Farmers at this week’s Royal Welsh Show got a first look at two new offerings from New Holland, both tailored to smaller livestock enterprises.

The T4 Powerstar range of smaller 4WD tractors replaces New Holland’s more familiar 4020 and 4030 tractors and will be produced in 55, 65 and 75hp models. But the biggest change is a completely redesigned cab, with 20% more room than its predecessors – the result, the manufacturer claims, of robust feedback from farmers themselves.

This makes the T4 a stockman’s tractor, well suited to routines on upland farms or smaller operations. The cab’s extra space and completely flat floor is all the better for the removal of the transmission tunnel and the low-slung cab and steps are more comfortable for the operator who is frequently in and out of the cab. A foot-operated steering column release also means easier hopping in and out for gates and bales.

Few of these tractors are likely to operate without front loaders and instead of a bolt-on extra, the T4 series has a fully-integrated loader joystick on the right-hand instrument panel, specially placed in the operator’s “command arc” for more intuitive operation. A clear panel in the cab roof – as standard – also makes operating the loader at height less of a neck-breaker. The basic model comes with two spool valves, with an option for a third.

The T4 Powerstar range will be built at Case New Holland’s factories in northern Italy. List price is likely to be about £33,000.

Also new at Builth Wells was a compact telehandler series, a return to smaller loaders for New Holland after an absence from the sector. The LM 5020 and 5030 models stay within a dinky 2m height and width limit and have a turning circle of 3.4m.

And despite their pint-sized stature, the LM5000 handlers can place loads of 2.5t and more up to 6.35m, depending on the model.

Single or two-speed hydro transmission aids manoeuvrability, while an inching pedal helps the operator find those last few centimetres of placement. Power comes from Tier 3, common-rail Yanmar and Perkins engines.

New Holland said the L5000 handlers were adept at operating in and around older, narrower buildings where doorways and ceilings made work challenging, and had already attracted a lot of interest at the show.

For more from the Royal Welsh Show 2011, see our dedicated web page.