Big Horsepower to improve performance

Originally published in Farm Weekly 22 January 2026.

Jason McVea with New Holland T9.700 at McIntosh & Son Wongan Hills.

Power and precision are top of mind for Maya-based grain grower Casey Shaw, who will soon be taking delivery of a New Holland T9.700 699-horsepower 4WD tractor.

Mr Shaw crops 7500 hectares of wheat, barley, canola and lupins.

"(The tractor) will be an addition to what we've got," Mr Shaw said.

"We're going from one air seeder to two, so we need another tractor to pull that and do deep ripping.

"We've done deep ripping (in previous seasons), but for the ripping we're going to do, which is more intense, we needed something with more horsepower."

Another attractive aspect of a T9 tractor is that Mr Shaw has considerable familiarity with CNH Industrial's guidance systems.

"We've got a mix of Case IH and New Holland machines," he said.

"This will definitely be our highest-horsepower machine in our range of machinery."

Spotlight on the T9 Series tractor

McIntosh & Son, Wongan Hills, sales representative Jason McVea said the high horsepower isn't the only thing to consider with the T9 Series tractor.

"It's also running the full ballast package," Mr McVea said.

"That makes this tractor have an extremely high drawbar."

More and more grain producers are expressing a desire to acquire higher horsepower tractors, Mr McVea said.

"There are a couple of reasons for that," he said.

"One is that guys are doing a lot of deep ripping and soil amelioration; they need more horsepower to pull those implements because they're trying to go deeper, or faster, and it allows them to mix more into the soil.

"The other thing is that implements like air seeder bars and air carts are getting larger; operators want to get more done per day and more done in a shift."

One feature separating the 700 and 650 units from the rest of the T9 Series is the PS6-A transmission, which is the largest transmission of the T9s.

The 700 and 650 units also run the 500 Series Axle, an 18-bolt axle as opposed to the 10-bolt axle used in other models.

"That gives much heavier-duty running gear underneath the machine, giving more longevity and durability," he said.

"That's a big key on this machine over a smaller tractor as well; these machines are built to purpose and their very heavy undercarriage helps them achieve that."

T9 tractors have top-of-the-line connectivity, giving operators the ability to share information with their providers.

The New Holland FieldOps feature helps operators to seamlessly manage, share, and securely move data.

The T9 tractor 13-litre engine has also been upgraded to provide a 2 per cent increase in fuel efficiency, optimised torque levels in low gear operation and extended service intervals from 1200 to 1800 hours.

"This is a PLMI precision tractor, and that uses the IntelliView 12 and Cygnus receiver," Mr McVea said.

"This one is currently set up with an NTRIP system, which gives 2.5 centimetres of accuracy pass to pass.

"It has the extended fuel tanks as well, with 1660 litres of fuel aboard."

T9 tractor cabs were updated in 2024, with the implementation of a 360-degree LED lighting package and enhanced visibility.

Mr McVea said McIntosh & Son are planning some machinery demonstrations of the T9 tractors across the state.

"We'll be running a Morris seeding demo on the 650 (models) and we'll be doing some Gessner deep ripping demos of the New Holland 700 models this season," he said.

"It was impressive how, during a deep ripping demo with the 700 last year, it managed to keep its grip without damaging the longevity of the tyre."

Assessing profitability versus productivity

Although Mr Shaw said they had a record yield though there are caveats to that.

"In terms of production, it was our best, but in terms of commodity pricing like wheat, barley, that didn't necessarily make it our most profitable year," he said.

Mr Shaw said the pricing issue is "certainly factoring" into what their cropping program will be looking like this season.

"Where we farm, things like canola and lupins are probably a little more opportunistic; it'll depend on summer rainfalls and early season rainfall," he said.

"But certainly if the opportunity presented we would be increasing the canola and lupins in our program and pulling back on wheat; and probably increasing our barley.

"It'd go against what we've done in the past."

If you're interested in any of the New Holland range from tractors through to combines, please contact your local McIntosh & Son dealership for more information.