Looking for a 200hp tractor bargain?

Decent second-hand 200hp workhorses are in short supply, but if you look in the right places deals are there to be had. With a budget of £20,000 Nick Fone goes on the hunt for a bargain prime-mover

If you'd dropped into Cheffins' Cambridge saleyards five or six years ago you would have seen lines and lines of tractors around the 200hp mark waiting for buyers.

Back then you didn't have to look far to find a bargain Case Magnum, Ford 70-series or similar cultivations workhorse.

But that all changed when EU expansion really got going after 2004.

"When countries like Poland entered the EU demand for high-horsepower tractors suddenly rocketed," says Cheffins' Bill Pepper.

"The trade for machines heading eastwards went wild and that was exacerbated by the weakening pound."

The net result was that many of the bigger second-hand tractors that would have remained in the UK rapidly disappeared. Consequently, sniffing out a bargain has become increasingly difficult and you'll rarely see a 10-year-old, 200hp prime-mover sitting in a dealer's yard.

But if you're prepared to take a punt at auction then there is cheap horsepower on offer.

We picked out four very different tractors from Cheffins' saleyard, all about the 200hp mark, all selling for less than £20,000.

John Deere 800 series

In a lot of people's eyes John Deere's mid-1990s flagship 8000-series tractors had everything right – a big throaty power-plant, simple but smooth 16F x 4R powershift gearbox, electronically-controlled hydraulics and a well-balanced layout.

Designed and built with the North American prairie farmer in mind, many of the essential mechanical components are easily accessed and farm-fixable - and that alone makes them incredibly popular machines second-hand.

Little tends to go wrong with these solid powerhouses. But there are a few key things to look out for:

Kingpins Not designed to carry wide rubber or dual wheels, the front-axle kingpins could wear prematurely. Jack the front axle up from the centre and, as you lower it, look out for the hub-carriers and wheels leaning over as they start to take the weight.

Water pump As with many engines, the coolant pump eventually gives out. The beauty of the Deere is that any fault is easy to diagnose and repair. A tell-tale hole in the side of the housing gives away any seepage and changeover takes just over an hour.

Transmission Run the tractor up the road and get it hot. Then notch all the way up and down through the 16 powershift steps to check for any particularly jerky or lazy gear changes. This will generally require dealer recalibration and, if there is significant delay, that will indicate clutch-pack slippage. Expect a 30-hour gearbox rebuild.

1996 John Deere 8200

• 202hp
• 7000 hours
• Condition Good
• £18,400

New Holland TM190

You won't find any 200hp tractor of this age at this price. Why? Well, long-wheelbase TM175s and TM190s didn't have the best reputation for reliability.

An insufficiently large oil-cooler meant the back end was prone to over-heating, with the net result that the sophisticated powershift transmission would go kaput.

All larger TMs should have been sorted with a larger oil-cooler under New Holland's recall programme, but a few might have slipped through the net - it's worth a call to the original dealer to check. (It's the same story for Basildon-built Case IH MXM175s and MXM190s.)

Big TMs got a bad image, with the net result that they make a very cheap second-hand buy and, when they're running right, they are strong performers.

When the electronically controlled power-boost kicks in, the TM190 can pump out between 220 and 230hp at the pto. That makes it a real pocket-rocket for jobs like mowing and power-harrowing.

Aside from gearbox mods, look out for upgrades to the electronically-governed radial fuel pump; earlier tractors were prone to throwing up error codes.

Bosch mechanical spool-valves could prove sticky and also needed modification, most of which should have been handled under warranty.

On that basis it is worth looking out for "Ultra" spec TMs, which gained electric spools, a 50kph box and beefier linkage stabilisers.

Although the PowerCommand gearbox was dogged with certain issues, not a lot went wrong mechanically. Powered range changes (between 6th and 7th and 12th and 13th) can be overly-harsh, but that can be sorted with recalibration from the dealer's laptop. In some cases changing certain electrically controlled valves can also make a difference.

By the end of their production run in 2007, long-wheelbase TMs were some of the most reliable tractors Basildon had ever produced, says New Holland.

2003 New Holland TM190

• 190hp
• 5500 hours
• Condition Excellent
• £16,000

Ford 8770

Truly iconic heavy draft tractors, Ford/New Holland 70-series combined a host of features to make them some of the most popular cultivations workhorses of all time.

Sold in the UK in both blue and terracotta colour-schemes, their strong reputation the other side of the pond means many have returned to their homeland.

The cab is the familiar NH narrow-fronted, but spacious unit and that, combined with the 8770's short wheelbase and tall stance, really gives it presence.

A Basildon-built 7.5-litre Powerstar six-cylinder provides the muscle and transmits it to the ground via a 16F x 9R Funk powershift box - widely regarded as being one of the best on the market - when properly looked after.

That caveat is critical: When the back-end oil is changed on a regular basis the gearbox can run and run, but neglect it and the clutch-packs have a habit of seizing, with the net result that a complete transmission overhaul is in order at a cost of about £11,000.

It is possible to get into the tractor's diagnostic computer to get an indication of powershift clutch-pack health.

Most were sold with the trademark tight-turning SuperSteer front axle, which, although it carries many more moving parts than the standard unit, rarely gives any trouble.

Engine-wise, look out for heavy smoke from the breather, which can be a sign that a piston has split. This can usually be attributed to over-heating, a scenario which is less common with intercooler-equipped models. Look out for those with charge-air coolers, as they tend to run longest without hotting-up.

1994 Ford 8770

• 190hp
• 4500 hours
• Condition Average
• £11,200

JCB 3220 Fastrac

With a choice of either 80kph or 65kph gearboxes, the obvious advantage of the Fastrac is its speed.

However JCB's innovative design brings with it some other significant benefits - suspension on all four corners and separate oils for the transmission and hydraulics. This, and the fact that twin-calliper out-board discs are used, mean that there's no contamination of oil in the back end.

As the company's most powerful offering of the time the 3220 is the logical choice for anyone with a mix of fieldwork and haulage to do. "Plus" specification adds electronic spool-valves and a short-throw gear-lever to the rejigged right-hand console.

Gearbox issues are the main area of concern with used Fastracs, particularly when they've clocked a few hours. Run up the road and listen for any graunching, particularly when changing between fifth and six gears; that's often a sign that the synchros are on their way out. Check that the three-step power-splitter works in both manual and auto modes. Smoothshift multi-plate oil-immersed clutches rarely give any grief.

When it comes to suspension, treat the Fastrac as you would any second-hand 4x4. Use a pry-bar to check for slop in the bushes and anti-roll bars. And, while you're under there, give the drive-shaft and prop-shaft yokes a thorough going over.

Run the air compressor up to full pressure and then kill the engine to listen for any leaks. More often than not it's just a case of tightening loose hose-unions.

2003 JCB 3220 Fastrac

• 200hp
• 8100 hours
• Condition Excellent
• £19,900