The Someca SOM 40 was launched in 1957 and became the most successful model of the young French tractor maker. It was ranked among the largest tractors ever built in France and stayed in production until 1964, by which time 18,741 had been manufactured.
Someca SOM 40 at a glance
| Maker | SOMECA (Société de Mécanique de la Seine), France |
|---|---|
| Production | 1957–1964 |
| Series | SOM series |
| Engine | Fiat OM CO1D 45 four-stroke diesel, direct injection |
| Displacement | 4,165 cc |
| Power | 45 hp at 1,500 rpm |
| Fuel | petrol or diesel versions offered in the period |
| Built | 18,741 by 1964 |
| Significance | a production record for France at the time |
| Parent company | SIMCA, then part of Fiat |
| After 1965 | Someca built only licensed Fiat Trattori models |
Someca has no separate Wikipedia article for the SOM 40; the model is described in the company history on the English and French Someca pages, and this article is based on those two versions of one source.
History of the Someca SOM 40
From MAP to Someca
Someca was created in 1953 by SIMCA, then a subsidiary of Fiat, when SIMCA took over the agricultural motors and tractors division of the company MAP. The new firm, whose name stood for Société de Mécanique de la Seine, produced its first tractors and also parts for the last tractors built by MAP. Its first model was the DA 50, closely derived from the MAP DR3 and powered by an engine developing 37 hp at 1,500 rpm.
The SOM 40
The next model, the SOM 40, was launched in 1957 and was hugely successful in France. It was equipped with the Fiat OM CO1D 45, a four-stroke direct-injection diesel of 4,165 cc that developed 45 hp at 1,500 rpm, and it was ranked among the largest tractors ever to be built in France. By 1964, 18,741 examples had been manufactured, a new record for that time. During the 1950s and 1960s the same model could be ordered with either a petrol or a diesel engine.
After the SOM 40
More than 40,000 Someca tractors using the Fiat base engine had been built by 1960. From 1965, with the launch of the 15 series, Someca manufactured only licensed Fiat Trattori models. Fiat, always the majority shareholder, integrated the company into its agricultural subsidiary FiatAgri in 1983; that became Fiat New Holland in 1993 and later part of CNH Global.
Design and features
- Fiat diesel power: the OM CO1D 45 engine of 4,165 cc produced 45 hp at 1,500 rpm.
- Size: at its launch the SOM 40 was ranked among the largest tractors ever built in France.
- Production record: 18,741 tractors built by 1964, a record for the period.
- Choice of fuel: petrol and diesel versions were both offered during the 1950s and 1960s.
Someca SOM 40 versions
- SOM 40 (1957–1964): the standard diesel model.
- Petrol-engined SOM 40: offered alongside the diesel in the 1950s and 1960s.
- Bisomtrac: a tandem mounting of two SOM 40 tractors, designed by the Éts Lhermite of Dreux.
The SOM 40 sat between the early SOM 50 and the later SOM 55 in the Someca range. More models are in the Someca collection.
Video: SOM 40 B au débardage de bois
Video by darbois rémy on YouTube.
Sources
- Someca, English Wikipedia: company history, SOM 40 engine and production
- Someca, French Wikipedia: SOM 40 details, model range and dates
