John Deere 4020 · 1963–1972

Serial Number Lookup

Enter your 4020's serial number to discover its production year, where it falls in that year's build run, and what changed on the line that season.

Valid range: 65,000 – 270,288 · 205,289 tractors built

About the JD 4020

The John Deere 4020 was produced from 1963 to 1972 at Deere's Waterloo, Iowa factory. It replaced the 4010 and became the best-selling tractor in its horsepower class during its production run. A total of 205,289 units were built across diesel, gasoline, and LP gas variants in row-crop, standard, hi-crop, and industrial configurations.

Total Built

205,289

Production Years

1963–1972

10 model years

First Serial

65,000

1963

Last Serial

270,288

1972

YearSerial RangeUnits Built
196365,000 – 91,99927,000
196492,000 – 122,99931,000
1965123,000 – 155,99933,000
1966156,000 – 187,99932,000
1967188,000 – 214,99927,000
1968215,000 – 236,99922,000
1969237,000 – 252,99916,000
1970253,000 – 261,9999,000
1971262,000 – 267,9996,000
1972268,000 – 270,2882,289

Fuel Variants

Diesel

168,311 built

By far the most common variant — 91% of all 4020s built. The 6-cylinder diesel became the defining engine of the model.

Gasoline

8,123 built

Relatively rare — only 4.4% of production. Gas variants are identifiable by the carburetor and different air cleaner stack.

LP Gas (Propane)

8,445 built

LP variants were popular in regions where propane was readily available and cheaper than diesel. Identifiable by the large LP tank and vaporizer system.

The Definitive Reference

The JD 4020 Collector's History

Complete production records, factory paint codes, serial number breakdowns, and the Harold Brock engineering story — all in one collector's volume.