The Minneapolis-Moline Z was a four-cylinder petrol tractor of the early 1950s. Its last version, the ZB of 1953, was an improved ZA with a more comfortable seat and better steering, and it stayed in production until 1955.
Minneapolis-Moline Z at a glance
| Maker | Minneapolis-Moline Company, Minneapolis, Minnesota |
|---|---|
| Series | Z (ZA and ZB) |
| ZB introduced | 1953 |
| ZB changes | more comfortable seat, improved steering |
| Engine (ZB) | four-cylinder petrol, 34.8 hp |
| Gearbox (ZB) | five forward, one reverse |
| ZB front axles | ZBU tricycle with double front wheels, ZBN single front wheel, ZBE wide front axle |
| Production ended | 1955 |
| Company formed | 1929 |
| Brand retired | 1974, by White Motor Company |
The ZA is mentioned only as the model the ZB improved on; the source gives no separate figures for it.
History of the Minneapolis-Moline Z
Minneapolis-Moline was formed in 1929 by the merger of Minneapolis Steel & Machinery, the Minneapolis Threshing Machine Company and the Moline Implement Company. Its works stood on Lake Street at Hiawatha Avenue in Minneapolis, in Hopkins, Minnesota, and in Moline, Illinois, and the firm was first known as the Minneapolis-Moline Power Implement Company. Before the war it had pioneered the closed-cab tractor with the UDLX Comfortractor of 1938.
The Z was a four-cylinder petrol tractor of the post-war range. The ZB, introduced in 1953, was an improved version of the ZA with a more comfortable seat and improved steering. It was powered by a four-cylinder petrol engine producing 34.8 hp, driving a gearbox with five forward and one reverse gear.
Three front-axle layouts were catalogued: the ZBU had a tricycle front axle with double front wheels, the ZBN a single front wheel, and the ZBE a wide front axle. Production stopped in 1955. The Z was followed in the range by the M series, introduced in 1960 with the M-5, and by the six-cylinder G series, which began production in 1959.
Minneapolis-Moline reorganised under the name Motec around 1960 and was acquired by the White Motor Company in 1963. White dropped the Minneapolis-Moline brand in 1974, six years before it folded, and AGCO, which bought White in 1991, built tractors under the White name until 2001.
Design and features
- Four-cylinder petrol power: 34.8 hp in the ZB, with a five-speed gearbox and a single reverse gear.
- Comfort upgrade: the ZB improved on the ZA with a more comfortable seat and better steering.
- Three front ends: tricycle with double front wheels (ZBU), single front wheel (ZBN) or wide front axle (ZBE).
- Short model life: the ZB was built from 1953 to 1955, when the range moved on to the M and G series.
Minneapolis-Moline Z versions
- ZA: the earlier version of the Z, improved on by the ZB.
- ZB (1953–1955): more comfortable seat, improved steering, 34.8 hp.
- ZBU: tricycle front axle with double front wheels.
- ZBN: single front wheel.
- ZBE: wide front axle.
The closed-cab UDLX is described on the U series page, and the bigger six-cylinder line on the G1000 page. More tractors are in the Minneapolis-Moline collection.
Video: Minneapolis Moline Z Loading Up
Video on YouTube.
Sources
- Minneapolis-Moline, English Wikipedia: ZB series, engine, gearbox, front-axle versions, company history
