DESIRABLE DEXTA
Ford’s decision to launch the Fordson Dexta back in the mid-1950s, was one largely driven by pressure from its marketing department. The salesmen out in the field understood the situation; they could see the potential for a smaller, lighter tractor model among UK farmers. But that sector of the agricultural market had been dominated – since the end of WW2 – by the Ferguson TE-20.
The arrival of the MF35 in 1956 hammered home the threat posed by the ‘grey menace’, and Ford’s reaction was the timely introduction of a little brother for the already successful Fordson Major. The Dexta was unveiled at the 1957 Smithfield Show, and started getting out on to farms the following year.
The main snag in its evolution had concerned the engine, and the considerable in-house costs associated with developing a suitable new design for a ‘light’ application. Fortunately for Ford, an existing association with Peterborough-based engine builder, Perkins Limited, provided a reliable and money-saving solution.
Diminutive diesel
Ford had used the trusty, Perkins P6 diesel engine in both the E27N tractor and, on the commercial vehicle side, in the Ford Thames lorry. Perkins’ reputation for engineering excellence was well established, and the fact that it had recently added a three-cylinder, 32hp
