Ford Compact Tractors: Every Model from the 1000 to the 2110

Ford sold compact tractors from 1973 until the late 1990s, and none of them were built by Ford. Every model in this guide was made by Shibaura in Japan and sold under the Ford badge. We have the original operator's manual for 18 of them, and every engine size, horsepower figure, weight and transmission listed below comes from the specifications section of those manuals. Each model links to its full specifications page.

Production years and series names are from tractordata.com, because the manuals do not print them.

How the model numbers work

Ford sold its compacts in four series, and the last two digits of the model number tell you which one you are looking at.

• The early 1000 and 1600 (1973 to 1979). The first two models, both two-cylinder.
• Hundred series, numbers ending in 00 (1979 to 1983): 1100, 1200, 1300, 1500, 1700 and 1900.
• Ten series, numbers ending in 10 (1983 to 1987): 1110, 1210, 1310, 1510, 1710, 1910 and 2110.
• Twenty series, numbers ending in 20 (1987 to 1995): 1120, 1220, 1320, 1520, 1620, 1720, 1920 and 2120.
• Fifteen series, numbers ending in 15 (1992 to 1998): 1215 and 1715.

The first two digits roughly track size, but they do not carry over between series. A 1700, a 1710 and a 1720 are three different tractors with three different engines (see Same number, different tractor below).

Every model compared

PTO horsepower is the observed figure printed in each manual. Weight is in pounds, two-wheel drive first and four-wheel drive second where both were offered.

* Weight with ROPS, as printed in the later manuals. Weights without an asterisk are "less options" figures from manuals that list no ROPS weight, so the two groups are not directly comparable. The Ford 1000 and 1600 manuals give two-wheel drive figures only.

Not covered yet: the 1110, 1910, 1120, 1220, 1620, 2120 and 1215. For some of these we stock the factory repair manuals: the 1110 and 1210 repair manual, the 1910 and 2110 service manual and the 1920 and 2120 repair manual bundle.

Why our horsepower figures look low

If you compare this table with a dealer listing or another specs site, our horsepower numbers will usually come out lower. Tractordata, for example, lists the 1710 at 26 hp and the 1920 at 33 hp, where the manuals give 23.5 and 28.5. The difference is what is being measured. Ford's operator's manuals print observed PTO horsepower, the power delivered at the PTO shaft. Most listings quote engine horsepower, which is always higher because it is measured before the transmission. Neither figure is wrong, but if you are matching a PTO implement to a tractor, the PTO number is the one to use.

Same number, different tractor

The most common mix-up with Ford compacts is assuming that models with the same first two digits share parts. They usually do not. Here is how the 1700 line and the 1900 line changed from series to series, using the figures in each manual.

Across four engines and more than 15 years, the 17-numbered tractors stayed at 23 to 23.5 PTO horsepower. What changed was everything around the engine: a third cylinder in the Ten series, wet disc brakes and hydrostatic steering in the Twenty series, and a lighter, simpler package in the 1715. The 1900 to 1920 step is bigger, from a three-cylinder engine to a four-cylinder one of nearly half as much again in displacement.

The 1300, 1500 and their Ten and Twenty series successors follow the same pattern. The 1300 and 1500 are two-cylinder tractors, while the 1310, 1510, 1320 and 1520 are all three-cylinder.

What changed in each series

Early 1000 and 1600

Ford printed the same specification pages in both manuals, so the 1000 and 1600 share every published figure: the same 77.7 cu. in. two-cylinder engine, 23.0 PTO horsepower, nine-speed transmission (three ranges of three), drum brakes and manual steering. Two details set them apart from every later Ford compact. Their hydraulic system takes its own oil (Ford spec M2C41-A), separate from the gear lubricant in the transmission and rear axle. And the hydraulic pump is small: 4.2 gpm at 1,422 psi.

Hundred series

The 1700 shows how far the design moved in one step. It keeps the 1600's 77.7 cu. in. engine and 23.0 PTO horsepower, but adds twelve forward gears and four reverse, optional hydraulic power steering, optional draft control, four-wheel drive, and a pump delivering 7.3 gpm at 2,133 psi. From the Hundred series on, the transmission, rear axle and hydraulics share one sump and one oil. The 1900 was the only three-cylinder model in this series.

Ten series

Every Ten series model we cover moved to a three-cylinder engine, apart from the 2110, which uses a four-cylinder of 138.5 cu. in. Brakes stayed drum type. The smallest model, the 1210, added a hydrostatic transmission option.

Twenty series

All four Twenty series manuals we hold list wet disc brakes. The 1720 and 1920 have hydrostatic steering and an optional Synchromesh Shuttle transmission, while the 1320 and 1520 were offered with a hydrostatic drive instead of the nine-speed gearbox.

Before you order parts or set clearances

• Match the manual to the exact model. Because the engines changed between series, a filter, gasket or valve setting for a 1700 will not necessarily fit a 1710 or 1720. The model number and serial number on your tractor decide which manual applies.
• Check whether valve lash is hot or cold. The 1000 and 1600 manuals give valve clearance with the engine warm. The 1700 manual and later ones give it cold. Setting a cold engine to a warm figure, or the reverse, gives the wrong clearance.
• Use the right oil in the right place. On the 1000 and 1600 the hydraulic oil is separate from the transmission gear oil. From the Hundred series on, one oil serves the transmission, rear axle and hydraulics (and the power steering where fitted). The Hundred series manuals give it as Ford specification M2C-134-A, the Ten and Twenty series manuals as Ford 134, and the 1715 manual as FNH 134.

Every figure on this page is taken from the original operator's manuals, originally published by Ford. Ford reserved the right to change specifications without notice, so check against your own tractor's serial number. For the history of the brand as a whole, see A Brief History of Ford Tractors, or browse all Ford specifications.