IT'S ALL about comfort in the latest Gators from John Deere – it has its quietest ever cab, more room for driver and passengers, plus an efficient heating system.

The brand new petrol XUV 835M and diesel XUV 865M models – which were preceded last autumn by the restyled HPX 815E, XUV 560E and XUV 590M Gators – each have power steering, a CVT transmission and a top speed of 37 and 31mph, respectively.

A feature is a tight turning circle and for extra versatility, they can be fitted with a wide range of more than 90 attachments, from snow blades to winches. Working long hours is catered for by a large 42-litre fuel tank.

In-cab comfort comes from a spacious, pressurised cab which can accommodate three people (off-road only). This has improved noise isolation and sound dampening components and the heating system even has a windscreen defrost feature.

The versatile cargo box has a load capacity of 454kg, while towing capacity has been increased by a third to 907kg and total payload capacity is 680kg. The diesel Gator shares its new styling with the XUV 855M model, which replaced the 855D. Another change is that the 815E’s updated cargo box also has a load capacity of 454kg and both the sides and the tailgate, which has a pick-up style one-handed latch, can be easily removed to provide a flatbed-style load bay if required.

Additional changes include a digital dashboard, powerful LED headlights and a restyled front bumper.

The XUV 560E (non-power steering) and XUV 590M (with power steering) Gator models are both petrol engined and get the LED headlights as standard. Re-styling includes alloy wheels and a seat belt interlock system provides a safer drive – this restricts its speed to 8mph (13kph) if the seat belt is not done up.