The introduction of additional models to fill gaps in existing ranges is the main theme of this year’s Ultimate Guide to telescopic handlers – along with the surprise addition of the first Fendt model.

Teaming up with German company Sennebogen, a specialist in industrial handling solutions, Fendt says it will offer a range of telehandlers in due course.

For now, it has launched the Cargo T955, a top-end machine with 5.5t lift capacity and the ability to take 4.85t to the full lifting height of 8.5m.

Its most eye-catching feature, though, is the hydraulic arm-mounted cab, which can raise the operator to a viewing height of 4.25m.

From that lofty perch, says Fendt, operators can load tall-sided trucks and trailers faster and more confidently, and it should be easier to place bales high in a stack.

The Fendt Cargo T995’s arm-mounted cab gives the driver an elevated view of loading and load placement actions

Expensive Cargo

Apart from these abilities and the cab suspension comfort provided by the hydraulic arm, the machine has two other distinctions.

With 171hp from its FPT engine, it matches several Merlo handlers in having more power than other machines, and it has by far the highest list price in the guide.

At £164,612 the Cargo is £5,600 ahead of Weidemann’s new 9580 T telescopic wheel loader and £13,930 more than the most expensive telehandler, Claas’ Scorpion 960 Varipower Plus.

Weidemann’s 9580T telescopic loader using its Power Drive 370 single-motor hydro transmission on towing duties

The 6.5t lift Scorpion is the latest addition to the Claas line-up and one that will take a 4t load to a full-height lift of 8.79m.

That gives it about 1t or 20% more capacity than the Scorpion 9055 in the previous Claas range.

The Claas Scorpion 960 Varipower Plus has about 20% more capacity than its predecessor

A 4.1-litre Deutz engine provides up to 156hp to drive the 200-litre/min load-sensing pump, and also the four-wheel drive Varipower Plus transmission, which uses twin pumps designed to deliver a combination of tractive effort and speed.

The optional feature Dynamic Power has the engine automatically responding to joystick movement.

New Loadall

JCB’s new Loadall 532-60 Agri extends the series III machines equipped with the new Command Plus cab more decisively into the livestock and mixed enterprise farm sector.

Lift capacity is 3.2t maximum and to the full height of 6.2m, with a 109hp JCB engine motivating the four-speed powershift transmission and 140-litre/min variable-output hydraulics.

The new JCB 532-60 Agri extends the Loadall series III line-up equipped with the high-visibility Command Plus operator’s cab

Tyres in 20in and 24in sizes cater for low overall height or ground-clearance priorities.

Kramer is pushing the performance envelope of its rigid chassis telescopic wheeled loader design with the KL55.8T, which is rated at 3.9t lift capacity to 5.2m.

In the UK, it is offered with two otherwise optional higher-spec features: a 156hp Deutz engine and a three-speed 40kph hydrostatic transmission.

With 40deg of steering angle at both axles, the new machine is reckoned to be more manoeuvrable, with more consistent weight distribution than comparable articulated chassis machines, although it lacks their “side-shift” capability.

While NC Engineering in Northern Ireland has stopped building its FH225 articulated telescopic loader, Manitou has expanded its participation with the MLA-T 516-7H, a smaller companion to the existing MLA-T 533-145.

The newcomer’s rated lift capacity is 1.6t (calculated from a tipping load of 3.53t) and it will handle 1.2t to the full lift height of 4.9m.

The power and torque from a 75hp Deutz are channelled through a two- or three-speed 30kph hydrostatic transmission.

Among Manitou’s telescopic handlers, the new MLT 420-60H is the smallest, measuring 2.13m in the wheelbase, 1.49m wide and 1.97m to the top of the cab standing on 12-16.5 standard tyres.

The diminutive Manitou MLT 420-60H has a revamped boom end casting to improve visibility and packs a 57hp Kubota diesel engine

The machine can take its 2t maximum load to 4.35m and a reconfigured boom end structure improves visibility.

Mighty Merlo

Merlo’s Turbofarmer TF50.8 T-170 is a heavier-lifting telescopic handler that combines 7.8m of lift height with 5t of capacity from ground level to full boom lift and extension.

There should be no shortage of drive performance, given the FPT engine’s 170hp output, but the machine has regular two-speed hydrostatic drive rather than the CVTronic high-performance transmission installed in the higher-spec version, which also comes with cab suspension.

However, the TF50.8 T-170 still features Eco Power Drive separate transmission and engine speed control, plus automatic response to joystick movement to bring up the revs for the required oil flow.

New Holland is completing the overhaul of its telescopic handler range with two new compact models to replace the LM6.28.

The TH6.28 matches the previous model’s 2.8t to 6.35m performance, while the TH5.26 comes in with a single-speed hydro transmission and 80-litre/min hydraulics providing 2.6t capacity to 5.68m lift height.

Both machines are powered by Kubota diesel engine, developing 107hp and 73hp, respectively.

Tiny Tobroco

Smaller still is Tobroco’s Giant GT5048, its more modern contender for the “2mx2m” class that measures barely 1.9m tall and is 1.65m wide to gain access to small buildings or through slim doorways.

Four-wheel steering helps once inside and, with no height restriction, the 50hp Kubota powered machine can lift 1.7t and take 1.2t to its 4.8m max height.

Giant in name but not in stature – the Tobroco Giant GT5048 stands only 1.9m tall and 1.65m wide

Two more Giant newcomers – the G3500 Tele and G5000 Tele – replace existing models in the line-up and both are telescopic versions of the Dutch manufacturer’s wheeled loaders.

A lift height of 4.3m is common to both, so the 2.4t and 2.8t capacities, 66hp and 75hp power outputs and choice of hydraulics differentiate them.

In the hydraulics department, the standard 70- and 80-litre/min pumps can be supplemented by a 50-litre/min pump for the auxiliary service to cater for high-demand implements.

Weidemann’s extensive telescopic wheel loader line-up sees the 2070 LPT model’s CX50 and CX80 versions replaced by the 2080 LPT with 1.9t rated lift capacity to 4.3m and powered by a 61hp Perkins engine.

Further up the scale, the 9080T range-topper has been replaced in the UK range by the more muscular 9580T, with 5.5t rated lift capacity to 5.48m and the same choice of 136hp and 156hp Deutz engines.