TheMassey-Harris Model 101 was atractor built byMassey-Harris (laterMassey Ferguson) from 1938 to 1946.[1] Developed under the guidance ofJames S. Duncan, who gambled corporate losses would drop and won, the 101 introduced theChryslerL-headinline six. The six would compete withOliver's straight-sixModel 70, while saving money on development of a whole new engine as well as taking advantage of Chrysler's existing parts and service network.[1]
The 101 used the 201 in³ (3,292 cc) six, taking advantage of its stock electric start, a first in a tractor.[1] Run at much lower revs than the truck engine, the 101 came in the usual standard androw-crop models, with four-speed transmission, and was capable of 20 mph (32 km/h) on roads.[1] The row-crop model offered adjustable rear wheel spacing and rear wheel brakes, as well asPTO. There was also a rare model with a single front wheel.[2] They also featured hood sides with dozens oflouvers, which disappeared late in 1941.[3] The Super was upgraded to the 217 in³ (3,554 cc) Chrysler in 1940,[1] giving it almost 50 hp (37 kW) at the belt, making it one of the most powerful tractors on the market that year.[1] It continued to be used in the 101 Super until 1940, when it was supplanted by the 217 in³ (3,554 cc).[1]
With a base price of aroundC$1100,[4] the 101 was about C$200 more than theJohn DeereA.[5] and competitive withFord andFerguson-Brown models of the period.[4][6] Yet the top-selling tractors were all lighter and much cheaper.[7]
To address this, the Model 101 was joined in 1939 by the "entry level" two-plow[2]Model 101 Junior with Continental'sinline four, while the six-cylinder model became the101 Super. The Junior, comparable to theDeereModel H,[8] used the same 124 in³ (2,031 cc) engine of the later81 and20,[5][9] and produced 31 hp (23 kW) at the belt,[10] Manufactured byContinental, it was used in many Massey Harris tractors at the time,[6][9] as well as by theCockshutt 20 andOliver Super 44. The comparablekerosene (tractor vaporising oil, or TVO, in Britain)[11] version was known as the102 Junior.[7] In 1940, the 124 in³ engine was replaced by a 140 in³ (2,293 cc) Continental[7] of 19 drawbar/23 belt hp (14/17 kW)[5] and in 1943 with a 162 in³ (2,654 cc) version.[7]
While the C$895[5] Junior sold nearly 28,000 units by 1946, it could not match the 60,000 each of the Deere H andAllis-Chalmers B, 180,000 of theFarmall A, and was barely a fraction ofFord's 260,0009Ns.[5] The Model 101 Super ended production in 1942.[12] The 101 Junior persisted until 1946, while the waning sales of the 102 Junior saw the name pass to overseas sales.[7]