SCHNELLER IN German means ‘faster’ and that’s very much what Claas’ engineers at the company’s home of combine-making, Harsewinkel, in Germany, had in mind when they designed the latest generation of the Lexion 600 and the all-new 700 series harvesters.

This means that, for the first time, we now have the prospect of a 40kph on-the-road speed for these new giants, some of which have appeared recently in adverts as a blurred image speeding across the page.
But, there is nothing blurred in the thinking behind wanting to go faster. As combines get bigger and bigger, they need to chomp more crop to justify their equally increasing price tag, so anything that reduces downtime between work is a major factor, especially for contractors.
The key to the 40kph version – as verified recently at the launch of the 600/700s by a police-style radar trap at 41kph – is the latest version of Claas’ Terra Trac, the tracked system which bears much of the weight of these giants and their associated headers when in the field.
Combine geeks will be able to spot these immediately, with their distinctive Claas green ‘eyebrow’ protective casing in the between the two main driving wheels for the tracks
This ‘schnell’ transmission, though, will only be available initially on one model, the Lexion 750, which is a direct replacement for the 570 Terra Trac, a popular model with contractors on account of its narrow road width of just 3.3 metres.
All others on the range, though, will now have a 30kph capability as standard, which is a fifth better than the current Lexion 580 and 570 models.
The new combines are replacements for the considerable range of Lexions from the 520 version up to the 600 model. Nomenclature now means that the range is split between the six new 600s and the four 700s, with all receiving a power boost over the outgoing version.
Basic difference between the two is that the 700s come with a hybridised grain separation system based on marrying up Claas’ well-proven APS primary threshing system with twin rotor cleaning for the residual grains. The 600s have conventional five/six straw walkers fitted behind the APS system.
All of this hardware, however, is backed up by an almost bewildering array of software with which users can tweak the very best out of their not insubstantial investment.
For instance, owners of the 700s will have the CEMOS optimisation system at their disposal which not only allows them to set the machine up for efficient working, but also lets them ask it ‘can you make it work any better’?
When you query whether the machine is set up efficently, it then evaluates 50 different parameters, covering 11 criteria and will throw up a series of recommendations which the operator can accept or reject to oprimise working.
The CEBIS operating system which is  common to all has a new, larger 8.5-inch screen and this features the new EASY software which helps make operating the combine as simple as possible.
This controls everything in the cab from the new heated and ventialted seat, to the Xenon lighting package as well as the key harvester functions down below.
Cebis can store up to 20 different personailised settings, handy for moving between different crops, and has a ‘hot-key’ function to provide quick access to crucial functions.
Also new for the bigger models is the Cruise Pilot II system which monitors the crop entering the combine takes note of the engine load, plus grain loss, to optimise the machine’s working speed. Add to that GPS Pilot, Auto Pilot system or the popular radar-operated Laser Pilot steering guide and drivers will have plenty of time to appreciate the comforts of the all new cab, which is a version of that fitted to the Jaguar choppers and Xerion tractors.
Apart from the technical wizardry, Claas’ designers have also listened to critics and have fitted a new constant pressure, load sensing hydraulic system which, they say, has a 50% quicker reaction time.
This makes the hill-side combines fitted with Auto Contour able to work at higher work speeds, with contour and lateral levelling times up to twice as fast as before.
Those hill-side specialists, the Lexion Montanas, are based on three models from the new range – the 750, 670 and 630 models.
Key feature here is the driving axle which is adapted to ground contours using a twist of portals with hydraulic swivel cylinder, which change the angle acorss the axle to keep the main body of the combine level.
Married up to the Multi Countour system controls, this keeps the body on the straight, while the cutting head can be at quite an incredible angle. Side slope levelling is up to a 17% angle and longitudinal leveling at up to 6%.
Claas reckons its Vario 1200 (12m) cutterbar has been such a success, that the technology has filtered down to a new 10.5m version, the Vario 1050, which has the split reel and cross auger, a high frequency divided cutting bar.
Top feature, though, is its ability adapt itself for different crops, as the knife to auger distance can be infinitely shortened by up to 10cm or increased by up to 20cm.
Claas’ UK boss, Jeremy Wiggins, reckons that more than 90% of the new models will be sold with the Terra Trac option.
But for those that want conventional tyres, the new Michelin CerexBib has been developed specifically for Lexion and this can operated at really low pressure, with a subsequent increase in the footprint of the combine of 22%, for lower compaction and better traction.