We focus on new cars here at MotorMouths. But that doesn’t mean that we aren’t interested in good backstories. Thus, in the first of an irregularly occurring recurring feature, guest author Zack Korte recounts Ford’s early alphabet days.
On October 1, 1908, the first Ford Model T rolled out of the factory on Piquette Avenue in Detroit. Many people wonder why Henry Ford started his nomenclature with the letter “T.” Short answer: He didn’t.
Long answer: He developed and sold 8 models under the Ford name before the Model T. However, his first automobile was a home-made contraption dubbed the Quadricycle. This primitive 2 cylinder, 4 horsepower, chain-driven machine debuted on June 4, 1896, which made it the second gas-powered automobile driven in Detroit. Henry built three of these, sold each for $200, bought one back for $65, and displayed it at the Henry Ford Museum, where it remains to this day.
Also, Ford was not Henry’s first automobile business venture. He founded the Detroit Automobile Company in 1899 and developed a delivery truck to be sold for $1000. However, developmental problems plagued the vehicles, and only 20 of these trucks were produced before the company folded.
After the Henry Ford Company went nowhere (though the investors used their affiliation to found Cadillac,) the Ford Motor Company started up in 1903, and the first Ford, the Model A, was produced later that year. (No, not that Model A; that wasn’t built until 1927.) Sold for $750 (with an optional rear seat available for an extra $100,) the car had a 2 cylinder, 8 horsepower motor located under the front seat (the notch for the engine crank is noticeable in this picture) that could push the relatively lightweight (1250 lbs, roughly half the weight of the main competition, the Olds Curved Dash) car to 30 miles per hour. Only 1750 of these were built, and obviously, very few survive to this day. (As a matter of fact, one was sold at auction for $630,000 in 2007.) The Model A was a success, which was fortunate, as Mr. Ford had spent all but $223.65 of his original $28,000 investment before the first orders were filled.
The Model C, basically a modified Model A, was produced next. First built in late 1904, the C had a longer wheelbase, a 10 horsepower motor, as well as an ornamental hood (meant to mimic the French luxury cars of the day,) which held the fuel tank. Also notable is that the Model C was the first Ford to be assembled in Canada.
Ford’s Model F, also introduced in late 1904, also shared many similarities with the A & C. The Model F had a longer wheelbase than both cars, a larger (12hp) engine, and as a full-time four-seat car, it represented a mid-size addition to the Ford product line. Only 1000-1200 were built, and not much information is available about this model, though it seems to be represented as at least a modest success. The F was also the final 2-cylinder car in the Ford lineup.
Not all early Fords were as popular or profitable as the A, C, and F, however. Alexander Malcomson, who owned an equal share of the Ford Motor Company, urged Henry Ford to build large luxury cars, hopefully to reap their large profit margins. Thus, the Model B was born.
The B was the first Ford to have a front-mounted, 4-cylinder engine. Despite its modern technology and peppy performance, Ford couldn’t convince many people to ante up the $2000 price tag (roughly $50,000 today,) and approximately 475 were built. There remain only 2 Model Bs in running condition today.
Following in the B’s footsteps came the Model K, whose 6-cylinder, 40 horsepower engine could push the car to a terrifying 60 miles per hour. The K was billed a steady, powerful, and luxurious automobile, but in reality, the cars were unreliable and ungodly expensive ($2800+ in 1906.) Despite its astronomical price, the car required so much work (mostly to tinker with the overburdened transmission) that Ford lost money on each K built. 1000 were built, 23 were known to exist in 2001, and the six-cylinder engine was so problematic that Henry Ford would not produce another V6 until 1933.
The lack of success of the B & K, combined with creative corporate juggling, caused Malcolmson to sell his shares in the company (recounted by Malcomson’s wife at the bottom of this page,) and left Henry Ford free to produce the small, durable, cheap automobiles he dreamed of making.
Thus, Ford’s first smash hit was born: the Model N. The N was a sturdy, lightweight automobile with a $500 price tag; a relative bargain in 1906, when the average price for a new car was $2137.56. However, the N wasn’t much more than a covered engine on wheels, with a rough ride to boot. Still, Ford sold 8500 of his Model Ns in 1906, making him the sales leader in the American auto industry for the first time (his nearest competition – Rambler and Cadillac – only combined for roughly three-quarters of Ford’s sales.) The Model R and Model S were variants of the N, and together, they made Ford the world’s largest automobile manufacturer in 1908.
So, while these early Ford variants are not well-known (only 16,864 pre-T Fords were produced,) they provided the foundation and direction that allowed Henry Ford to dominate the world’s automobile market for the next 19 years.
Oh, and if you’re curious, here’s how Ford is doing these days, at least among the critics.
