An experimental study on the impact of the rear track width on the stability of agricultural tractors using a test bench

The aim of this paper is to study the effect that the rear track width and additional weight placed on the wheels has on the stability of a tractor when driving on side slopes. With the help of a specially constructed test bench the reactions on the wheels under static load were measured for rear track width of 1500, 1650 and 1800 mm. The roll angle of the test bench was gradually increased. The analysis of the experimental results showed that the static limit of overturn was considerably improved, when the width of the rear track was 1650 mm and an additional weight had been used for the uphill wheel.

► A new test bench was developed for automatic recording of the wheel reactions.
► The effect of rear track width on the tractor stability placed on a slope plane was studied for three different configurations.
► Increasing the rear track width and using additional weight are two technical improvements that affect the shift of load.
► The asymmetrical placement of the rear wheels with respect to the longitudinal plane significantly improves the load shift to the downhill wheel.