M-4 High Speed Tractor

The M4 18-ton High Speed Tractor was designed as a prime mover for towing large field artillery guns such as the 90mm Anti-Aircraft gun, the 155mm Long Tom, the 8in. Howitzer, or other heavy weapons (See the Towed Artillery Chart). In addition to moving the gun, the M-4 High Speed Tractor carried ammunition in cargo space racks. Ten men plus the driver could be carried. The M-4 HST was manufactured by Allis-Chalmers Mfg. Co. of Milwaukee, WI starting in 1942 and was in U.S. military service until approximately 1960.

The M-4 High Speed Tractor was equipped with air and electric brakes that would match any types of brakes on the towed load.

An anti-aircraft .50 cal. machine gun on a ring mount was accessed through a hatch above the crew compartment.

Today in WW II: 17 Sep 1939 Soviet troops invade Poland from the east. More ↓

17 Sep 1944 Thousands of Allied planes begin airborne assault on Holland, Operation Market Garden.
Visit the Olive-Drab.com World War II Timeline for day-by-day events 1939-1945! See also WW2 Books.

Specifications of the M-4 High Speed Tractor

Crew	Driver
Weight	31,500 lbs.
Height	7 ft, 10 in.
Width	8 ft, 1 in.
Length	17 ft, 2 in.
Engine	Waukesha 145GZ 6 cyl. gasoline
Horsepower	210hp
Road Speed	35 mph
Range	180 mi.

M-4 High Speed Tractor Photos

Find additional photos and hi-res versions of the M-4 High Speed Tractor at the Olive-Drab Military Mashup:

Prime mover towing an 8-inch howitzer near Manhay, Belgium, December, 1944.

Vast amount of used and unused war material awaiting loading on flat cars enroute to various Army Service Depots, Hampton Roads Port of Embarkation, Newport News, VA, 11 January 1946. These materials were unloaded at Norfolk Army Base, HRPE, arriving from ETO, Middle East and African Theaters. Vehicles: CCKW trucks, M4 High Speed Tractors, crawler crane, M4 Sherman tanks, others.

105th FA Bn, M1 8-inch howitzer towed by M4 High Speed Tractor (HST) near Carentilly, France, 31 July 1944.

M4 high speed tractor, prime mover for the 155mm Towed Gun 'Long Tom'.

Rear view of M4 High Speed Tractor, led by other vehicles, as they drive into the cobbled streets of Mons at the annual Tanks in Town festival, 18 November 2009. The 2009 celebration marked the 65th anniversary of the liberation of Mons.

M4 18-ton High Speed Tractor towing an M1A1 155mm Long Tom gun, mounted on an M1 carriage, over a ponton causeway reaching from an LST to shore on Saipan, June 1944.

M-4 High Speed Tractor Photo Gallery

>M-4 High Speed Tractor at Hampton Roads, VA, 16 August 1943
M-4 High Speed Tractor at Hampton Roads, VA, 16 August 1943.

An M-4 High Speed Tractor of the Seventeenth Field Artillery, supporting the First Marine Division, stopped by a river near Chunchon, Korea, 1950.