Tractor Price Inflation

[Baling Hay]

Been several years since I looked at the price of a brand new tractor. In fact 2005 was the last time!

Back then it was possible to buy a TS115 New Holland for around £30k ish and a TM155 for less than 40k from memory. I just read this week's Farmer's Weekly and there is an article comparing 160hp tractors and they are all around £100k!!!!! About 2.5 times the price of a equivalent size TM155 15 years ago.

How does this stack up? Seems a huge jump in price! Has anyone worked out the annual inflation rate for tractors? Must be way higher than the UK general inflation rate?

 

[D14]

Been several years since I looked at the price of a brand new tractor. In fact 2005 was the last time!

Back then it was possible to buy a TS115 New Holland for around £30k ish and a TM155 for less than 40k from memory. I just read this week's Farmer's Weekly and there is an article comparing 160hp tractors and they are all around £100k!!!!! About 2.5 times the price of a equivalent size TM155 15 years ago.

How does this stack up? Seems a huge jump in price! Has anyone worked out the annual inflation rate for tractors? Must be way higher than the UK general inflation rate?

It doesn’t stack up if people use their calculators properly. Mainline franchised dealers just say ‘machinery is cheaper than labour’ with smug looks on their faces. I won’t ever buy a new tractor again and likewise I can’t afford to sell a tractor again. We’ll keep what we’ve got and keep buying used when we can afford it so we end up with everything self propelled doing 150 hours a year. It’s the only way we can carry on.
That way we’ll get a ‘repair’ every 4-5 years per tractor but we’ll continue to annually service even on the low hours. That’s what will be instilled in the younger generation coming through as well.

I’ve a very good friend who is an owner occupier on 4000ac. He’s a very shrewd cookie who’s got a number of non Ag small business’s as well. His finger is on the pulse and he knows his costs inside and out. He refuses to buy anything new citing the job can’t justify the costs if he wants to make a profit without subsidy which is going anyway now. He got so p****d off with dealers trying to overinflate used equipment prices to him because of who he is, because in their eyes he should be buying new, that he now refuses to deal with them. Instead he’s buying everything at sales and private adverts. He’s closed accounts at majority of the dealers as well and that’s caused some of them to bad mouth him. All it’s doing is putting other farmers off using these dealers. And before anybody says he’s a silver spoon farmer, he’s not. His grandfather bought 800ac in the 40’s totally funded by the bank and nearly bankrupted himself a few times doing so. Then my friend and his father have turned that into 4000ac since then. They’ve never sold an acre for building nor have subsided the farm with any outside money. They’ve done it by running old equipment and looking after it in house. They’ve sailed close to the wind a few times servicing mortgages over the years but now are a few years away from being mortgage free. That set up is a dealers wet dream, but in this case, not.

 

[zero]

Same here, bought a new tractor once but the equivalent model is nearly double the price now!! So it's not worth buying new anymore. Especially as there's alot of electrics to gamble on with the latest machines....

 

[Chae1]

As long as we keep buying them. Manufacturers will keep charging what the market will stand.

 

[Sid]

Been several years since I looked at the price of a brand new tractor. In fact 2005 was the last time!

Back then it was possible to buy a TS115 New Holland for around £30k ish and a TM155 for less than 40k from memory. I just read this week's Farmer's Weekly and there is an article comparing 160hp tractors and they are all around £100k!!!!! About 2.5 times the price of a equivalent size TM155 15 years ago.

How does this stack up? Seems a huge jump in price! Has anyone worked out the annual inflation rate for tractors? Must be way higher than the UK general inflation rate?

Look at how complex these new machines have got.

Suspension
Guidance
Gadgets and gizmos.
Then you have the mother regs

You don't have to spend 100k to get an equivalent 160hp tractor.
You can knock 20k off that price easy if not more!
Not saying they haven't risen disproportionatly but have to compare like with like.

 

[Suckndiesel]

As long as we keep buying them. Manufacturers will keep charging what the market will stand.

New Zealand vs Uk machinery prices are a good example of this

 

[daveydiesel1]

New Zealand vs Uk machinery prices are a good example of this

What price are they in new zealand?

 

[Sid]

New Zealand vs Uk machinery prices are a good example of this

But they don't have shiny machinery in NZ all the experts tell us that?

 

[Lincsman]

Been several years since I looked at the price of a brand new tractor. In fact 2005 was the last time!

Back then it was possible to buy a TS115 New Holland for around £30k ish and a TM155 for less than 40k from memory. I just read this week's Farmer's Weekly and there is an article comparing 160hp tractors and they are all around £100k!!!!! About 2.5 times the price of a equivalent size TM155 15 years ago.

How does this stack up? Seems a huge jump in price! Has anyone worked out the annual inflation rate for tractors? Must be way higher than the UK general inflation rate?

BPS etc, cars have not increased like that and look at the tech thats been added to them in the last 20 years, new tractors are still being sold and its not the cheaper ones its often the most expensive versions available despite the lack of anti roll bars!

 

[Nearly]

Well it looks like the export job has dried up overnight.
Any used bargains?

 

[colhonk]

Think this GPS stuff is an even bigger rip off,is it not.

 

[Sausage]

The cost is more in development than production. Every time a bonnet changes shape it’s got to be designed along with tooling, production contracts negotiated etc. then add on compliance with emissions and whatever else regs and it soon adds up.

Tractors aren’t sold in the same volumes as cars so it would be wrong to compare then like this as the cost needs to be spread over each unit.

For me the manufacturers are offering too much fancy stuff which doesn’t return the benefit associated with the cost, but you can’t get away from it as there are people still buying the tractors.

 

[Bill the Bass]

I don't know if this is right or not but I think the main reason why kit is dear is because money is cheap and readily available. Look at how much gets financed now compared to 15 20 years ago. Its the same with cars, they put a retail price on cars £20K+ for a half decent hatch back, but who pays retail price when over 90% of new cars are sold on PCP? The figures are meaningless - just like list price of tractors.

All seems a bit too much of a coincidence to me that tractors, cars etc have all increased in price massively since governments across the world started pumping money into the economy using QE. You aren't buying a new tractor or car so much as buying seemingly cheap credit.

 

[Drillman]

Well it looks like the export job has dried up overnight.
Any used bargains?

Give it time I already know of one dealer who was desperate to offload a machine onto me over the weekend.

I said no in the end.

 

[7610 super q]

It doesn't stack up. Yet folks still buy them. And as far as I can see you can't buy a basic, main brand 150hp tractor anymore. Own worst enemies.

 

[Lincsman]

Think this GPS stuff is an even bigger rip off,is it not.

Of course, tech drops in price over time, should be around £2k per unit now, but sales are holding at current prices so no need to discount yet.

 

[Yale]

Think stuff in NZ is a lot dearer than here.

@FonterraFarmer ,@NZ Tech ,@NZDan ,

 

[Drillman]

Of course, tech drops in price over time, should be around £2k per unit now, but sales are holding at current prices so no need to discount yet.

GPS is the new must have, a bit like power steering and a radio used to be. Once everyone has it it will be installed as standard on new stuff, and kits to fit older stuff will be for buttons.
Much the same as sat nav for cars.

 

[MrNoo]

Seems the prices quoted are a little far out, maybe not if your buying a Fendt or Jd, just paid 102k for a T7.245 PC 50k and guidance. They offered bugger all for my trade in so will keep it in the shed, sell if I need to at a later date. I have (or had) one main tractor on the place so it needs to be reliable and I hope the new one will be as reliable as the old one.

 

[Nearly]

Seems the prices quoted are a little far out, maybe not if your buying a Fendt or Jd, just paid 102k for a T7.245 PC 50k and guidance. They offered bugger all for my trade in so will keep it in the shed, sell if I need to at a later date. I have (or had) one main tractor on the place so it needs to be reliable and I hope the new one will be as reliable as the old one.

Keeping the old one in the shed seems to be best practice now.
It doesn't inspire confidence does it.