NAMED after a village in Lancashire, the Leyland tractor brand enjoyed a considerably short period of production – just 13 years – but there are heads and tails either end of the Leyland story.
In 1972, Leyland made a bold move launching a whole new range of four and six-cylinder tractors – with the range-topping six-cylinder 2100 and 4100 breaking the 100hp barrier.
Worthy of note is that this was one of the first six-cylinder engines produced in-house, not outsourced, by a British tractor company.
Also, while David Brown was a major player in its home market, it did not break the 100hp barrier until 1980 with the six-cylinder 1690 – the 92hp 4 cylinder turbocharged 1412 being its closet effort.
The 2100 was launched in 1972, the 2 representing two-wheel drive format, the 100 signifying the horsepower.
The 5.6l 6/98 NT produces 100hp, the 98 referring to the bore of the cylinders.
Initially, the tractor was fitted with a 10F/2R transmission, inherited from Nuffield. In 1978, there was a considerable advance with the introduction of the Synchromesh gearbox comprising of 9F and 3R which allowed for on-the-move gear changes.
Interestingly, the engine, clutch, and gearbox are mounted on a main steel frame.
These models are easily identifiable due to the red ‘Synchro’ wording on the bonnet along with their accompanying pin stripes.
To provide easier access across the cab for the operator, the gear levers were removed from the top of the transmission housing to the side, while also extended to reside at the lever of the seat, with the gear selector to the left and the range selector to the right.
The 2100 has a lift capacity of 2.7tons with a 31.5 litres of oil flow per min.
The Victor build Quiet cab was fitted to the Leyland tractors and was an improvement over the previous ‘rattle cab’ versions, primarily due to a physical back window.
It boasted a flat floor, hydraulic clutch and brake pedals along with side-mounted gears.
Quite a practical feature of Leyland tractors, the entire bonnet hood swings over for filling the front-mounted diesel tank and for engine inspections, while the grill slides forward.
A tractor with some serious mileage clocked up, the Leyland 2100 of Paddy Ryan, Ballinascarthy, has completed both Malin to Mizen and John O’ Groats to Lands’ End (UK) journeys as part of the ‘Irish Rovers’ group to raise money for charities.
• Contact Peter at [email protected] or see Instagram @flashphotoscork
