The price of off-road diesel has increased from 77 cents per litre to 96 cents, which is an increase of 25%.
This rise in fuel prices is already affecting your margins, and there's no point relying on policies to reduce fuel taxes and help you regain profitability.

Tractor consumptionHowever, there are some simple solutions to reduce the fuel consumption of agricultural vehicles for equal work that we can all use. Continue reading for six key ways to reduce your consumption.

There are five main factors to take into consideration to help reduce your tractor's consumption:

    1. Your tyres
    2. The type of work being carried out
    3. The load
    4. The speed
    5. The tool adjustment

 

Here are six points that will have the biggest impact on your fuel consumption:

1. Adjusting tyre pressure is essential for saving fuel

Tyre pressure based on the type of ground is the factor that has the biggest impact on your fuel consumption.

In the fields, an over-inflated tyre will result in excessive slip, and will therefore need more engine power to make up for the lost grip and better transfer tractive force to the ground.

On roads, an under-inflated tyre will have too large a contact surface area with the tarmac, thus generating considerable resistance that also need more engine power.

2. Use the eco power take-off

The original tyres supplied with your tractor are not the most suitable for your machine; they're simply whatever was cheapest for the manufacturer.

It will always be more profitable for your farm to replace these tyres with ones that are better suited to your main tractor usage.

low fuel consumption with VF tyre

Equipping your tractor with low-pressure tyres that are wider than the original set has such a strong impact on your fuel consumption that you will more than recoup the additional cost of these tyres from all the subsequent fuel savings after only a few months of use. This means you're actually coming out on top in the long run, even though it might seem more expensive in the beginning.

3. Use the eco power take-off

This feature is available on nearly all recent tractors. The 540 rpm power take-off is obtained using a 20-25% lower engine speed than full power mode.

If you reduce the engine speed, the eco take-off will still deliver the same power but using 15-20% less fuel.

4. Save on fuel by working at shallower depths

For heavy jobs like ploughing and clearing stubble, it's not always useful to work at depth. If you soil is tilled on a regular basis and you take care to avoid excessive compaction, or if your tractor is equipped with low-pressure VF tyres, you can reduce your working depth by several centimetres without affecting crop yields.

Testing has shown that reducing depth by 8 cm saves 26% more fuel.

5. Save by reducing road speeds

We're constantly against the clock, but if you reduce your speed by 10 km/h when driving on the road you can save a lot of fuel over the year, especially if it's a long distance between the farm and your plots.

True, you'll lose an extra 5 or 6 minutes per journey, but it's the reduced fuel consumption that'll make more of a difference to your end-of-year balance sheet.

6. Correct weight distribution

The traction power needed for ploughing has a direct impact on your consumption. If you miscalculate the load transfer, your tractor won't be balanced and you won't be getting the full benefit of its power.

By increasing the axle load based on the tool being used, you'll improve your tractor's grip, prevent slip, and gain the maximum tractive force from your engine with zero loss.

 


TO FIND OUT MORE:
Farmers from nine different countries tested out various fuel saving solutions.

Download their results by clicking below

Download Efficient 20 Save your fuel

This information is intended only to make you aware of the technical and functional aspects of agricultural tires and their use. It does not allow you to make a judgment or a definitive conclusion on a given problem. Only your agricultural tire expert is able to make a technical assessment and take a final decision, case by case.