Ursus took the less ambitious choice: Develop a conventional 4 speed powershift like the 1992 MF Dynashift. This type of gearbox is the entry level gearbox at Deere and CNH.
Zetor is a bit more future oriented, by developing a DSG gearbox, which is a more future oriented development.
Zetor made V1 a year or three ago, by putting a 4 speed DSG section behind their existing three step powershift, a very crude prototype which doesnt utilise the full potential of the technology but just gives them a lot of experience within a low cost standard production series envelope. Then we saw V2 on the website of Norgren CZ, which was developing the controls for it. This seems to be the version alike Zetor has patented, even though a gearbox as built like the drawings in the patent, doesnt work: It will have to interrupt traction to change gears in reverse, and it reverses only half the gears. Basically useless.
Also the gears, a six speed will not stand out from a standard 4 stage powershift transmission like the old Case MX, only a gear layout like Deeres Direct Drive, with three gears: one crawl range for PTO work, then one field range that starts low enough (5kmh) to put full engine power to the ground even with 4 to 5 ton of ballast (or drawbar weight) and ends high enough so that at that speed the tractor has enough momentum to keep rolling while traction is interrupted to change range (18kmh)
In that perspective the 6 speed has no significant benefit over the existing 30 speed transmission which renders it commercially ineffective. The development subsidy for this program ran from 2013 to 2015, so i assume they are hard at work to build an 8 speed which has a shuttle reverser for each layshaft, to get full powershift ability in forward and reverse which their patented idea wouldnt provide.
Ursus in the west, has allways followed in the wake of Zetor. They were seen as a knock-off of Zetor, and with this Vigus they will not compete with Zetor directly like they did in the past. So, only in the Polish market this new Ursus Vigus will compete with Zetor. So perhaps its time for Zetor to stop focusing entirely on the Polish market and listen a bit more to their Western dealers. That will
help Zetor compete against New Holland and Deere in the Polish market.
New Holland just announced that they will introduce a 24 speed DSG transmission (indeed, with 8 speeds and three ranges, to get the above mentioned practical benefits) on the Agritechnica 2017. They started this new development in October 2015.
Somehow Zetor knew where the future was heading, and started two years before NH. But they just cant take a direction on how to materialise this ??
Really, Zetor needs to stop daydreaming about Pininfarina, and show a working prototype to the world before New Holland does. When a not so popular guy hires a porn star to go to the prom, the whole school talks about him . But you get most respect when you show up with a real date of which everybody thought she was out of your league....
