Seems like Belarus is building most of the tractor themself?
When you look at Belarus,and they say they are one of the worlds biggest tractor manufacturer, I can not understant why it not was possible to further development on the Zts tractors.
Belarus sells tractors for a different market, with no emission legislation and low demands. When demands get higher, they use Carraro front axles, engines from Deere, Perkins and Detroit Diesel, and here in the Netherlands, they are only sold with leak-free Mita hydraulics from Italy because the Dutch customer wont accept eternal oil seepage.
So, as it turns out, Belarus is going down the same route as
Zetor , with the models intended for the same markets as Zetor. They even use the same component suppliers (Carraro, Mita, Bosch)
About ZTS tractors: The big problem of the 16045 was that its rear axle was too light for the power. It had the same axle rating as the 8011, which had the same axle rating as the current Forterra, which is 5500kg. Later ZTS models got a 6500kg axle rating, but the design was poor and they were notorious for halfshaft breakage. The design was based on production technology from the 1960's, where as modern designs, designed to be made on CNC machinery, can be produced much more efficiently: In Holland the last sold 8245 were as expensive as a 10641, why on earth would you want to go back to a design that was initiated 50 years ago, and would cost as much as a modern semipowershift transmission and a rear axle capable of handling todays increased loads ??
Really, the UR2 design is full of choices made with 1960's production technology in mind, which are deeply embedded in the design, driving up the cost till the point that nobody wants to pay the production cost, let alone some profit for the manufacturer and its dealers....
Short said, the UR2 is a dynosaur. Its long overdue. If you have to pull them up to an acceptable level, from the 1980s era when they started to become outdated, till a modern day tractor, its cheaper to start all over from scratch.
Have you ever tried transforming a farm house which isnt updated since the 1960's, into a state of the art appartment with solar power, central vacuum cleaning system, central heating, airconditioning, cable TV in every room, etcetera ?? Then you know it would be a foolish attempt, you'd have to settle for less and respect the age of the house, or break it down and start with an entirely new house with all these modern appliances incorporated into the basic design.
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