The hottest used tractor around?

Easy. That would be the 200 horsepower John Deere 4960, made by Deere from 1992-1994. Prior to September 2012, the highest auction sale price I had ever seen on a JD 4960 tractor was $76,500. Since September? I’ve seen a whopping (6) 4960′s sell for $80,000 or more at auction.

Wow.

The latest example came on a nice February 11, 2012 farm auction in south-central Illinois, a sale by auctioneer Jamie Scherrer. A 1992 model 4960 in very nice condition, with 3,600 hours, sold for $86,000 on this farm auction, a mere $1,000 of the all-time record auction price of $87,000 for a 1993 4960 with 3,425 hours sold on a November 26, 2011 farm auction in west-central Ohio.

This February 11, 2012 farm auction in south-central Illinois also produced another eye catching sale price: the 1998 JD 9610 combine with 2,100 engine hours sold for $83,000 (no heads). That is the highest auction sale price I’ve seen in 5 years in the U.S. on a JD 9610 combine.