The equipment picture painted by New Holland dealers was mixed, with the unit sales of lawn tractors showing the least potential.

About 40% of dealers are forecasting a drop of 2% or more in lawn tractor sales in 2010, and another 37% say there will be little or no change. Less than a quarter expect to sell more lawn tractors this year than last.

Dealers are more optimistic about utility vehicle sales, and the lineup was boosted last year with the introduction of the New Holland Rustler utility vehicle.

Nearly 42% of dealers see unit sales growth of 2% or more this year for utility vehicles, and about 33% expect little or no change from 2009 levels. A quarter of dealers are still predicting unit sales to drop this year.

About 43% of New Holland dealers expect an increase in unit sales of zero-turn mowers in ’10, and roughly the same number of dealers expect stable sales.