RELEASED in 1992, the Mannheim-built 6000 series tractors placed John Deere firmly on the map and into the top five European market leaders. However, John Deere were striving for market dominancy and the arrival of the 6010 or 10 series tractors certainly sealed the deal.
Building on the success of full frame design of its predecessors, the 10 series was released at the Agritechnica machinery show in Germany, 1997 and brought a greater refinement in terms of comfort, power, electronics, and automation. The six-cylinder line up consisted of four models: 6510, 6610, 6810, and the range-topping 6910. In Ireland, two of these models proved particularly popular, the 6610 and 6910 – similar in appearance but different tractors under the hood.
Fitted with the 6.8l Powrtech engine, the 6610 develops 105hp while the 6910 pushes out 135hp. On the transmission side, the gear arrangement for the ‘66’ as a 40km 24F/24R which provided gears A-F, and four powershifts or ‘PowrQuads’ in John Deere language. The ‘69’s transmission was a 40km 20F/20R with gears A-E and again four PowrQuads.
PowrQuad Plus and AutoQuad transmission upgrades were available on both tractors, with the shuttle lever permanently relocated to the left of the steering wheel, while the Quad lever was converted to a button shift on the top of the main gear stick. AutoQuad provides automatic speed-matching changes based on engine load and rpm of the four ranges in each gear of the transmission, as well as cruise control. Furthermore, a rocker switch for the four ranges was also added in front of the linkage controls for extra flexibility.
At the business end of the tractor the 6610 can lift a substantial 6.7tons, however the 6910 can lift a whopping 7.7 tons off the ground. The 10 series tractors could be fitted with a 60 or 90 litre per minute hydraulic pump, however it is uncommon to find the smaller pump on the ‘69’. Furthermore, the 6910 is fitted with solid rims all around, with heavier hubs on the front axle boosting its weight to 5.1tons over the 6610’s 4.7tons.
Interestingly, the 6910 also boasts 43 extra litres of fuel capacity in the tank, three extra litres in the hydraulic oil in the transmission case, and another three litres of engine oil in the sump over the 6610.
The perfect mix of electronics, power, and comfort, coupled with excellent reliability, both the 6610 and 6910 were, and continue to be hugely popular tractors with outstanding resale values – the only major issue being John Deere does not make them anymore!
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