Help me indentify this tractor....:)

Coyote · Jul 13, 2007

Late 40's maybe ???

bg71361 · Jul 13, 2007

Close 1938.

Minneapolis-Moline's 1938 UDLX Comfortractor combined a car and a tractor, just not with much success

See link for more info.
Hemmings Motor News: 1938 Farm On!

Coyote · Jul 13, 2007

I can't believe it! I thought it was a joke! I found that on a web site and it was titled "redneck tractor"

Farmwithjunk · Jul 13, 2007

Sorta out of the price range of your typical redneck though. They sell in excess of $125,000 in fair to good condition. I know of one that sold for $141,000 last year.

RonR · Jul 13, 2007

One of my former neighbors got interested in these; don't think he ever found one to buy.

He told me those tractors had a FAST road gear and would run close to 40MPH in top gear when used as a "car".............

I can't imagine going that fast on a tractor...........

ron

diyDave · Jul 14, 2007

One of these UDLX's sold at auction, I think it was Auman's in Illinois, maybe it was Polk's auction, but I think it went for over $150K, about 2 weeks ago!

JoeinTX · Jul 15, 2007

Yeah, does seem like a pretty screwy idea now or then. I believe it was born out of a Depression-era mindset where the struggling farm family would not have to buy a car/truck AND tractor when they could just buy one of MM's ComforTractors and have both.

Well, it was still pretty much tractor (no power steering, iffy tractor breaks of the time, no suspension, bad visibility for either a car or tractor) and not car and didn't go anywhere.

We find it funny to think of car-like amenities and high speed road gears on a tractor, but in Europe today they use their tractors very often on highways as prime movers much, much more so than we would ever consider doing in N.A. Items such as the highway tranny, suspension, modern brakes, etc are all in place on many Euro-spec machines today to achieve better highway handling.

mjncad · Jul 15, 2007

I like it just because it's unique.

lhfarm · Jul 15, 2007

JoeinTX said:
Yeah, does seem like a pretty screwy idea now or then. I believe it was born out of a Depression-era mindset where the struggling farm family would not have to buy a car/truck AND tractor when they could just buy one of MM's ComforTractors and have both.

Well, it was still pretty much tractor (no power steering, iffy tractor breaks of the time, no suspension, bad visibility for either a car or tractor) and not car and didn't go anywhere.

We find it funny to think of car-like amenities and high speed road gears on a tractor, but in Europe today they use their tractors very often on highways as prime movers much, much more so than we would ever consider doing in N.A. Items such as the highway tranny, suspension, modern brakes, etc are all in place on many Euro-spec machines today to achieve better highway handling.

I don't mean to highjack this thread, but Willys tired to make the Jeep into the all purpose vehicle. In an early (~1945) promotion film, they show a farmer and his Jeep pulling wagons, using the belt pulley, hauling sacks of grain in the rear (like a p/u) and then driving the family (mom in white gloves, two kids in the back seat) to church. You can see some ads at our Web site Vintage Farm Jeep Ads and over on the CJ2A page Willys Jeep CJ2A Advertising.

The Jeep was aimed at the same market as the MM UDLX - the two mule, 40 acre family farmer that still made up much of the population. There was no money for a car, a truck and a tractor. Lots of important history that is being lost as those generations pass on.

bones1 · Jul 15, 2007

That is an interesting tractor.

MSWoodlot · Jul 15, 2007

As JoeinTX points out, European tractors get highway use, as shown in this video of a Fendt posted several months ago.

YouTube - fendt

MSWoodlot

dsgsr · Jul 15, 2007

I think I saw Bonnie & Clyde in that tractor last week, Running from the Law

David

RedRocker · Jul 16, 2007

I'd love to have one of those, it's my favorite tractor.

bjr · Jul 16, 2007

IHFARM has touched on something pretty valuable. Maybe OT but, the idea that people made do with what they had and think there way thru problems back then. Maybe off topic, but a good topic none the less. bjr

Kernopelli · Jul 16, 2007

That is one neat old tractor. Sitting here thinking about it, it would be pretty easy for some of the car guys to turn a vintage tractor into a reasonable reproduction of that. Or even spin off that idea and make something even more unique. A pick up based design or a wrecker would be obvious. How about a "motor home"-use a '30's/'40's model front clip and cab with one of those tiny tear drop campers for the rear. Maybe get Chip Foose and start a "Pimp my tractor" show on TLC network! I've got it-"Orange County Tractors" I'm calling the producers!

madpogue · Jul 16, 2007

dsgsr said:
I think I saw Bonnie & Clyde in that tractor last week, Running from the Law

At that speed, I wouldn't exactly call it "running".

Keith_B · Jul 19, 2007

While some are making light of the 40 MPH speed they need to consider that in 1938 there weren't a lot of 40 MPH roads in rural America. A lot of roads back in that time were unpaved, and ungraveled.

The UDLX was really ahead of its time in regards to having a full enclosed cab for the tractor. The main problem was that is was a pretty radical departure for the time, and that the target audience was very conservative in nature. It really didn't help MM that the farmers could purchase a tractor and a car for the same or less money than the UDLX cost.

mjncad · Jul 20, 2007

Keith_B said:
The UDLX was really ahead of its time in regards to having a full enclosed cab for the tractor. The main problem was that is was a pretty radical departure for the time, and that the target audience was very conservative in nature.

The Tucker of the tractor world?

alchemysa · Jul 20, 2007

I can't imagine going that fast on a tractor........... ron[/QUOTE said:
These Chamberlain 'road' tractors were quite common here in Australia once upon a time. Up to 50ks an hour. (Did you have them in the US?).
Cruising down the highway… in a tractor » ABC North and West SA

I remember them 'flying' down the highway towing big trailers full of scrap metal waste from the local GM plant. Braver cyclists than me used to hang on for a fast tow to school.

Incidently, the Trek mentioned in this link was probably at least two to three thousand kilometers.

sandman2234 · Jul 20, 2007

I picked up a Willy's jeep that looked just like the Military style that had a pto mounted on the rear, offset to one side. The body rusted away from sitting on the beach so I took the pto off of it, along with the driveshaft and the part that hooked to the transfer case, which included the third shift lever. It stay out in my utility shed for 10 years. I found an old man that had restored a Military Jeep and took it by his house and gave it to him.
Years later I got to thinking about it and figured that might have been a good EBAY item. Oh well, hope the old man got some use out of it.
The things people do to vehicles to try to make tractors out of them...
David from jax