The Nuffield Universal was a

tractor A tractor is an engineering vehicle specifically designed to deliver a high tractive effort (or torque) at slow speeds, for the purposes of hauling a trailer or machinery such as that used in agriculture, mining or construction. Most common ...

produced from 1948 by the Agricultural Division of

Morris Motors Morris Motors Limited was a British privately owned motor vehicle manufacturing company formed in 1919 to take over the assets of William Morris's WRM Motors Limited and continue production of the same vehicles. By 1926 its production represent ...

, later a subsidiary of The British Motor Corporation Limited. When

William Morris William Morris (24 March 1834 – 3 October 1896) was a British textile designer, poet, artist, novelist, architectural conservationist, printer, translator and socialist activist associated with the British Arts and Crafts Movement. He ...

the founder of Morris Motors was honoured with a title and elevated to the peerage he chose the name of his

Nuffield, Oxfordshire Nuffield is a village and civil parish in the Chiltern Hills in South Oxfordshire, England, just over east of Wallingford. The 2011 Census recorded the parish population as 939. Early history The ancient Ridgeway path runs through the vil ...

village. When in 1948 the Morris Motors Agricultural Division launched its tractor range, the name Nuffield was chosen to be the brand name for the company's agricultural products. The design was similar to the new David Brown built tractors as the designer Dr. Merit had also worked on the design of the David Brown 50D before moving to Nuffield. Nuffield were part of the amalgamations that created

British Leyland British Leyland was an automotive engineering and manufacturing conglomerate formed in the United Kingdom in 1968 as British Leyland Motor Corporation Ltd (BLMC), following the merger of Leyland Motors and British Motor Holdings. It was partl ...

in 1968, becoming part of Leyland Tractors.

History

Origins

In 1945 as part of post

World War 2 World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

recovery plans, the British Government approached the Nuffield Organisation suggesting that they design and manufacture a new all-British tractor. Having given this due consideration, Morris Motors Limited vice chairman Sir

Miles Thomas (William) Miles Webster Thomas, Baron Thomas DFC (2 March 1897 – 8 February 1980),Hull in 1946 "Nuffield to Make Tractors". Designed by former David Brown tractor designer Dr. H E Merritt, who had been involved in tank design during the war, tractor manufacture was to be undertaken at the former Wolseley factory in

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

as car production had recently been moved to Cowley, and by May 1946 a prototype tractor had been produced. A further 12 prototypes were produced before the end of that year culminating in a demonstration in Pershore in December. Due to steel shortages, production started in 1948 with the Nuffield Universal

being launched at the

Smithfield Show The Smithfield Show, formerly the Smithfield Club Cattle Show and later the Royal Smithfield Show, was an annual British agricultural show, organised by the Royal Smithfield Club. It was founded in 1799 and was first held at Wootton's Livery S ...

in December of that year. The tractors were produced in a bright red-orange officially referred to as "Poppy Orange" and similar in hue to the colour of American

Allis-Chalmers Allis-Chalmers was a U.S. manufacturer of machinery for various industries. Its business lines included agricultural equipment, construction equipment, power generation and power transmission equipment, and machinery for use in industrial setti ...

tractors.

Early years

The M3 and M4 both had a 5-speed gearbox and came with a range of additional extras available including £9 for horn and lights. Initial production was for domestic use, but by 1950 export opportunities were being pursued. In the US Nuffield tractors were imported by Long Manufacturing and were rebadged by them. The Nuffield also proved popular in the Netherlands initially being imported by Bautz; the Nuffield 4 was marketed as the Nuffield "Vier". In Spain the branding was Sava Nuffield.

Engines

Petrol-paraffin

Petrol-paraffin engine A petrol-paraffin engine, TVO engine (United Kingdom) or gasoline-kerosene engine (North America) is an old-fashioned type of dual-fuel internal combustion engine with spark-ignition, designed to start on petrol (gasoline) and then to switch to ...

models introduced at the 1948 Smithfield Show were the Nuffield Universal M4 and the tricycle-wheeled M3. Both tractors were powered by an engine based on the

side-valve A flathead engine, also known as a sidevalve engine''American Rodder'', 6/94, pp.45 & 93. or valve-in-block engine is an internal combustion engine with its poppet valves contained within the engine block, instead of in the cylinder head, as ...

Morris Commercial Morris Commercial Cars Limited was a British manufacturer of commercial vehicles formed by William Morris, 1st Viscount Nuffield, William Morris, founder of Morris Motors, Morris Motors Limited, to continue the business of E G Wrigley and Com ...

four-cylinder

lorry A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame construction ...

engine, running on

tractor vaporising oil Tractor vaporising oil (TVO) is a fuel for petrol-paraffin engines. It is seldom made or used today. In the United Kingdom and Australia, after the Second World War, it was commonly used for tractors until diesel engines became commonplace, es ...

and delivering 42 hp.

Diesel

The first

diesel Diesel may refer to: * Diesel engine, an internal combustion engine where ignition is caused by compression * Diesel fuel, a liquid fuel used in diesel engines * Diesel locomotive, a railway locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engin ...

powered Nuffield was the Universal DM4 which was powered by a 38 hp

Perkins Perkins is a surname derived from the Anglo-Saxon corruption of the kin of Pierre (from Pierre kin to Pierrekin to Perkins), introduced into England by the Norman Conquest. It is found throughout mid- and southern England. Another derivation com ...

P4 (TA) engine. After Morris Motors became part of the

British Motor Corporation The British Motor Corporation Limited (BMC) was a UK-based vehicle manufacturer, formed in early 1952 to give effect to an agreed merger of the Morris and Austin businesses.Morris-Austin Merger Company Named. ''The Times'', Friday, 29 February ...

(BMC) in 1951, the Perkins engine was retained until 1954 when it was replaced by a 45 h.p. BMC diesel engine, tractors with this engine being recognisable as they bear a badge "BMC Diesel".

Variants

M4 and M3

Nuffield_M4_Universal_tractor_at_Baytrees_Garden_Centre_-_Flickr_-_mick_-_Lumix

Both variants were in production between 1948 and 1961. The original engine for both M4 and M3 was a

4-cylinder sidevalve engine running on

, delivering 42 hp. * M4 Conventional 4-wheel model * M3 Single front wheel version for

row crop A row crop is a crop that can be planted in rows wide enough to allow it to be tilled or otherwise cultivated by agricultural machinery, machinery tailored for the seasonal activities of row crops. Such crops are sown by drilling or transplanti ...

work. A total of 5008 M3/M4 tractors were produced.

DM4 & PM4

Produced between 1950 and 1961 *DM4 - A

diesel engine The diesel engine, named after Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which ignition of the fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to mechanical compression; thus, the diesel engine is a so-call ...

variant with a

T4 engine producing , replaced by a

diesel of from 1954. *PM4 - A petrol variant with a engine. A total of 7545 DM4 and 3653 PM4 tractors were produced.

Universal 3(3DL) and 4(4DM)

Built from 1952 to 1961: *3DL 2.55L 3 Cylinder Engine *4DM 3.4L 4 Cylinder Engine

3/42 and 4/60

Built from 1961 to 1963 or 1964. All tractors built at

Bathgate Bathgate ( sco, Bathket or , gd, Both Chèit) is a town in West Lothian, Scotland, west of Livingston, Scotland, Livingston and adjacent to the M8 motorway (Scotland), M8 motorway. Nearby towns are Armadale, West Lothian, Armadale, Blackburn, ...

in Scotland from 1962. * 3/42 2.8L 3-cylinder diesel producing *Export 3/42 models had a 2.55L engine with vacuum governor like the 3DL. * 4/60 3.8L BMC 'OE4' 4-cylinder diesel engine. Produced by increasing the bore of the 3.4L engine from the 4DM.

10 series

Built from 1964 to 1966 or 1967. The 10 series was claimed to be the first British tractor with 10 forward gears. *10/42 - 2.8L diesel engine, *10/60 - 3.8L BMC diesel engine, *10/90 - BMC diesel engine.

Mini 9/16

Built from 1965 to 1968. This model had a engine.

3/45 and 4/65

Built from 1967 to 1969. *3/45 - an uprated version of the 2.8L diesel engine used in the 10/40 and now rated at *4/65 - an uprated version of the 3.8L BMC 4-cylinder diesel engine used in the 10/60, it had 8 overhead valves and was now rated at

Demise

In 1968, BMC's holding company British Motor Holdings was amalgamated with the

Leyland Motor Corporation Leyland Motors Limited (later known as the Leyland Motor Corporation) was a British vehicle manufacturer of lorries, buses and trolleybuses. The company diversified into car manufacturing with its acquisitions of Triumph and Rover in 1960 and 1 ...

which also owned

Standard Triumph The Standard Motor Company Limited was a motor vehicle manufacturer, founded in Coventry, England, in 1903 by Reginald Walter Maudslay. For many years, it manufactured Ferguson TE20 tractors powered by its Vanguard engine. All Standard's tract ...

and

Rover Rover may refer to: People * Constance Rover (1910–2005), English historian * Jolanda de Rover (born 1963), Dutch swimmer * Rover Thomas (c. 1920–1998), Indigenous Australian artist Places * Rover, Arkansas, US * Rover, Missouri, US ...

to become

. Tractor production continued under the Nuffield name until 1969 when the tractors were renamed as Leyland Tractors and the previous poppy-red tractors changed to the new two-tone blue Leyland corporate colour scheme. However the final end of Nuffield may have been different as it is reported that British Leyland considered divesting itself of the tractor business and a sale to David Brown. Some preparatory effort was made but there does not seem to have been sifficient commercial benefit for the merger to happen without some accompanying political imperative and nothing came of the move.

Restoration

Most versions of Nuffied tractors are still in existence, perhaps both an illustration of the strength of the design and the fondness that people feel for the marque. Parts, including some newly manufactured replacements, are still available from specialist stockists. A special paint colour named "Nuffield Tractor Orange" is currently available (2021).

Models

1:32 scale models have been produced of both the Universal 4 and the 10/60 variants. There have also been limited edition hand-built models of the 4/60 and 10/60 available.

References

{{commons category, Nuffield tractors Tractor manufacturers of the United Kingdom BMC vehicles