© James Andrews

For the first time in its 42-year history, the Agribuggy self-propelled sprayer has been fitted with a hydrostatic element to its mechanical drivetrain.

Since it was conceived in the early 1980s by Yorkshire contractor Tony Frazier, this lightweight machine has featured either a conventional manual or automatic transmission and a drop box that sends power to the axles via prop shafts.

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But it’s all change for the latest McConnel V300 version, which uses a hydrostatic pump to drive Omsi front and rear bar axles.

This setup gives the benefit of infinitely variable speed control while retaining the mechanical transfer of power to the ground.  

Under-belly clearance is 750mm when fitted with row-crop wheels and the rear axle has a locking differential to help maintain traction in tough conditions.

The cab has been given a refresh too, with better all-round visibility, Cat 4 filtration and 10 LED work lights.

Operators are treated to an air seat and there’s a floating console to carry the Teejet spray controller. Buyers can also opt for a Teejet autosteer system or another GPS setup of their choosing.

Power is delivered by the same 3.8-litre Cummins four-cylinder engine that puts out 138hp and 600Nm of torque and, thanks to the simpler transmission, it’s considerably easier to access for carrying out maintenance.

There has been little change to the tried-and-tested spray pack, either. This consists of a 3,000-litre tank and 24m aluminium Pommier boom – larger versions up to 32m could be available in the future – which is fed via a five-cylinder Imovilli pump and has a pressure recirculation system. Auto-section control comes as standard, with the option of up to 15 sections.

Minor improvements include adding tank baffles to increase strength and prevent the contents sloshing, a remote pto control switch and a new electronic sight gauge.

On-farm price for a fairly standard spec V300, including two sets of wheels, is about £220,000.