A brief history of the T-16 Carrier
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Page created: 12-Aug-2002
A brief history of the T-16 Carrier
As originally published in 2001
on The Carrier Platoon web site (now defunct)
The U.S. response to
a British request to manufacture carriers was the T-16. Re-engineered by
Ford USA, it was a different beast in many ways.
The U.S. T-16 Carrier was an interesting answer to some
of the known design problems inherent in the initial British genus and
derivatives. After several years of hard use in varying climates and
environments, the inherent weaknesses in the basic carrier design had
become known: rear axles prone to failure under sustained load, a
steering system which required constant adjustment and which wore out brake
shoes at a prodigious rate, and suspension and track failures under high
loads. In addition, it had been found that the original 221cubic inch Ford
engine and its six volt electrical system was not reliable or strong enough
to perform the tasks demanded of the carrier under battlefield conditions.
For example, the weight of towing a six-pounder antitank gun and the
carriage of its crew and stores frequently wore out drivetrain components
and made for unsafe handling.
All of these shortfalls were addressed when
the engineering staff at Ford of U.S.A. were
tasked with creating an 'all-American' version of the now-ubiquitous
universal carrier. The result was a fascinating hybrid!
below the history, evolution and employment of the T-16 Universal Carrier:
A BRIEF HISTORY OF
THE T-16 CARRIER by Hanno Spoelstra
enlarge all thumbnails
Despite the fact that no vehicle like the Universal
Carrier was ever adopted by nations other than Britain and the
Commonwealth, the type remained immensely popular with those armies and to
meet the continuing demand the United States was drawn into the production programme. The US Tank Committee, after discussion with
industry, agreed to produce the vehicles to the same performance specs, but
with US engineering. A Ford Motor Company design was accepted and the
(Joint) British Tank Mission placed orders under the Lend-Lease Agreement
for 30,000 carriers under the American designation T16. As it was procured
strictly for Lend-Lease, and since there was never any intent for US use,
the "T" designation was retained instead of an "M"
number being assigned.
Ford's expertise in
mass-production techniques was
applied to the full during WW2. Production engineering improvements ranged
from redesigning parts to facilitate easier manufacture and reduction of
assembly time, and purpose-designed tooling to save time on manufacturing
and assembly operations. Surprisingly, most of Ford's war production was
non-automotive, but the basic carrier design was a prime candidate to be
re-engineered for mass-production and reliability. As a result, Ford's Sommerville plant won the Army/Navy 'E' Award for
production efficiency displayed on the Universal Carrier contract.
changes to the
design involved a controlled differential steering system (discarding the
track warping system devised by Vickers-Armstrong), the Ford Mercury
engine, a different bogie system (with an extra road wheel added), a
longer, redesigned and simplified welded hull structure, and refinement of
the track and suspension (like
pressed steel disk road wheels). A Fighting Vehicle Proving Establishment report on six pre-production
models revealed problems with oil-cooling, failure of the tapered roller
bearing in the suspension at 2,200 miles, and a loss of efficiency in the
steering brakes due to the ingress of mud. These were all corrected in the
next six vehicles, and it was subsequently stated that 3,500 production
machines had left the factory and were awaiting shipment.
From March 25, 1943 until 1945, Ford's Sommerville plant
near Boston, Massachusetts, produced a total of 13,893 T16s. Production
seems to have been slow in getting under way and many weredelivered (too) late in the war to see action.
However, during WW2 T16s were allocated
to British and Commonwealth formations in Northwest Europe, where they were
designated the Carrier, Universal, T16, Mark I. By June 1944 Canada had put
the T16 into use towing the 6-pdr AT gun and as a 4.2-inch Mortar Carrier.
Its benefit as a heavy load carrier/tower lay in its more robust controlled
differential rear axle and suspension, as well as its more reliable Ford
Mercury engine. Great Britain received only a modest number, most of which
saw service in post-war years. It seems they were not popular in the UK.
The US showed no interest in the type, although it was said that they were
considering a lighter, narrower version for use in jungle warfare.
Lend-Lease supplies of Universal Carriers to the Soviet Union included 96
T16s from the USA, but no details are known about their use.
-- a T-16 of the Canadian Scottish Regiment on the outskirts of the
ruined town of Breskens during the Scheldt
June, 1945 --
a T-16 of the Canadian Lake Superior Regiment, with a couple of 'the
guys' hamming it up for the photographer.
After WW2 the T16 saw service with various
countries such as The Netherlands, Switzerland and Argentina. In 1951 The
Netherlands army stock included nearly 200 Loyds,
180 T16s and 40 Windsors (out of a grand total of
1,740 tracked carriers). Two-hundred of all types were in use by Dutch
units, including T16s, which in some cases seem to have been mis-identified as Windsor Carriers. In the early
post-war years the UK sold a lot of AFVs (and CMP trucks) to Argentina,
including the T16.
In Switzerland, the
T16 was known as Pz Begl Fz UC (which
probably stands for Panzer or Panzergrenadier
Universal Carrier). After
the introduction of the AMX-13 light tank in 1951 raised the need for a
vehicle for accompanying infantry, the Swiss selected the T16 as their
first armoured infantry vehicle. A total of 302
were bought from the manufacturer
in England [sic] for a unit price of 7.400 Swiss Francs. The vehicle was
used by the Dragoons and armoured infantry in the
service of the armoured troops from 1953 until
1963. They were crewed by a driver, commander and six panzergrenadiere.
The Swiss Panzer Museum states that 300 T16s were sold to Biafra via a
dealer in Toronto in 1965. However, it is likely this deal did not
materialize as sometime in the 1980s a large number of surplussed
Swiss T16s were sold off to Southeastern Equipment Company in Augusta,
Georgia, USA. This company's primary focus is on converting surplus army
vehicles into logging machinery, but many T16 were sold to private
collectors. Thus, almost all of the T16s currently in private ownership in
the United States are ex-Swiss carriers.
Engine: Ford V8
petrol, model GAU370, 239 cid, 100 bhp at 3,800 rpm.
forward, 1 reverse
Speed: 33 
inches [12 feet 11 inches]
inches [6 feet 11-1/2 inch]
inches [5 feet 1 inch]
clearance: 10-1/2 inch
Weight: 7,756 lbs (gross 9,500 lbs [10,500 lbs with a 1,200 lbs load])
length: 71 inches
pressure: 7.4 lb/sq in
Armour: 6 to 7 mm
Tracks: T79, 10
inch wide, 1-3/4 inch pitch
Climb: 18 inch
high vertical wall; 60% grade
Cross: 30 inch
Range: up to
a Mark II version, the T16 E2, was authorized
to replace the T16 in production in 1945. It was an elongated vehicle
designed for improved stability and better bogie loading without major
change in the spare parts required. The front bogie was moved back 6
inches, the rear bogie was moved back 9 inches and reversed, and the drive
axle was moved back 8 inches. It also featured disc road wheels with
synthetic rubber tyres. The only noted problems
in Aberdeen Proving Ground tests related to tracks and bogie wheels (too
much maintenance and wear) and the brake linings (sort life span). The
T16E2, however, was cancelled before production began. Characteristics were
the same as for T16, except:
Length: 13 ft, 6 in
length: 77 in
(gross weight): 6.8 lb/sq
Armour, hull, front: 9/32 and 25/64 in
- Technical Manual: TM 9-746, Universal
Carrier T16. Washington: War Department, 11 August 1943.
- Ordnance Supply Catalog: Standard Nomenclature
List No. G-166, Part II. Ford Motor Company (USA) service parts
catalogue for Carrier, Universal T-16 s/n FS-1 through FS-1000; 1001
through 1735. (September 1943).
- Crismon, Fred, U.S. Military Tracked Vehicles.
- Fletcher, David, The
Universal Tank. London: HMSO, 1993.
- Gregg, William, Canada's Fighting Vehicles:
- The American Arsenal: The World War II Official
Standard Ordnance Catalog of Small Arms, Tanks, Armored Cars,
Artillery, Antiaircraft Guns, Ammunition, Grenades, Mines, Etcetera(introduction by Ian Hogg). London: Greenhill Books;
and: Pennsylvania: Stackpole books, 1996.
- Vanderveen, Bart, Ford at War: a brief
survey of the American Ford Motor Co's war
effort, part 1. Wheels & Tracks, issue No. 7, p. 18-28.
- Vanderveen, Bart, Ford at War: part 2 of
a brief survey of the American Ford Motor Co's
war effort. Wheels & Tracks,
issue No. 8, p.22-29.