If one is good, two must be better. Here’s the 1940 Merry-Neville Twin-Engine semi-tractor, an upfitted Ford Cabover powered by a pair of Ford V8 engines.
As regular readers of Mac’s Motor City Garage know, we have a fascination with multi-engine road trucks. In previous features, we’ve explored the Eisenhauer Freighter, which used two Chevy sixes driving eight wheels, and the Grico Twin-Motor Ford. There were more producers of these unusual rigs than one may suspect. Indeed, here’s another one from the Merry-Neville Manufacturing Company of Delphos, Ohio and Birmingham, Michigan.
A highway truck with twin engines doesn’t really add up from a modern perspective, but in the ’30s and ’40s it made good sense. Big, powerful diesels like the Detroit-GMC 71 series and the Cummins H Series were new and largely unproven, not to mention expensive and in short supply. But meanwhile, passenger car engines were cheap, plentiful, and reliable, and when installed in pairs, powerful enough to do the work on the big, heavy jobs.
Starting with a production Ford COE tractor, the Merry-Neville upfitters installed a pair of standard Mercury-spec flathead V8s, each one displacing 239 cubic inches and delivering 95 horsepower, jammed under a modified engine cover. Each of the engines drove its own drive axle and four-speed transmission—note the pair of shift levers—while their throttle and clutch mechanisms were coupled together for single control. The engines could be operated in tandem or either one separately, the company reported.
The photo below, from the October, 1940 issue of Commercial Car Journal, shows the Merry-Neville tractor with one of the firm’s other specialties, an extreme-duty multi-axle trailer. The three and four-axle trailers, devised by company president Edward C. Merry, were offered with steering aka shifting trailing axles for greater maneuverability and were rated at up to 30 tons. We don’t know how many Merry-Neville Twin-Engine trucks were eventually built, or if any of them survive today.
Kind of like the Ford v10 as an alternative to a more expensive diesel.
They must have been a handful to drive even with the synchronized throttle and clutch.
I have read the associated articles as well. For me the obvious with two Fords would have a major problem with the rear engine overheating. A problem all sidevalve fords were renknown for.
One transmission would have been better as well with a lock unlock between the two engines. But probably nothing strong enough in period.
When I was young I drove all sorts of trucks, generally in tipper form and both petrol and diesel. I learnt to drive in a 32 Dodge 3 ton. This in the 60s.
I generally drove a 63 Inter Loadstar tandem drive, 5 speed 3 speed joey box. And a Perkins! Slow slow but torquey. But had power steering! The 345 V8 petrols would go by me 2 gears up though on most hills. I have driven those too as well as 190 Inter semi with a V8 Cummins. That was far better and carrying about 12 ton more.
Also drove a 53 Chev 6-7 tonner with a splash and dip Chevy 6. Went and drove surprising well BUT you had to carefull on hills or it would hammer bearings [poured whitemetal]