Improved design of the 4220 JCB Fastrac appeals to more farmers

 A completely revised cabin highlights the changes and features about 30 per cent more glass than the 2170 it replaces. It also comes, at long last, with a seat that swivels — 50 degrees to the right and 20 degrees to the left. It's leather, too, along with the steering wheel and there’s a cooled drawer to keep your sandwiches, so JCB has really worked on improving its driver experience. The 4220 is the most powerful of three models in the new 4000 series that includes a 160hp (119kW) and 190hp (142kW) version, although they aren’t planned for Australian import at this stage. Power is generated by a new AGCO Power 66AWF turbocharged and intercooled 6.6-litre, six-cylinder Final Tier 4 engine, so AdBlue is needed. It's capable of peaking at 235hp (175kW) under boost while torque is a stonking 950Nm, which is up a huge 42 per cent on the previous model. 
Handling that power is, impressively, a Fendt Vario continuously variable transmission in keeping with JCB’s AGCO association. The CVT has six modes of operation and two ranges — low from 0.08km/h up to 40km/h and high up to 60km/h that can be maintained at 1600rpm.But for all this the 4220 is now the slowest in the range, limited to 60km/h against the 80km/h its 3230 Xtra Fastrac stablemate is capable of or even the 70km/h in the more conventional 8130. The reason for the reduced top speed is the introduction of hydrostatic instead of mechanical steering, “but that allows us to have four-wheel steer” says JCB product manager David Moselen.
Four-wheel steer has been around for some time — it's a fairly niche thing and it enables a 9.8m turning circle on 540/65 R30 tyres,” he says. The four-wheel steer gives it the same functionality as a telehandler around the shed with its ability to crab steer meaning it can get in and out of spots other tractors this size can't. Crab steer, where both sets of wheels aim in the same direction, is one of five steering modes in the 4220. Others include true tracking that allows the rear wheels to exactly follow the front wheel tracks and reduce the footprint on turns, and a delay mode that keeps the rear tracking straight for longer for better implement turns at the headland.
It can switch between two and four-wheel steer on the fly and will automatically switch back to two when you get above 25km/h to keep the ride smooth. For row cropping it also has the ability to switch from two-wheel drive up and down the rows to four-wheel drive for tighter headland turns. It's more than capable of tillage work,” Moselen says. “Customers who have bought them so far have either used them to carry out general tillage work or pull a chaser bin.” For those wanting a serious draft horse, a Trimble GPS auto steer system is an option and the GPS-ready package includes the ability to adjust the steering ratio from four turns down to two lock-to-lock when travelling slower than 10km/h.