Valtra tractor sets speed record at Formula 1 circuit
Finnish tractor manufacturer Valtra took its sixth-generation T Series tractor to Austria’s Red Bull Ring, completing a lap in 3 minutes and 36.4 seconds. The agricultural machine, powered by a 7.5-litre diesel engine, reached 87 km/h on the straight. The result represents a circuit record, although no data is available on previous lap times by comparable tractors.
180 kW and 7.5 litres of engine capacity
Valtra organised the unusual test with tyre manufacturer Nokian Tyres. The tractor that took to the circuit was a sixth-generation T Series model, whose AGCO Power CORE75 six-cylinder diesel engine develops 180 kW.
Torque in the most powerful T Series version reaches 1,184 Nm. Such an engine is primarily suited to pulling heavy agricultural implements, rather than setting records on a racing circuit.
Red Bull Racing representatives confirmed the tractor’s top speed of 87 km/h. By comparison, a standard T Series tractor has a maximum speed of up to 57 km/h, depending on the version. Valtra has not specified how the usual limit was exceeded during the test run.
According to the manufacturer’s official figures, the tractor completed a lap in 3:36.4, setting a tractor lap record at the Red Bull Ring. This was, however, a demonstration organised by the manufacturer, rather than an official competition-class record.
The same tractor also proved itself in the field
Valtra’s aim was not simply to demonstrate the tractor’s speed. Together with agricultural machinery manufacturer Väderstad, the company organised a second test in which a T Series tractor of the same generation reached a speed of 40.125 km/h while sowing, maintaining sowing accuracy above 95%.
This gives the demonstration on the racing circuit a more practical significance. Alongside engine power, electronic control, precise use of traction and the automation of work processes play an increasingly important role in modern tractor development.
The Red Bull Ring record is, of course, primarily a publicity stunt. Nor is 87 km/h an outright speed record for tractors. Valtra and Nokian Tyres reached 130.165 km/h on an icy road back in 2015, with Juha Kankkunen at the wheel.
