Outcross, Z-Master, and Dingo: 2018 is a Great Year for Toro’s Next Generation Turf Equipment Products

edit

If it seems like Toro has moving right from one major new product launch to the next lately, there is a good reason for that.

Even for a company that is known throughout the turf equipment industry for its innovation, 2018 has been an exceptional year for Toro.

In fact, it might be too exceptional.  We’re worried that with all the new product announcements coming out of the Toro newsroom, you might have missed some important details.

You see, the new products Toro has been putting out lately aren’t just minor tweaks to existing product lines.  They include some very innovative, first-of-their kind features that have the potential to shake up the industry.

In an effort to ensure that these details don’t get lost in the noise, we thought we’d take a moment halfway through this busy year of product announcements to do a quick recap about the three major new Toro products that have been making headlines lately and discuss what about each product is so innovative.

New Z-Master 7500-D Features Enhanced Horizon® Technology

Toro Horizon TechnologyOver the winter of 2017-2018, Toro rolled out an updated version of the very successful Z Master zero turn commercial mower.

Designated the 7500-D series, this new line of Z Masters has a number of new features, including adjustable wing decks, iso-mounted floor pans and deluxe suspension seats, and a tier-4, four-cylinder, 1.6 liter, 37 hp Yanmar® diesel engine.

However, the most innovative feature on the new mowers is an updated version of Toro’s Horizon Technology, an onboard computer designed to help increase efficiency through the reduction of fuel consumption, defined performance modes, and user-defined maintenance reminders.

The Horizon system has three performance modes:

  • In “low mode”, discharge clumping and deck packing are reduced in wet conditions.
  • “Economy mode” is used for typical mowing conditions to reduce noise, emissions, wear, and fuel consumption.
  • Maximum power for demanding conditions is available in “max mode”.

On the new Horizon Technology display screen, users can track the health of the machine, see plain text error messages, and even track machine usage by property.  Although the 7500-D has only been “on the job” for a few months, so far the feedback has been very positive.

The Outcross 9060 is a first-of-its-kind vehicle

Here’s an interesting question—when you invent a new kind of vehicle, what do you call it?

If you make up a new name to describe it, nobody will really know what you’re talking about, since it doesn’t’ exist yet.  However, if you simply lump it in with an existing category of vehicle, it doesn’t really capture the true innovative nature of the product.

That’s the dilemma Toro found themselves in with the Outcross 9060.  On the official sell sheet, it is described as a “turf utility vehicle”.  Perhaps a better description would be “turf utility tractor”, because the vehicle is essentially a cross between a tractor and a UTV.

Toro Outcross 9060

In fact, that’s why it’s called the Outcross.  The term “outcross” comes from animal breeding, and it references a process of cross-breeding two different species in order to get the best traits from both.

In that spirit, the Toro Outcross 9060 incorporates the hydrostatic drive system and automotive-like controls of a UTV with the heavy-duty hauling capabilities of a tractor.  You can read all about the new vehicle and see a list of features and specifications here.

The first demo units of the Outcross 9060 are being delivered to distributors and dealers this month, including Kenney Machinery.  The public launch of the vehicle will be next month (July of 2018).

The Dingo TX 2000 literally makes innovation a “reach”

Dingo TXL 2000The final bookend on the trilogy of Toro’s latest innovative product launches, the Dingo TXL 2000 won’t be ready until early 2019, but it’s already generating headlines—most recently at The Rental Show in New Orleans last February.

That’s due to a first-of-its-kind feature for a compact utility loader—telescoping loading arms.  Fully extended, the TXL 2000 will have a hinge pin height of roughly 10 feet, which will allow users to lift materials into the center of a dump truck or unload an entire flatbed truck from one side.

Final specifications aren’t yet available for the Dingo 2000, but when they are released we’ll be the first to let you know.

In the meantime, you can count on Kenney Machinery to continue to put Toro’s latest innovative products at your fingertips while simultaneously helping you to keep your legacy Toro products running as long as possible.