It’s easy to understand how farmers can become fond of a particular tractor. When you spend hours working with it and rely on its start-first-time dependability, some sort of affectionate bond is bound to develop.

It is harder to understand how anyone can get passionate about a diesel engine. Yet there are plenty who will wax lyrical about the finer features and reliability of a particular power unit, none more so than the landmark diesels produced by Perkins.

Former agricultural sales director John Baxter rates as his personal highlight the 4.236 – a 3.86-litre (236cu in) four-cylinder engine.

“It is the definitive Perkins tractor engine in my book,” he says. “It was very adaptable, being suitable for many different vehicles, and it delivered good performance while possessing very few weaknesses.”

It was also a huge financial success for Perkins, he points out, which was crucial given that a new plant was built in the mid-1960s especially for its manufacture.

Others would choose as their ‘classic Perkins’ the ‘P’ series – a six-cylinder launched in 1937 followed by a three-cylinder in the mid-1940s and a four-cylinder later on. They not only set new standards for diesel power in their day but put Perkins on track to become the world’s biggest diesel engine company.

For many tractor enthusiasts, however, it’s the Perkins A3.152 that is the stuff of legends, which is not surprising when the characterful MF35 and MF135 are among the many Massey Ferguson tractors that Perkins has powered.

Whether the more recent 1000-series, 900-series and 1100-series engines generate as much interest and affection remains to be seen. Their role has been to continue delivering dependable power whilst using contemporary design, build and material technologies to drive down noise levels, fuel consumption, running costs and exhaust emissions.

They have not only met increasingly stringent legislation requirements over the years but have also given drivers a progressively more comfortable and economical driving experience.

To help celebrate its heritage and 75th Anniversary, Perkins sought its oldest working engine. The quest ended remarkably close to home, with Maurice Maiden’s Perkins P4 MkI, which he acquired as part of a generator set before slotting it into a Ferguson TE-20 for topping and other light work on his Shropshire smallholding.

A serial number check confirms the engine was built on 19th August 1942 – and it is still going strong!

As if to emphasise the worldwide reach of products from the Peteborough factory, the second-oldest contender was a 1949 P6 that powers a Fordson E27N Major on a farm in Australia.

From Majors and little grey Fergies to the first ‘electronic’ MF3000-series tractors and ground-breaking JCB Fastrac, Perkins diesels are at the heart of many of the most innovative tractors and millions of everyday agricultural vehicles around the World.