FARM CLASSICS: Comfort and cab class in 1580

IN the late 1970s, Fiat unveiled their new sharp-looking 80 series tractors, spanning 13 wheeled tractors from 57-180hp. At the upper end of the scale, the 1580 took over the reins of the Fiat 1300S, and was complemented by its larger sibling, the 180hp 1880.

With the horsepower race heading into 80s in full flight, Ford also released its famed ‘TW’ tractors and John Deere brought out its popular ‘40’ series.

Interestingly, the next generation development of these Fiat, Ford, and John Deere tractors would bring great future success for these companies in the 1980s.

The 80 series tractors were initially released with orange paintwork, with a white stripe on the bottom of the door and cab roof. In the early 80s the range was facelifted to the renowned ‘terracotta’ colour, with the doors losing the exterior stripe and interior pockets in favour of a full pane of glass for extra visibility. The headlights also found a new home: moved from the bottom to further up the nose cone.

Released in 1979, the Fiat 1580 pushes 150hp from its under-stressed 8.1l power plant, with later models benefitting from a turbocharger. The four-wheel drive 1580DT tips the scales at a little over 7tons with PAVT rear wheels and 10 40kg hanging from the nose. At the rear, the Cat3 linkage, with assistor ram, was capable of handling almost six tons with a hydraulic output of 57l/min with a two speed PTO was fitted as standard.

A constant mesh transmission provides 12F/4R gears through a 14” clutch, which are selected by two column-mounted gear levers which is a typical characteristic of high horsepower Fiats right up to the end of their manufacture. On the 1580, the right hand lever selects the gears in a H pattern format while the left is charged with the ranges.

At the rear, the Cat3 linkage, with assistor ram, was capable of handling almost six tons with a hydraulic output of 57l/min with a two-speed PTO fitted as standard.

The big talking point of the 80 series was the all-new ‘SuperComfort’ cab, styled by car design firm Pininfarina of Italy.

According to Fiat, it was the industry’s first tractor cab to be mounted on rubber pads on all six mounting points to reduce noise and vibration.

The cab was styled as one with the tractor, instead of an aftermarket design while most manufacturers adopted this approach in the 1970, Fiat were at the forefront of this new thinking.

The new cab resulted in the relocation of the fuel tank, a 280l, to the rear of the cab, below the back window.

The 80 series proved to be a great success, paving the way for the legendary 90 range of tractors.

• Contact Peter at [email protected] or see Instagram @flashphotoscork