The Ford 6000 Tractor
Ford had a kind of a stigma during the 1940's and 1950's: The Little Tractor People. The 9N was followed by the exact same size 2N, which was followed by the exact same size 8N. The 8N was followed by the only marginally larger Jubilee and NAA, which were in turn followed by the only marginally larger 600 and 800 series utility tractors and the long-awaited 700 and 900 series row crop tractors, all of which were finally available in much-welcomed Diesel fuel variations.
The problem was, while Ford was making small, gradual increases in tractor size and power, all the other manufacturers were leap-frogging each other in that regard... and leaving Ford choking in their dust. Something had to be done or they would soon be trampled underfoot never to rise again.
Going ALL the way, in 1957, Ford brought forth the experimental Typhoon tractor. Built on a 961 PowerMaster chassis, the aptly-named Typhoon differed immensely by virtue of its extremely radical free-piston turbine engine, capable of 100 horsepower at an astonishing 45000 RPM. Likely by restricting the fuel intake, the actual output of the Typhoon was limited to 50 drawbar horsepower.
The Typhoon was big. It was dramatic in the extreme. It was dynamic; sleek, thoroughly jet-age modern, and powerful. And, alas, it was never to be. Opinions differ as to the actual production; some say three Typhoons were built to tour the farm shows in 1957. Others say only one Typhoon was built along with an extra engine. Everyone, however, agrees there is unfortunately no Typhoon tractor left in existence, which is a true agricultural historic tragedy. The last (or the only) Typhoon was scrapped in a corporate bid for more warehouse space in 1978. Sitting on a pallet, it was easy to feed into a dumpster, and that was it. Almost unimaginable now with the value of rare collector tractors, especially experimental ones, but a mere fact of life then.
The 10 speed Select-O-Speed featured in the Typhoon took a very overlooked back seat status to its star attraction turbine engine, but was a still a engineering triumph - or disaster, depending on who you ask - and put Ford on the leading edge of contemporary tractor technology.
Experimental tractors, like concept cars, while seldomly coming to fruition, do often provide elements for future products, and the Typhoon was no different. It introduced a new Ford tractor size: 60 horsepower. It showcased the 10 speed full powershift Select-O-Speed transmission, which Ford had pinned very high hopes upon. It also included a 'Park' position; an industry first, which gave a very automotive ease of operation flare. And big row crop styling.
The fuel consumption issues of a turbine engine just could not be overcome, as International Harvestor also found out in 1961 with their turbine powered HT340 tractor. Pardon the pun, but a tractor as fuel hungry as the Ford Typhoon or IH HT340 would never fly.
1961 rolled around, and some of the most enduring concepts of the Typhoon showed up in production form in the very new and very sharply styled Ford 6000. It had the Typhoon's size... and then some; it had the Typhoon's power... and then some; and it had the Typhoon's Select-O-Speed transmission and dramatic hood scoop. Typical of Ford tractors of the time, it was bright red and white in colour. A heavy cast iron grille provided balance and ensured lasting good looks in less than ideal operation. It sported a new engine type for Ford tractors: smooth 6 cylinder power in Gas, Diesel, or Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG). It was available in Row Crop single front wheel, Row Crop narrow front, or Row Crop wide front ends. It looked completely fresh and even sporty. At full governed engine speed, the 6000 in Gas or Diesel version turned out a very respectable 66 horsepower on the PTO classing it as a 5 plow tractor.
All Ford tractors up until that point were mounted on 28 inch rear wheels. Even the big Typhoon was only equipped with 28 inch rear rubber. There was no way to deliver the sheer impressiveness of the new 6000 model on 28 inch rear tires. The 6000 tractors were mounted on full size 38 inch rear wheels and 13.6 or 15.5 tires, putting them up there with the biggest row crop tractors of the time.
Speaking of sporting, nothing was left to be desired in the all new 6000. Their flagship model offered the industry's first tilt steering column as standard equipment. Effortless power steering was also standard. The dual gauge instrument cluster was illuminated at night by soft Electro-luminescent lighting. The stylish white steering wheel had only two spokes to provide a clear view of the dash.
On one side of the dash was a short chrome lever for the Select-O-Speed transmission. On the opposite side was a matching chrome lever for the throttle. The operator's platform was clear of obstructions. Mounting steps were provided on both sides of the tractor for easy access. The seat tilted backwards to allow for operation in a standing position when desired. The PTO, like the transmission, was hydraulically power shifted, and had an economy speed setting of 1750 engine RPM for light work, or full speed 2225 RPM for the full power jobs like silage chopping. The PTO was also provided with dual speed 540/1000 RPM speeds and interchangeable output shafts. In keeping with the overall hydraulic assisted theme, the 6000's brakes were powerful hydraulic assisted wet discs. On top of that, a very new feature, Powr-Stor hydraulics, derived from the aircraft industry, implemented a charged hydraulic accumulator tank, which provided instant hydraulic response at any time, and, most notably, allowed raising an implement even when the engine wasn't running.
This was IT. A trendsetter! Pride of ownership with such an exciting new power star on the farm would be a given. Ford produced very polished presentation videos of the 6000's plentiful attributes for dealer open houses. They placed dramatic, two page, full colour ads in farming publications across the continent. Vivid, full colour sales brochures were made for dealers display racks. Demonstrations were arranged wherever possible to adequately display all the 6000 model's new size, and very impressive, totally up to date and altogether brand new features.
The snazzy new Ford 6000 tractor was a modern mechanical marvel. It was smooth, quiet, powerful, responsive, easy handling, comfortable to operate, and exceedingly stylish.
It was also an absolute disaster. A complete and utter lemon. A Fail with a capital F. With all its bells and whistles, what started out to be the Cadillac of tractors quickly turned into the Edsel of tractors. By design or by accident, its grille even had a 'horse collar' appearance reminiscent of the early Edsel car ones, just much more tastefully executed. The Edsel fiasco wasn't even over yet for Ford, so this new flub in another field of high hopes must have really stung for them. The intended bad boy of tractors instead became just the bad tractor of tractors.
Referred to by many as quite possibly the worst modern tractor ever built, stories abound of brand new 6000's sitting on the dealers lots with oil pooling under them. The six cylinder Diesel engines blew wrist pins and demolished themselves. They suffered equally catastrophic crankshaft failures. Self-defeating hydraulic system leaks presented themselves as well. The Select-O-Speed (SOS) transmissions slipped or jerked. Or both. And of course leaked copiously and failed early. It was quickly sardonically branded the 'Jerk-O-Matic' by farmers very unimpressed by its performance. Apparently, Harold Brock, the chief designer of the SOS, begged Ford not to release the 6000 model because he knew it needed further development. They ignored his pleas and put them into swift production to utterly calamitous results. In disgust, he left Ford and went to John Deere where he headed up development of their 8 speed power shift transmission used in their upcoming 3020 and 4020 models and the rest there is history.
Ford was in a mess. A spreading, oily mess due to their less than inspiring 6000. It looked great. It was awful. Terrible. An industry misfire. A publicity dud and a true corporate embarrassment. They had promoted it so hard. And it failed them so bad. What a beautiful tractor; what an ugly situation.
To their credit, Ford did their darnedest to try to come good for it.
To save any chance it had at remaining in the tractor business, Ford implemented a radical program: the farmer could return his up to one year old 6000, and in exchange they would give him a new, updated one, mounted on his old wheels and tires. It is hard to determine whether the tractor he received was actually a completely brand new one or a totally factory refurbished one with updates, but they saved the 6000 program... sort of, that way. The tractor he got back, by the way, was no longer red and white. It was now blue and white to differentiate it. Supposedly any remaining, existing red and white ones were never returned. They probably got the updates at the dealer or they may have blown themselves up too.
One very noticeable part of the upgrade was the addition of an external, tall air cleaner stack complete with precleaner as the original air cleaner fed by the hood scoop did not pull in enough cool air for good engine life. Practically any existing 6000 model of any vintage or version has the external stack update. It takes a little away from the original clean lines of the tractor, but helps keep it running.
Sales literature didn't reference Standard versions of the early series 6000 tractors, but here is a red and white one, and a pair of blue ones.
So now there were blue and white 6000's. In my opinion they weren't just quite as pretty as the red and white ones, but Ford wisely didn't mess with their styling so they were still very pleasing, attractive units.
The 6000 was a particularly nasty blemish on the record of the company that brought the hydraulic three point hitch of the Ferguson System to the masses through the massively successful Ford N Series tractor line. About the only other tractor that ever came close to sharing the Ford 6000's surface image of fresh, youthful innocence with an underlying and surreptitious history of utter maleficence, would be the Oliver or Cockshutt 1250 Gas with its junk engine and even junkier 24 volt electrical system. A very pretty face can sometimes be the first view of a very bad relationship to come...
To be fair, though, the 6000's maybe weren't all that bad. What they really failed at, it appears, was their ability to live up to the hype that Ford's incredible promotion department had made for them. With the awful reputation for breakdowns they have, it is truly amazing how many are still in existence, running and drivable. There are a surprising number of videos online showing 6000's still putting in a day's work.
Notice in the pictures the 6000's unique, streamlined muffler? If you are led to wonder where that came from, look no further than the iconic funnels on the S.S. United States ocean liner from 1952. The 'Big U', as she was affectionately called, was America's pride; the fastest and most powerful liner in the world. It also sported the largest funnels ever installed on any ship. On the Ford 6000 you will see both the same tall, teardrop, airfoil shape, and the same smoothly rounded top cap. About the only S.S.U.S styling cue missing on the 6000's muffler is the liner's red, white, and blue paint, and its funnel fins, added to develop a 'jet stream' to keep soot airborne and off the ship's decks. Just as on the Blue Riband holding ocean greyhound S.S. United States, the 6000's purposefully streamlined stack implied modern speed and power. Along with its sleek, forward leaning bodywork and light, bright paint colours, that muffler really helped give the 6000 such a fresh new look of modern, confident, fast and powerful American design. The overall effect when viewed from any angle was uniform and beautiful; a sleek, lithe, absolute thoroughbred of a tractor. A Ford 6000 just doesn't look right without its proper muffler.
If all the elements of the Ford 6000 had come together as intended, it could very well have set a new bar and changed the agscape forever.
By some accounts, the blue and white 6000's were not much better than the red and white 6000's they replaced, and that belief is made more plausible by the introduction of the 1965 Ford Commander 6000. The Commander got a grille restyle that gave the otherwise stand alone 6000 tractor more of a 'family' appearance to other Ford tractor models. It still retained the earlier 6000's unique and very stylish muffler. A rather unflattering appraisal of the new Commander 6000 was given by one non-fan as "a polished turd version of the 6000 that fixed some of it's problems". Hardly an account to inspire confidence. I wouldn't have run out to buy one on that glowing review, would you? The Commander sales literature now displayed Standard tread models for wheatland work.
Once again, Hubley produced the toy version of the Commander 6000. Notice there is no vertical air cleaner stack like the real one.
The Commander 6000 even had a pedal tractor version.
Personally, I prefer the look of the earlier 6000's, but you gotta hand it to Ford: 'Commander 6000' has a heckuva ring to it, although in its own regard it was kind of like a criminal changing his name. The only other contemporary tractor with a name as catchy and memorable as that was the 1967-1969 Minneapolis Moline G1000 Vista, for its commanding view of the landscape. So they were both Commanders, so to speak. The Vista just was just vastly (pardon the pun again) more successful.
The Ford Commander 6000 was available from 1965 until 1967, then the 6000 series of all types quickly faded into (rather notorious) obscurity.
For all its quirks, the Ford 6000 remains one of my all time favorite tractors. They are just beautiful examples of Detroit design at the sheer pinnacle of its lofty ambitions of hope and belief in the American Dream. There are indeed some good ones out there and their owners swear by them. Then, there's, well: the rest. But they are all beauts, especially the early red and white ones, and any still equipped with the original muffler. Depending upon personal experience, some people may think they can turn stomachs, but 60 years later they can still definitely turn heads.
Comments
Post a Comment