Terence (RWS)

"What ugly wheels you've got." "They're not ugly, they're caterpillars. I can go anywhere; I don't need rails."

- Thomas and Terence meet for the first time

Terence is an orange caterpillar tractor who usually works near Thomas' Branch Line. He is owned and driven by Farmer Finney.

Biography
When Thomas first met Terence, he insulted him for having caterpillar tracks, but later regretted it and befriended Terence after he pulled him out of a snowdrift.

Years later, Terence befriended Duck while Thomas was at the Works.

Once, while Percy was at Knapford Harbour, Terence did his shunting work at Ffarquhar.

Terence helped to build a barn the day Victoria was sent back to Thomas' Branch Line. After swerving for a boulder by the Hackenbeck tunnel, Terence's trailer fell down the cutting and balanced dangerously on a bush.

Personality
Terence is an assertive, orange tractor with caterpillar tracks. The engines find these very unusual, but Terence is very capable of proving that he does not need rails and that his tracks allow him to go practically anywhere. He takes any teasing in the name of fun and is happy to get on with his job, usually partaking in agricultural work. Terence never hesitates to assist in emergencies or sticky situations, road or rail, due to his helpful, forgiving nature. His tracks are particularly invaluable in harsh winter conditions when snow can affect transport across the Island. He may be slow, but he is versatile, adaptable and helpful.

Basis
Terence is based on a Caterpillar Model 70, the largest and last design of petrol-powered tractors in the Caterpillar Tractor Company's range. Compared to the real vehicle, Terence's design was given notable modifications; he is longer in length, his mudguards go all the way across the top of his tracks, and his engine is concealed to a greater extent. The construction tractors are also based on this tractor.

Livery
Terence is primarily painted orange. The colour of his exhaust pipe, engine and front frequently differ between illustrations, switching between being either black or orange.

Appearances
Railway Series= {{Scroll box|

The Railway Series

 * Tank Engine Thomas Again - Thomas, Terence and the Snow and Thomas and Bertie
 * More About Thomas the Tank Engine - The Runaway
 * Toby, Trucks and Trouble - Toby Takes the Road
 * Thomas and Victoria - Toby's Vintage Train

Companion Volumes
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 * 1976 - Famous Engines
 * 1984 - Thomas the Tank Engine and the Tractor and Thomas's Christmas Party
 * 1987 - The Island of Sodor: Its People, History and Railways
 * 1992 - Thomas and the Hurricane
 * 1996 - Thomas the Tank Engine: The Complete Collection and Annual
 * 2005 - Sodor: Reading Between the Lines
 * 2007 - Thomas the Tank Engine: The New Collection
 * -|Other Media=

Books

 * 1989 - Thomas's Book of Colours

Trivia

 * 1stMapEverThomas'BranchLine.png, labelled "Here Terry works."]]According to The Thomas the Tank Engine Man, Terence was originally going to be called "Terry", but was later changed to the current and more formal version of the name. His original name is seen on the 1971 Railway Map of the Island of Sodor and on the first map of the Ffarquhar Branch in The Island of Sodor: Its People, History and Railways.
 * Terence is the first non-rail character introduced in the entire series, discounting Sir Topham Hatt or any other Human Characters.
 * Terence is the first non-rail character to have an American basis used for a character design.
 * Terence is drawn with a cab, but without his widow's peak, in the book Thomas's Christmas Party.