repaired this type of system were naturally cautious, explaining: “It’s the fear of the unknown, I feel.”
That hesitation meant it took time for Fendt to gain a proper foothold in the Irish market.
Growing steadily
But things have changed, and the brand is growing steadily now, especially the 700 series. Colin is quick to point out that while CVT sounds complicated, it’s often overthought.
“People can overcomplicate it,” he says. “When you break it down to its bare bones, it’s a hydrostat and a planetary combined into one.”
Even for someone with his experience, the technical side can still sound confusing at times.
“I can get a bit perplexed myself when others talk about it,” he admits. “But there isn’t that much to it afterwards.”
In simple terms, the transmission uses two inputs to control the output to the wheels via a planetary unit: engine speed and the hydrostatic unit. The hydrostat consists of a variable pump and motor or two motors on larger machines, which work together with a planetary gear set.
The “Vario” cassette unit sitting inside the transmission casing with hydrostat towards the bottom of the image and planetary unit at the rear
To make it easier to understand, Colin uses a simple comparison: a person running on a treadmill.
“He’s active, but he isn’t moving forward,” he explains. If the person runs at the same speed as the belt in the opposite direction, they stay still. This is effectively neutral. To move forward, they must run faster than the belt. At top speed it’s like moving in the same direction as the belt, combining both speeds of the athlete and treadmill or a double output.
In the tractor, all of this is controlled by adjusting the angles of the pumps and motors, which in turn affects the gearing within the planetary system. While there are sensors and controllers involved, Colin says it’s much simpler in practice than it might first sound. The benefits of the Vario transmission are significant. It helps prevent rollback when pulling trailers, reduces wear and tear when moving off with heavy loads, and improves fuel efficiency.
Today, Fendt is a market leader in Ireland in the 300hp+ segment, a market which really tests out the performance and reliability of any transmission, Colin rightfully points out.
Easy to drive
The transmission power is a hydrostatic-mechanical power split drive. Hydrostatic at low speed, to full mechanical at high speed, which is a big fuel saving over other CVT transmissions from competitors, Colin believes.
The latest generation AGCO Power engines idle at just 600rpm.
“Yes, the Vario isn’t completely bulletproof, but it’s mainly down to operators being the main problem here. Overloading the transmission by being in the wrong range (eg range two) in the field while undertaking heavy draft work like ploughing and also using the transmission as a brake by pulling back on the joystick when coming up to a junction are two common misuses.”
The latter causes back loading in the transmission which is a big no-no he says.
Colin advises the use of the exhaust brake and main brakes to slow down. He says that drivers should also anticipate their approach to junctions or speed bumps and not leave braking late and then use the joystick/transmission to get them stopped at the last minute.
Transmission oils
Another issue, he says, is poor maintenance or that guys are using the wrong grade of transmission oils and cheap oils are a real problem where transmission failure was encountered.
Normal hydraulic oil will break down as this transmission operates at about three times the pressure of standard oils.
In the field Colin says that “active stand still” is a great feature when baling or at loader work, as when a tractor is in TMS mode (tractor management system) this connects the engine and transmission to optimise fuel usage and operator comfort.
It hydraulically locks up the transmission when you stop the tractor and prevents the tractor rolling forward as the cardan brake locks up after five seconds.
This leaves for no real need to use the internal brakes to bring the tractor to a stop and no need to keep your foot on the brakes in the field, these machines are all about operator comfort.
Exchange unit concept
The transmission itself is a cassette that is held on two support rods inside the transmission tub, and a Fendt tractor does not have to be split to remove it. This is the case with most other tractor brands, which makes changing the unit a lot easier than on conventional powershift tractors and significantly reduces the labour cost during repair.
Colin believes that while cab controls may appear over whelming at first, they are in fact simple and well laid out when understood.
If you had an issue with a mechanical gearbox on other brands, the process – from stripping and diagnosing the full extent of the problem, making up an accurate parts list, waiting for parts and replacing faulty parts is very time-consuming.
The exchange/replacement unit that Fendt supplies is fully factory rebuilt and tested in Germany by their best technicians and comes with a one-year warranty or 2,000 hours.
Colin says the beauty of a Fendt core exchange is that the machine can be back up and running within one to two days, if a transmission is in stock, which is a quick turnaround.
It would be difficult to achieve this kind of turnaround with any powershift box and provide a warranty as lots of components are still partially worn.
Maintenance-wise, the engine is 500 hours, the transmission is 2000 hours, but Colin says they understand each of their customer’s workload and might change the high-pressure filter between 500 and 2,000 hours, along with the transmission oil if they are doing a lot of heavy haulage and this gives them great peace of mind too.
Fendt Vario – history and magic
Fendt pioneered the CVT transmission over 30 years ago, a project led by design engineer Hans Marschall who is now considered the “father” of the Fendt Vario transmission.
Fendt still honours him as the various transmissions are denoted with a HM to represent the inventor.
After decades of R&D, the first tractor launched with the Vario transmission was the Favorit 925 model in 1995.
The Vario can go from full mechanical to fully hydraulic to suit the task so it’s at its best for high-speed work like pulling an empty trailer or slow high-torque work like ploughing
The real secret sauce for this CVT versus its competitors is down to the piston design in the pumps and motors which are shaped like a baseball bat.
They are a tapered conical piston to enable the swing angles of up to 45°and hence achieve a large displacement of oil. Competitors can’t achieve this as they use the traditional full body piston like on most pumps.
Colin explains: “This allows Fendt to swash out to 45°, creating a large oil flow and is something akin to a wide-angle PTO drive shaft versus standard which allows operators turn sharper in the field, Fendt’s Vario achieves similar with a large displacement of oil.”
Other competitors need to add clutch packs and more synchros to make up the shortfall of their limited hydrostat and so they might drive like a CVT, but they have many more components and power consuming parts via oil drag.
“The Vario can go from full mechanical to fully hydraulic to suit the task so it’s at its best for high-speed work like pulling an empty trailer or slow high-torque work like ploughing,” he says.
Are they worth the money?
“Looking at it from just a mechanics perspective, I really believe a Fendt is worth the money for several reasons,” Colin says. “Salespeople will talk resale value and how well they hold their money after investing initially and that’s all true. Like any machine, there can be niggles here and there but overall, they are reliable and robust units.
“We have a wide range of customers so I see them with tillage lads, spud guys, your vegetable grower up to the livestock farmers, plus agri contractors and plant hire people, so you see them performing in all types of environments.
“We have a few tractors out there that have between 16,000 and 19,000 hours, and two at over 25000 hours, same engine, same gearbox,” he said.
“The difference is they are owner drivers, so they can easily achieve high hours if they are well minded.
“At the end of the day, I think it’s comfort, reliability and of course the transmission and fuel savings that convert people,” he added.
“Fendt controls are well laid out and easy to understand or use, once explained. When some people sit in the seat for the first time they can be overwhelmed, but once you explain it to them and they settle in, they fall in love with the machine.”
Fendt dealership, Farmworks Machinery was set up by Ciaran Tierney in February 2010.
Brakes
Colin explains that the brakes are a multi-disc, phosphor bronze setup, versus the single-disc arrangement found on many other brands, providing superior braking performance.
The rear brakes are housed within their own separate chamber and oil compartment, which minimises contamination of the main Vario transmission oil and helps to prolong its service life.
The cardan brake on Fendt tractors serves as a parking brake or auxiliary brake on the driveshaft. In contrast, some other manufacturers use more complex systems with brakes located in the front hubs, where they are more prone to contamination, lack of maintenance, and severe operating conditions, particularly on 4WD models.
Trailer braking performance
The braking system on Fendt tractors must be capable of stopping machines travelling at over 60km/h, and it is very robust.
“However, the biggest issue we encounter, similar to other manufacturers is poor trailer braking performance. This is often due to low-quality axles, narrow brake shoes, and brakes that are not properly adjusted or regularly maintained”.
As a result, the tractor is forced to compensate for inadequate braking on trailers and slurry tankers. Sudden braking with heavy mounted equipment, such as fertiliser spreaders, which can often carry up to 5t, doesn’t help the lifespan of brakes either.
The larger HP tractors, such as the 900/1000 series models, include additional features like stability control to reduce lean, trailer brake assistant, and ABS.
Ideal loader tractor
Telehandlers are another significant cost for many farmers and are limited in terms of the work they can do compared to a tractor fitted with a good-spec loader.
“I think in some cases, the 300, 500, 600 and 700 series tractors are ideally suited to front loaders, and this setup unlocks significant potential, especially with features such as the pedal hold function.”
Some stockmen have switched to Fendt because they can realistically replace a telehandler while still retaining a fully capable farm tractor.
Torque converters don’t have the fuel efficiency of a CVT, they can be slow on the road, heavy in the field, no real suspension or ride comfort.
“Historically, Fendt was probably not considered by most as a loader tractor but they really are an all-rounder now,” says Colin.
The 300-600 series are very compact, with a short wheelbase which suits tight farmyards. They also offer high visibility and well laid-out, spacious and quiet cabs.
Fuel saving – low engine speed concept
Fendt engineers are conscious of fuel consumption and efficiency which is all part of Fendt’s new “low speed concept” as part of a fuel saving drive. Colin says the latest new 728 has its rated speed very low at only 1,700RPM.
“The latest generation engines tick over at only 600RPM and can reach 60km/h at just 1,540 rpm, 50km/h at 1,200RPM. This combined with the Vario means the forward speed is decoupled from the engine speed meaning guys moving empty trailers back to fields are very efficient and not just revved out to move fast. Fear was a big problem for new customers in the past buying their first Fendt, but they aren’t long seeing the gains today.
Perception
“Older farmers had this misconception and think Fendt were too complicated to drive and to set up, but once you spend time with any first-time operator and go through the controls, this perception changes quickly. Fendt might be more expensive initially than other brands, but the technology and fuel saving, comfort, plus resale value is where the customer ends up winning,” Colin says.
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