The Case IH Maxxum 145 Multicontroller has been awarded the title of Tractor of the Year 2019 and Best Design 2019 at an award ceremony on the first day of EIMA International, the farm equipment show, in Bologna, Italy.
Launched last year alongside three smaller 116-135hp (rated) models, the highlights of the 145hp Maxxum 145 Multicontroller include its ActiveDrive 8 eight-step semi-powershift transmission and the Multicontroller armrest and joystick, attributes recognised by TOTY judges – professional farm machinery journalists from across Europe – for aiding ease of operation and enhancing efficiency. Maxxum tractors are also available with four-step powershift and continuously-variable transmissions.
With recent revisions to the Maxxum range having given the line a fresh new look, in a double recognition the same model has also won the Best Design category, recognising the importance to functionality and form of a modern tractor's styling.
The winning formula
Following its introduction last summer, the new Case IH Maxxum range, in its Multicontroller guise with the new ActiveDrive 8 semi-powershift transmission, was awarded the prestigious Machine of the Year title for 2018 at Agritechnica in Hanover, Germany. Now the Maxxum 145 Multicontroller has added to its medal haul by taking the Tractor of the Year 2019 title, which is also judged by a panel of European agricultural magazine editors.
Complementing the existing ActiveDrive 4 four-step semi-powershift and CVXDrive continuously-variable transmissions, the key development on the new Maxxum Multicontroller range is the ActiveDrive 8 three-range/eight-step semi-powershift. The transmission and many other tractor operating functions can be controlled through the Multicontroller armrest and joystick.
The TOTY award builds on the Maxxum 145 Multicontroller's previous achievements, including the lowest average specific fuel consumption recorded in the Field Work section of the PowerMix test conducted by Germany's DLG testing station.
“We are delighted to have been awarded the 2019 Tractor of the Year accolade for the Maxxum 145 Multicontroller,” says Thierry Panadero, Case IH vice-president for Europe, Africa and the Middle East.
“It's a fitting recognition that greater transmission efficiency and ease of control both have parts to play in not only making farming more profitable, but more sustainable too. Helping to make operations easier, more efficient and more environmentally-friendly is a core criteria in the design of our machines, so it's gratifying to see the Maxxum Multicontroller's features recognised in this way.”
