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fuel efficient 60hp tractor

W

wheelin justin

New User
I've got an interesting project going on. I'm looking at building a fuel efficient project vehicle and looking at tractor engines as there efficient in the powerband I need. Gas or diesel (my guess is diesel will be better). What's the most fuel efficient tractor in the 40-60 hp range?
 
Your best bet would be a late model KUBOTA engine, about as fuel efficient as anything on the market. You could find a 45 hp from salvaged machines . My e mail is open if you want more specifics.
 
I definately want something older, affordable, and with no electronics.
I really want something American to, I couldn't bring myself to use
something made over seas
 
Just throwing this out there. Have you looked at a GM 2.5L find a TBI engine or just a carbed engine. Not as common as they once were but exceptional on fuel with the right gears behind them. Some thing to think about bigger engine with idling with high gears will get better MPG then a small engine with low gears running wide open. Case in point my old Lincoln Town Car with V8 got better mileage then my Escort ZX2 with the I4 did. Sod Buster
 
John Deere tractors from the Germany plant seem to get a real bashing on here by a few guys, but I have put some real hours on them year after year and they are really good on fuel. They start very well in cold climates, and they built boat loads of them. Parts are really easy to find. Just putting a Deere engine in something improves its value. I am not saying they are the best, but the market speaks for its self. The best engine I have used myself with thousands of hours is a Deutz. They are built with German technology which has always been top self. They are outstanding on fuel, but can be VERY pricy to repair. biggest problem with these engines is the average American farmer didn't understand they needed to be treated different from US engines. They can withstand unbelievable abuse as long as they have oil and the cooling finns cleaned on a almost daily basis. I have seen some with 15,000 hrs with almost zero repairs. I am not sold on how long the rice built engines will last. It is to early to tell. Nothing I have written is gospel, just my opinion after 35 years running an ag repair business and farming. Al
 
I had a 1982 MF 283 with a four cylinder
Perkins diesel that was rated at 69hp. It
would work all day running a 6' rotary
mower and use very little fuel.
 
I agree on the Perkins engines. Another plus is they have a long 5" stroke for a flat torque curve throughout the RPM range.
 
Those little Perkins are peppy and efficient engines. I'd think a 236 or a turbo charged 236 would be sweet in a little pick up or suv.
 

I run mostly Allis Chalmers 175 diesels in my business. They have the Perkins 4.248 engines in them and are very fuel efficient, typically running .5-1.5 gph with an 8' Bush Hog. A lot has to do with the efficiency of the rest of the tractor. These tractors have very little power loss in the drive train and hydraulics...hydrostatic power shift trannies, big hydraulic pumps and AC will cut your efficiency dramatically. I ran the same mower with JD's and 276 cid engines that used 2 to 3 times the fuel...and they were 30 years newer!
 
You are looking for "the holy grail" or "tilting at windmills".

Diesel tractor engines (on the average) range from 13 to 19 HP hrs/gallon at full load (a pretty narrow efficiency range, actually), but some are better at light loads than others.

For your hypothetical 60 HP vehicle a certain engine running at a certain speed in it's powerband is gonna look pretty good.

Trouble is in the real world, how much of the "driving cycle" is gonna be at full rated HP and RPM's and in the engine's "powerband"?

That's why vehicles today have a 5, 6, 7. 8, or even 10=speed "slushbox", to keep the engine running at a speed where it's most fuel-efficient.

GOOD LUCK "beating the syshtem"!
 
The 4 cyl turbo on a Gleamer F2/ 3 is darn efficient, but over 90 hp. A turbo is going to be more efficient, so anything with turbo in your hp rating
would be better?

I'd guess a Kubota as mentioned is right up there.

The air cooled Deutz as well, the air cooling makes them a little more care needed, but also more efficient, probably be the winner for you.

Paul
 
Strangely enough, the 2 stroke compound turbocharged diesel engine is the most fuel efficient by design. However, finding a Detroit 2-71 of 68HP is going to be rather hard. The little engine will grind out the torque, and sip fuel if it's configured right.

Most Detroit diesels are 3-71, 4-71, or 8V-71, etc. Probably stick with the little Perkins 4 stroker.
 
(quoted from post at 17:51:05 02/06/18) minneapolis Moline, jetstar3, m602, and best of all NO computors or electronics!!!
Click to expand...

I have a good running Jetstar gas engine for sale....
 
I had a 2440 JD. that always stood out to me how little fuel that would use. However my other tractor at the time was a 706 gas and you couldn't pour fuel in that thing fast enough
so by comparison the 2440 seamed good but maybe it wasn't.
 
I once owned a MF 533 (2007 version of the 135). It had a Perkins NA 202 CI 3 cylinder, long stroke engine derated to 45 PTO HP for use in the single reduction 533. It was a torque monster and used very little fuel.

The same basic engine was used in turbocharged application up to about 70 PTO HP, so it was loafing in the 533.

FWIW: I replaced the 533 with a Kubota L6060 hydrostat in 2016, knowing that the 6060 was a guzzler. The L6060 has a 4 cylinder 148.5 CI turbocharged engine rated at 53 PTO HP and is a dream to operate but it uses about three times as much fuel to mow the same parcels with the same mower as did the 533. I do, of course get the work done more quickly.

Dean
 
A case 770 diesel would be about as good as
you can get, but more hp as they are around
70hp. We had an 870 which is 85hp and even
pulling 5-16s plow you could run 2 days on
the 45 gal tank. The case/David Brown's
were also very efficient, but I never drove
one.
 
Actually, a 730 JD diesel held the highest economy rating in the Nebraska's test for
many years....but how could one adapt that engine to another application??
Ben
 
Well in the mid 1980's the top tractor tested by Nebraska tests was the John Deere 1650 made by Yanmar. It was the first tractor to beat the record previously held by the John Deere 720 from the late 1950's
I have not heard what or if anything has beaten them since ?
 
It won't spend very much time at it's rated horsepower. The vehicle is
model T ford. It currently has its original 20hp 4 cylinder engine. With
this motor, which is under 4 to 1 compression it'll do 20 mpgs
depending on terrain. The way it's currently geared it won't reach past
1700 Rpm often at all, up to 45 mph or so. It does make most of its
torque 800-900 rpm. I'm figuring an efficient small turbo diesel tractor
engine should really improve its fuel economy and have more power
making the car more drivable on faster roads. The engine should
spend the majority of its time pushing 20hp so part throttle economy
is important.
 
Kubota builds skid engines. They are very fuel efficient,( especially turbo versions), compact, and will fit into small engine compartments.
Loren
 
I've got a 1967 Ford 3000 that's about 50 HP and it has lots of power and sips diesel. If a person got a 4000 or 5000 and the power/fuel ratio was about the same it would be very good. I also have a MF 230 that's only about 30 HP but with it being a lot heavier that the 3000 and has loaded tires that little Perkins drinks very little and lots of power.
 

Most/many tractors have been independently tested for power and fuel efficiency, google Nebraska Tractor Tests for actual data.

For example, lets consider an engine similar to your Model T but a little more modern, compression was 6.5:1.....wow. The 8N Ford was produced from 1948 to 1952 and was tested reference, Nebraska Tractor Test #443. From this, we see that during a 10 HR test operating at: 1749 RPM and 17.65 Drawbar HP, the fuel consumption was 1.74 Gal/HR. Fuel efficiency was 10.1 HP-HR/Gal, obtained by dividing the operating HP by the fuel consumption per hour. Assuming 17.65 HP at the rear wheels would drive your Model T at 60 MPH this engine could deliver 34.4 MPG (60 Miles/HR divided 1.74 Gal/HR).

Note: Since the energy content of diesel fuel is greater than that of gasoline on a volume basis, the HP-HR/Gal metric is a measurement of fuel efficiency and not engine efficiency. For engine efficiency the energy content difference between the fuels would need to be accounted for.

Good Luck on your project.
 
I agree with Keith......Nothing at 68 hp will beat the Deutz. Thousands of applications on pumps and generators & they sip fuel.
 

203 Cube Kubota 4 cyl turbo diesel. Uses less than 2 GPH, 71 Engine HP

Perkins 152 will use 1 GPH doing very light work.
 
A Ford model T is not going to like the weight of any 60HP diesel.

If you're going to re-engine it, I would suggest just getting some small modern gas engine with a carb. Early Honda, Suzuki aluminum block engine with a carb on it before 1984. This engine will do most of what the diesel will do, and not damage the chassis. I had a 1980 Honda Civic that would get better than 40MPG if not driven hard. You'll barely be gaining anything by going to diesel once the price difference of fuel is figured in.
 
If your only goal is max fuel economy find yourself an old (but straight) frame from a honda, suzuki or similar street bike and throw on a small rip cord start diesel in the 5-10 hp range. And drive the rear tire through a cvt setup.
 

Using this machine thousands of hours a year and trying to save money ? Or is it a tinker project and conversation price ?
 
There is a guy (Mr Brown)near Byron, Georgia that puts Ford tractor engines in pickups and claims amazing fuel mileage. He has been featured in several best farm and shop ideas magazines. You would probably find him using Google. We had a mechanic (George Clark of Corning, Kansas) that put Allis Chalmers WD 45 tractor engines in his Sprint cars. He made a simple fuel injection system that used a hand pump to pressurize the fuel system to get more fuel into the intake manifold. Cars were fairly competitive and fast but the engines didn't last long with the RPM's he was running. His driver was killed in a race accident at the Hutchinson Fair Grounds in one of his WD cars. Doubt you can beat the new turbo'ed car engines with computer controlled fuel systems for efficiency and meet EPA. Good luck.
 
(quoted from post at 21:58:27 02/06/18) I definately want something older, affordable, and with no electronics.
I really want something American to, I couldn't bring myself to use
something made over seas
Click to expand...

Well, then you probably aren't going to find anything real fuel efficient.
 
I run a Cummins B 3.3 NA in my Branson 6530; 65 engine, 57 PTO HP, 4 cyl. naturally aspired, Tier II, no electronics, no DEF. Manual
says 0.047 gal/hp (actual hp being used at the time)/hr and I believe it.
 
The v2203 kubota is looking pretty perfect for what I want. Where would I find one of these jm? Any dimensions would be helpful to make sure it'll fit in the engine compartment
 
(quoted from post at 16:43:42 02/08/18) The v2203 kubota is looking pretty perfect for what I want. Where would I find one of these jm? Any dimensions would be helpful to make sure it'll fit in the engine compartment
Click to expand...

I thought you couldn't stomach anything made overseas?
 
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