It’s no secret that Claas has teamed up with Liebherr to produce telehandlers, but at Agritechnica it also launched a new wheeled loader, the Torion.

Models start with the Torion 535 which has a tipping load of 3.45 tonnes and powered by a 63hp engine, up to the Torion 1914, which is capable of a 12.4 tonnes tipping load and has 228hp at its disposal.

The Yanmar engines in both the smaller 535 and 639 models develop up to 68hp (639 model), and meet Stage IIIB emissions standards. The infinitely variable hydrostatic drive has two drive modes – F1 from 0 to 6 km/h, and F2 from 0 to 20 km/h. The driver can switch from one drive mode to the other at the touch of a button, depending on the application.

For the Torion models in the mid-range series, the boom is available with ‘P’ or ‘Z’ kinematics. With the load spread across the entire lift zone and higher holding forces in the upper working area, ‘P’ is the best option for most agricultural work, but the ‘Z’ configuration gives it a high breakaway torque and the bucket can be tipped quickly to suit some jobs.

The new Scorpion loaders, also produced in association with Liebherr, range from a 635 model with a 3.5-tonne lift capacity to the 756 with 5.6 tonnes of lift.

Claas’ Hermann Lohbeck said that while Claas currently uses its own engine technology in the loaders, there may be opportunity to use Liebherr technology in the future. “That’s a discussion for another day,” he said. “At some point in the future this may change but at the moment we are using our own engine technology to power the loaders.

“It’s a long term decision and is an opportunity but nothing has been decided yet,” said Mr Lohbeck who added that China and North America will provide strong market opportunities in the future.