Somua, an acronym for ''Société d'outillage mécanique et d'usinage d'artillerie'', was a French company that manufactured machinery and vehicles. A subsidiary of Schneider-Creusot, Somua was based in Saint-Ouen, a suburb of Paris.

Overview

In 1930 Somua introduced several models of trucks equipped with advanced diesel engines, half cabins and three axles and with payloads from 10 to 13 tonnes. Somua also produced a lighter range with five to eight tonnes payload, equipped with gasoline engines. In 1936 Somua produced a railcar for PLM, the XS 1 to 11. Arguably the most famous product in Somua's history was its 20-ton

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

tank, the

Somua S35 The SOMUA S35 was a French cavalry tank of the Second World War. Built from 1936 until 1940 to equip the armoured divisions of the Cavalry, it was for its time a relatively agile medium-weight tank, superior in armour and armament to its Frenc ...

and the Somua S40. Furthermore, France's first tank in 1916, the

Schneider CA1 The Schneider CA 1 (originally named the Schneider CA) was the first French tank, developed during the First World War. The Schneider was inspired by the need to overcome the stalemate of trench warfare which on the Western Front prevailed duri ...

, as well as later in 1918 some

Renault FT The Renault FT (frequently referred to in post-World War I literature as the FT-17, FT17, or similar) was a French light tank that was among the most revolutionary and influential tank designs in history. The FT was the first production tank to ...

tanks, were manufactured by Somua in their Saint-Ouen facility during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. Somua's production of trucks practically ceased between 1943 and 1946. However, in 1944 the company developed a truck under license from the Swedish Hesselman company. Named the JL 12 and equipped with a flex-fuel four cylinder engine, the vehicle did not impress the "Commission des plans de modernisation de l'automobile", which decided in 1946 to merge Somua with

Willème Willème was a French truck manufacturer. History Willème was founded in 1923 by Louis Willeme, after working for Automobiles Grégoire. Most were made with Deutz AG engines; some with in-house engines; some with AEC. In the 1960s, Willème ...

and

Panhard Panhard was a French motor vehicle manufacturer that began as one of the first makers of automobiles. It was a manufacturer of light tactical and military vehicles. Its final incarnation, now owned by Renault Trucks Defense, was formed ...

to form a new company, the Générale française de l'automobile (GFA). In 1946 Somua launched a new range of trucks, named JL 15, with a five-speed transmission to exploit the 130 horsepower delivered by the 8.6 liter six-cylinder diesel engine. It was available with six choices of chassis: 6.30 meters to 10.89 meters and 2 or 3 axles, supporting 11 to 16 tonnes payload. The JL 15 was available in truck or bus configuration - the models were respectively the JL 15T and JL 15LO. In 1948 Somua built two double 1500 V DC EMU rail engines for

SNCF The Société nationale des chemins de fer français (; abbreviated as SNCF ; French for "National society of French railroads") is France's national state-owned railway company. Founded in 1938, it operates the country's national rail traffic ...

. They mainly operated in the South West region of France. Delivery began in 1950 of the Somua OP5 bus model to Paris public transport operator RATP. In 1955 Somua introduced the JL 19, available with two or three axles and powered by a six-cylinder diesel engine, the D615 9.3 liter engine, producing 180 hp and with a manual ten speed transmission. The JL 19 was available as a carrier or tractor, with five different chassis, and bore a payload of up to 26 tonnes. Around this time Latil, the heavyweight vehicle division of

Renault Groupe Renault ( , , , also known as the Renault Group in English; legally Renault S.A.) is a French multinational automobile manufacturer established in 1899. The company produces a range of cars and vans, and in the past has manufactured ...

, and Somua were merged under the LRS brand, which later became Saviem. In 1962, Somua introduced a new JL range, with a new cab with four headlights (which came from the Saviem group). The base JL model had a 6.8 to 12.75 tonnes payload. The JL20 tractor had a 520D6T

Henschel Henschel & Son (german: Henschel und Sohn) was a German company, located in Kassel, best known during the 20th century as a maker of transportation equipment, including locomotives, trucks, buses and trolleybuses, and armoured fighting v ...

direct-injection six-cylinder 204 horsepower diesel engine and a 10 speed transmission and 35 tonnes gross weight. The company was a minor manufacturer of

trolleybus A trolleybus (also known as trolley bus, trolley coach, trackless trolley, trackless tramin the 1910s and 1920sJoyce, J.; King, J. S.; and Newman, A. G. (1986). ''British Trolleybus Systems'', pp. 9, 12. London: Ian Allan Publishing. .or trol ...

es, building a total of just 55, one in 1938 and the others in the period 1947–55.Murray, Alan (2000). ''World Trolleybus Encyclopaedia'', pp. 23, 100, 149. Yateley, Hampshire, UK: Trolleybooks. . Another French manufacturer, Vétra, supplied the "overwhelming majority" of trolleybuses in use on French systems during the relevant period. Somua-built trolleybuses used electrical propulsion equipment from Westinghouse.

Gallery

File:Somua MCL 5.jpg, French medium

Kégresse track A Kégresse track is a kind of rubber or canvas continuous track which uses a flexible belt rather than interlocking metal segments. It can be fitted to a conventional car or truck to turn it into a half-track, suitable for use over rough or soft ...

SOMUA MCL-5 in 1939 File:Fort de Fermont and its museum -SOMUA MCL6 heavy artillerie tractor pic1.JPG, SOMUA MCL6 heavy artillery Kégresse track tractor, Fort de Fermont museum Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-297-1701-18, Nachschub per Eisenbahn, Somua-LKW.jpg, SOMUA MCG Somua MCG recovery in Lussinpiccolo 1943.jpg, SOMUA MCG recovery in Lussinpiccolo in 1943 File:Somua MCG with PaK 40 in north italy.jpg, SOMUA MCG Kégresse track with PaK 40 in north Italy. File:Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-300-1863-30, Riva-Bella, Waffenvorführung Panzerwerfer.jpg, Armoured SOMUA MCL Kégresse track modified by

Alfred Becker Alfred Becker (20 August 1899 – 26 December 1981) was a German engineer and artillery officer who served during the World War I, First and World War II, Second World Wars. During the Second World War he took captured British and French vehicl ...

for use by the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the '' Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previo ...

File:140907-Marxzell-Museum-12.jpg , SOMUA Kégresse track tractor File:Somua OP5.jpg, SOMUA OP5 Paris bus

References

* Davies, Peter J. (2003). ''L'Encyclopédie mondiale des camions''. Genève: Manise. () * ''L'Atlas des camions français'', éd. Atlas, éd. Glénat ()

External links

{{Authority control Defence companies of France Trolleybus manufacturers Companies based in Île-de-France Bus manufacturers of France Truck manufacturers of France Electric vehicle manufacturers of France

Overview

Gallery

See also

References

External links