The Latil M2 was the designation of a family of military tractors built by the French firm Latil between the wars. It covered three roles: the M2 TL6 multipurpose and military tractor, the M2 TZ medium artillery and transport tractor, and the M2 TX, a prototype heavy workshop tractor.
Latil M2 at a glance
| Maker | Latil (Automobiles Industrielles Latil), France |
|---|---|
| Period | listed among Latil products of 1928–1945 |
| M2 TL6 | multipurpose and military tractor |
| M3 TL6 | multipurpose and military tractor, same designation group |
| H4 TL6 | multipurpose and military tractor, same designation group |
| M2 TZ | medium artillery and military transport tractor |
| M2 TX | prototype heavy workshop tractor |
| Related light types | M7 T1 liaison tractor, M7 Z1 light artillery tractor |
| Company plant | Suresnes, from 1914 |
| Company fate | merged into Saviem in 1955 |
Based on one source: the M2 appears as a group of entries in the product list of the English Wikipedia article on Latil, which gives the roles but no production figures or dimensions.
History of the Latil M2
One family, three roles
Latil listed the M2 among the military tractors it offered between 1928 and 1945. The name covered more than one machine. The M2 TL6, listed together with the M3 TL6 and H4 TL6, was a multipurpose and military tractor. The M2 TZ was the medium artillery and military transport tractor. The M2 TX was a prototype, a heavy workshop tractor that never became a production type.
The M2 belonged to the same generation as the light M7 T1 infantry, liaison and reconnaissance tractor and its M7 Z1 light artillery counterpart. In the Latil product list the M7 types are classed as light tractors, while the earlier TAR and the later TAR-H are classed as heavy artillery and workshop tractors; the M2 sits between those groups, covering multipurpose hauling, medium artillery transport and a workshop prototype.
By the 1930s Latil was also fitting diesel engines built under the Gardner licence and had added a second plant at Saint-Cloud to the original factory at Suresnes. During the Second World War the company worked with the ammunition firm MAP and sold tractors as MAP-Latil, and after the occupation the Latil plants produced vehicles for the Wehrmacht. The post-war Pons Plan of 1945 cut the number of French vehicle makers from 28 to seven and placed Latil in the Peugeot-led group; in 1955 the company was merged with the heavy vehicle division of Renault and with Somua to form Saviem, and the Latil name was gradually dropped from the range. The TL tractor licence was sold on to Creusot-Loire in 1962 and the tractors were marketed as the Latil Batignolles.
Design and features
- Three roles from one family: multipurpose hauling, medium artillery transport and a workshop prototype.
- All-wheel work: the M2 belonged to the Latil tractor programme rather than to the lorry range, alongside the TL, TAR and M7 tractors.
- Military specification: built for army use rather than for agriculture, as part of the tractor programme that also produced the M7 light types.
- A prototype in the range: the M2 TX heavy workshop tractor shows that the family was still being developed at the end of the interwar period.
Latil M2 versions
- M2 TL6: the multipurpose and military tractor, listed with the M3 TL6 and H4 TL6.
- M3 TL6: a further multipurpose tractor of the same designation group.
- H4 TL6: the third of the TL6 multipurpose tractors.
- M2 TZ: the medium artillery and military transport tractor.
- M2 TX: the prototype heavy workshop tractor.
The M2 shared its military role with the light Latil M7 T1 and followed the much larger Latil TAR; the civilian member of the range was the Latil TL. More Latil vehicles are in the Latil collection.
Video: Latil 1927 M2 TL6
Video on YouTube.
Sources
- Latil, English Wikipedia: M2 types, company history, Gardner diesel licence, Saviem merger
