In a bid to challenge Ford’s Model T one-ton lorry, Morris finally embarked on a lucrative project to produce a dedicated commercial vehicle in 1924; the result was the T-Type.

After lagging behind the competition, Morris Commercial Cars was finally formed in February 1924. The former factory of axle and steering component producers E. G. Wrigley & Co. was acquired on Foundry Lane in Birmingham and work got started straight away.  

The new truck followed Morris’ principles of building from the best quality components at the keenest price, including using parts and engines from their passenger cars; the engine and gearbox in the T-Type were the same as those in the contemporary Morris Oxford car. For simplicity and economy, brakes were on the rear wheels only and no electric starter was fitted. With a wide variety of body styles available, Morris trucks soon became popular with many firms including the Co-op, the Post Office, Shell and B.P. 

The leap into light and heavy-duty commercial vehicle manufacture was an instant success for Morris and the company came to dominate the market in the following decades. A myriad of different types of vehicle were available including lorries, car-derived vans, ambulances, buses, fire engines, pickups and many more. This particular truck is the very first one-ton model produced and was used extensively by Morris for testing.