How hard is it to drive a tractor?

Question

I'm 18 y/o girl and I have a chance to drive a hayride tractor for a festival at a farm I'm going to work at this fall. I will only get a day or two of driving. I've had my drivers license 2 years now, how hard will it be to learn?

Answer 1

I learned to drive a tractor for the first time just a little while ago. If you know how to drive a car so that you don't have to worry about steering, then it shouldn't be too bad. The big thing to be aware of is the gas (or throttle). On a tractor (at least the one I use) it is set by the driver with their hand. You do not have a gas pedal. The throttle pretty much stays where you set it (although you can change it, you usually don't much on a tractor). Also, you do not shift a tractor like a normal manual transmission car. On a tractor you set the gear setting and start the tractor moving after you choose your gear. You will have to get used to the clutch so that you don't have jarring starts. To stop (a good first thing to learn), you have to push in the clutch and put on the brake (similar to a manual car). Another big thing is turning off the tractor - you don't use the key, you pull the stop lever out which (I think) essentially chokes the engine.

It's not too bad, but I would consider it different than driving a car. Practice a bit before you pull people or drive near important things (like people). Tractors usually have a lot of power and have a tendency to keep moving unless the driver does something to stop them. Be aware.

Answer 2

Driving A Tractor

Answer 3

It's a lot easier if you've driven a car with a manual transmission.

Many tractors have 2 brake pedals: 1 for each rear wheel. If you just want to stop or slow down, you push them both. If you want to make a tight turn, hold the brake on the side that you turn the wheel.

If the tractor gets stuck *(probably won't happen pulling a wagon) and one wheel's spinning and the other's not, you can squeeze the brake on the wheel that's spinning and power will go to the other wheel and usually get you going again.

Have fun...it's a blast!

Answer 4

they are not hard to learn. hopefully someone will be there to show you where the throttle and drive levers are. Be very careful though because the big tires on tractors have a lot more bounce than a car tire. They also have a lot more torque so you can get in trouble pretty quickly if you are reckless or don't pay close attention. I would probably not recommend pulling any passengers if you do not have any experience operating one.

Answer 5

definitely not that difficult but make sure you drive the tractor for awhile before you have passengers on the wagon. tractors do have allot of torque especially down low and if you pop the clutch in too high of gear you can trow people off the wagon. If you can drive a stick shift car it will be very easy for you to learn but make sure you spend some time getting used to the clutch before you have passengers on.

Answer 6

there's a definite learning curve to go through when learning to run semi. school is most recomended to help you understand gear shifting,brake set up,torsion,and the feel of a load on your back. besides a commercial driving examiner will take you more seriously if youve gone to driving school. you always must be thinking about stopping that truck in a hurry if need be a runaway would truly suck would'nt it? listen to the old timers they have seen it all and can teach you everything you need to know. if you listen and learn speaking from experience here,and just remember just about anybody can learn to drive a truck .the trick is to do it day after day without breaking anything good luck!

Answer 7

It's going to be easy for you to learn.

Tell yourself that, too....and you will find that your experience of it WILL be easy.

DECIDE that you will learn VERY quickly and to drive a tractor is sooooo easy for you.

.....and then it WILL BE.


Good Luck!

Answer 8

if u knw how to drive a car i think u will knw how to drive a tractor!


gud luck

Answer 9

Not hard.