Gehl

Gehl RT165

$64,850before options, dealer-quotedRadial LiftRubber tracks
Gehl RT165
Rated capacity of tipping load35%
1,650 lb rated4,715 lb tipping

The bright segment is what Gehl RT165 is rated to carry; the grey run past it is the rest of its tipping load. Bar length is tipping load drawn to the same scale on every machine on the site, so a short bar is a smaller machine and not a conservative rating.

IdealTrax automatic track tensioning, a 69.9 hp Yanmar diesel and a 1,650 lb rated capacity make the Gehl RT165 a value-priced alternative to the Bobcat T595/T64 class. It's a mid-frame radial-lift compact track loader built by Manitou Group and sold in identical form as the Manitou 1650 RT.

Also sold as

The same machine is sold as the Manitou 1650RT, which we do not list separately. Different paint and a different dealer network, same hardware.

Suits: Budget-minded landscapers and farm owners who want mid-frame CTL capability for thousands less than the big-name brands Its radial lift path reaches furthest at mid-height, for digging, grading and backfilling.

Lifting and reach

Rated operating capacityTrack loader rating convention
1,650 lbs
Tipping load
4,715 lbs
Lift height to hinge pin
120 in
Lift path
Radial Lift
Operating weight
8,020 lbs

Power and hydraulics

Engine power
70 hp
Engine
Yanmar 4TNV98C
Auxiliary flowStandard circuit
18.7 GPM
Flow type
Standard
Warranty
2 yr / 2,000 hr

Fitted or available

What this machine can be ordered with. Some of these are standard and some cost extra, and which is which moves between trim levels, so check them against the quote rather than against this list.

Radial LiftHigh-FlowEnclosed CabSelf-LevelingA/C & HeatTracksHigh-Flow Available (30 GPM)

What owners report

Summarised from the sources listed below. Nothing here was tested by us.

Value is the whole argument here, and it is a real one as long as you understand what you are comparing. Rated at 35 percent of tipping load where several rivals use 50 percent, this machine holds back more reserve than its 1,650 lb headline implies - the 2,357 lb figure Gehl also publishes is the one to put beside a 50 percent-basis competitor.

Underneath it is a conventional rigid-roller CTL with a 69.3 hp Yanmar, 19 gpm of standard flow, a 30 gpm option and a 120-inch hinge pin that loads full-size trucks. IdealTrax removes the track-tensioning chore completely, which is a genuine maintenance saving and the feature owners most consistently single out. The two things that grate are single-speed travel at 7 mph, with no option to fix it, and an undercarriage bill that the wheeled equivalent simply does not generate. Comfort features exist but are all on the options list.

Ground conditions that genuinely require tracks, plus work that stays in one area, are the test, because that is the case where 7 mph costs you nothing. If the job is spread across a site, the wheeled R165 with two-speed does the same rated work far faster and more cheaply. Gehl publishes no list price, so collect quotes under both the Gehl and Manitou 1650RT names, price the HVAC and self-leveling options in rather than leaving them out of the comparison, and ask the dealer what undercarriage parts they hold.

What owners like

  • The rating is honest in a way the number does not advertise. Gehl publishes 1,650 lbs at 35 percent of tipping load and 2,357 lbs at 50 percent, on a 4,716 lb tipping load. A 50 percent-basis rival quoting 2,357 lbs would be the same machine on paper - so against Case, New Holland or Wacker Neuson track loaders, compare using 2,357.
  • IdealTrax tensions the tracks hydraulically on start-up and releases the tension at shutdown, eliminating the manual grease-cylinder adjustment and the slow damage that comes from running over-tensioned; the literature credits it with up to 15 percent more track life.
  • A 120-inch hinge pin height is tall for the class and matches the larger RT195, so it loads the same trucks a machine 400 lbs further up the range does.
  • The 30 gpm high-flow option is real capability on an 8,020 lb frame and covers brooms, augers, cold planers and lighter mulching heads.
  • Sixteen-inch track shoes on a 56-inch gauge spread 8,020 lbs well enough to keep working on ground that has already stopped a wheeled machine of similar rating.
  • Comfort options are available rather than absent - HVAC, an air-ride suspension seat and a Bluetooth radio are all on the list, which is not a given at this end of the market.

What owners complain about

  • Travel is single-speed at 7 mph with no two-speed offered at any price. That is the machine's clearest weakness, and it is worth feeling properly: the wheeled R165 with its two-speed option does 12 mph, so the same brand's similarly-rated wheeled machine crosses a site in well under half the time.
  • Standard auxiliary flow is 19 gpm - a gpm less than the lighter, cheaper wheeled R165 - so the base machine is not the hydraulic step up its size suggests.
  • Radial geometry limits reach at full height, so loading over a tall truck side needs deliberate positioning rather than simply raising the arms and dumping.
  • Everything under the machine is a consumable the wheeled R165 does not have. Tracks, rollers, idlers, sprockets and final drives are the real cost of ownership here, and they are the reason the purchase-price saving that attracts buyers can evaporate over a few thousand hours.
  • A rigid roller undercarriage transmits what it rolls over, so frozen ruts and broken ground are felt through the seat in a way a suspended-undercarriage machine does not transmit.
  • HVAC, cab enclosure and self-leveling are all extra-cost items, so a machine specified the way most buyers actually want it closes much of the price gap that drew them to the brand.
  • Dealer coverage is the recurring practical complaint with this brand, and Gehl's network leans on legacy agricultural dealers, which affects how quickly undercarriage and final-drive parts appear.

Drawn from gehl.com, compactequip.com, melkerbaltik.eu.

What buyers ask

Does the RT165 have two-speed travel?
No. Gehl publishes a single 7 mph travel speed and no two-speed option is offered. If long carries across a site are part of your work, this is the specification to think hardest about - the wheeled R165 does 12 mph with its two-speed option, and several rivals in this class have a high range as standard.
Is the RT165's 1,650 lbs the same as the wheeled R165's 1,650 lbs?
No, despite the matching number, and this is the most useful thing to understand about Gehl's range. The track loader is rated at 35 percent of tipping load and the wheeled machine at 50 percent. Their tipping loads are 4,716 lbs and 3,300 lbs respectively, so the tracked machine is carrying substantially more reserve at the same headline figure.
What is IdealTrax and does it actually help?
It is automatic hydraulic track tensioning. Tracks are tensioned when the engine starts and the tension is released when it stops, so they are never sitting loaded overnight and nobody has to adjust a grease cylinder. Gehl's literature puts the gain at up to 15 percent of track life. The bigger practical benefit is that it removes a maintenance item people forget.
How much is the undercarriage going to cost me?
That is the question to ask the dealer before signing, because it is where a CTL's lifetime cost differs from a wheeled machine's. Tracks, rollers, idlers, sprockets and final drives are all wear items. Automatic tensioning helps track life meaningfully, but it does not remove the category. If your ground does not actually require tracks, the wheeled R165 avoids the whole bill.
Is air conditioning standard?
No. HVAC is an option, as are cab enclosure and self-leveling. That matters when comparing quotes, because the price advantage that attracts buyers to this brand narrows once a machine is specified the way most people want to run it. Compare like-for-like builds, not base prices.
Is the Manitou 1650RT the same machine?
Yes, badged for Gehl's parent company. Both networks sell and service it and both quote independently, so ask for a price under each name. Where dealer proximity differs, buy the badge with the closer dealer - parts availability is the most common owner complaint with this brand and distance is most of it.

Put the Gehl RT165 against

Case TR270BGehl V210Gehl V275

Machines in the same range

The rest of the Gehl line
Gehl RT135

Gehl

Gehl RT135

$48,000

Radial Lift · rubber tracks

Also sold as the Manitou 1350RT

1,350 lb rated35% of 3,858 lb
Engine
47 hp
Aux flow
17 GPM
Weight
6,510 lbs

Slotting between the gate-friendly RT105 and mid-frame RT165, the Gehl RT135 is a small-frame radial-lift compact track loader from Manitou Group, also sold as the Manitou 1350 RT. A 46.6 hp Yanmar diesel, a 1,350 lb rated capacity, and a 57-inch width aim it at the Bobcat T550/Cat 249D class.

Full sheet & owner reports
Gehl VT320

Gehl

Gehl VT320

$85,000

Vertical Lift · rubber tracks

Also sold as the Manitou 3200VT

3,201 lb rated35% of 9,145 lb
Engine
114 hp
Aux flow
29 GPM
Weight
11,799 lbs

The Gehl VT320 is the only vertical-lift track loader in the Gehl line and its outright flagship, built by Manitou Group and also sold as the Manitou 3200 VT. A 114 hp Deutz turbo-diesel and a 3,201 lb rated capacity put it head-to-head with the Bobcat T870 and Cat 299D3 at a substantially lower price.

Full sheet & owner reports
Gehl RT105

Gehl

Gehl RT105

$42,000

Radial Lift · rubber tracks

Also sold as the Manitou 1050RT

1,050 lb rated35% of 3,000 lb
Engine
35 hp
Aux flow
15 GPM
Weight
4,720 lbs

At 50.8 inches wide with a 34.7 hp Yanmar diesel, the Gehl RT105 targets backyard landscapers and rental fleets in the Bobcat T450/Cat 239D small-frame class. It's the smallest track loader in the Gehl line, a 4,720 lb radial-lift machine built by Manitou Group and also sold as the Manitou 1050 RT.

Full sheet & owner reports