STAYING ON TRACK

Quadtracs are holding value better than other equipment categories.

- Karen Jones

Since Case IH introduced the Steiger Quadtrac in 1996, replacing dual- and triple-wheel designs with four tracks, it has proven a class leader in performance and value. 

“Case had the patent on Quadtracs over 20 years ago, and I believe that runway to experiment and get things right over the years has given them a quality advantage,” says Andy Campbell, Tractor Zoom director of insights. “I can see in the Tractor Zoom depreciation data that these tractors hold their value really well.”

Auction data

Recent auction results for all Quadtrac models show 78 sold, with 36 of those the 620 Series, and 30 being the popular 580 Series. The other 12 were a combination of the 540, 500, and 470 Series. Narrowing down to just 580 Series sales, the high price was $576,000 for a 2022 model, with 447 hours, in Illinois, and the low price was $225,200, for a 2020 model, with 3,268 hours, in Minnesota. The average selling price was $432,861.

What’s influencing prices?

Campbell notes that the overall machinery market has softened over the last year, driven by higher interest rates and lower commodity prices. He notes that as with all tractors, supply chain issues affected larger tractor availability in 2021 and 2022. But the market isn’t oversupplied now, as it is with smaller models. 

“The manufacturers weren’t able to overproduce during the pandemic because of labor issues and component availability,” Campbell says. “The four-wheel-drive category didn’t start to see year-over-year decreases in [the] Association of Equipment Manufacturer’s monthly reporting until December 2023, while all other categories had decreased well before that.”

Campbell’s research shows that high-horsepower tractors are holding much of their value, with tracked versions a little stronger than wheeled versions. But they are beginning to trend downward, as are other equipment categories.