Model T's

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Production - 1908-1927

First Production Date: September 27, 1908

Original Price: US$850.00, and $440 in 1915

Predecessor: FOrd Model S

Successor: Model A

Class - Full Size, Economy Car

Styles: touring, roadster , roadster pickup , ton truck , closed cab ton truck, coupé , two door, fordor, center door, station wagon ( SUV ), convertible

Engine: 77 in³ (2.9 L) straight-4 , 20 hp

Top speed: 30-35 mph

Millage: 13 to 21 mpg

Transmission: Rear wheel drive, planetary gear 2 foward speeds

Curd Weight: 1,200 pounds

Fuel Capacity: 10 US gallons

Designers: Henry Ford , Childe Harold Wills , Joseph A. Galamb and Eugene Farkas

Evolution of the FordAutomovile... Model T

The Ford Model T car was designed by Childe Harold Wills and two Hungarian immigrants named Joseph A. Galamb and Eugene Farkas. Also, Harry Love, C. J. Smith, Gus Degner and Peter E. Martin were part of the team. While production of the Model T began in 1908, model years range from 1909 to 1927.

The assembly line was introduced to Ford by William C. Klann upon his return from visiting a slaughterhouse at Chicago's Union Stock Yards and viewing what was referred to as the "disassembly line" where animals were cut apart as they moved along a conveyor. The efficiency of one person removing the same piece over and over caught his attention. He reported the idea to Peter E. Martin , who was doubtful at the time, but encouraged him to proceed. Others at Ford have claimed to have put the idea forth to Henry Ford, but William "Pa" Klann's slaughterhouse revelation is well documented in the archives at the Henry Ford Museum and elsewhere, making him the father of the modern automated assembly line concept. The process was an evolution by trial and error of a team consisting primarily of Peter E. Martin, the factory superintendent; Charles E. Sorensen , Martin's assistant; Harold Wills, draftsman and toolmaker; Clarence W. Avery; and Charles Lewis . When the first car was completed using the assembly line, in front of the media, onlookers and even Henry Ford, it was Pa Klann who drove it proudly off the line.

As a result, Ford's cars came off the line in three minute intervals, much faster than previous methods, increasing production by eight to one (requiring 12.5 man-hours before, 1 hour 33 minutes after), while using less manpower. In 1914, an assembly line worker could buy a Model T with four months' pay.

The Model T had a front mounted, 177 in³ (2.9 L) four-cylinder en bloc motor (that is, all four in one block, as common now, rather than in individual castings, as common then) producing 20.2 hp (15 kW) for a top speed of 30-35 mph (64-72 km/h). The small four cylinder engine was known for its L heads. According to Ford Motor, the Model T had fuel economy on the order of 13 to 21 mpg (5 to 9 kilometres per litre or 11.1 to 18.7 litres per 100 km). The engine was capable of running on gasoline or ethanol , though the decreasing cost of gasoline and the later introduction of Prohibition in the United States made ethanol an impractical fuel.

A certain amount of skill and experience was required to find the optimal timing for any speed and load. When electric headlights were introduced in 1915 , the magneto was upgraded to supply power for the lights and horn. In keeping with the goal of ultimate reliability and simplicity, the trembler coil and magneto ignition system was retained even after the car became equipped with a generator and battery for electric starting and lighting. Most cars sold after 1919 were equipped with electric starting, which was engaged by a small round pedal on the floor in front of the driver's seat.

Before starting a Model T with the hand crank , the spark had to be manually retarded or the engine might "kick back". The crank handle was cupped in the palm, rather than grabbed with the thumb over the top of the handle, so that if the engine did kick back, the rapid reverse motion of the crank would throw the hand away from the handle, rather than violently twisting the wrist or breaking the thumb. Most Model T Fords had the choke operated by a wire emerging from the bottom of the radiator where it could be operated with the left hand while cranking the engine with the right hand.

The car's 10 gallon (38 liter) fuel tank was mounted to the frame beneath the front seat; one variant had the carburetor (a Holley Model G) modified to run on ethyl alcohol , to be made at home by the self-reliant farmer. Because fuel relied on gravity to flow forward from the fuel tank to the carburetor, a Model T could not climb a steep hill when the fuel level was low. The immediate solution was often to drive up steep hills in reverse. In 1926 , the fuel tank was moved forward to under the cowl on most models.

Early on the engine blocks were to be produced by The Lakeside Foundry on St. Jean in Detroit. Ford cancelled the deal before many engine blocks were produced.

While the first few hundred Model Ts had a water pump, its use was abandoned early in production. Ford opted for a cheaper and more reliable circulation system based on the thermo-syphon principle. Hot water, being less dense, would rise to the top of the engine and up into the top of the radiator, descending to the bottom as it cooled, and back into the engine. This was the direction of water flow in most makes of cars even when they did have water pumps, until the introduction of crossflow radiator designs. Water pumps were also available as an aftermarket accessory for Model T.

The Model T was a rear-wheel drive vehicle. Its transmission was a planetary gear type billed as "three speed". By today's standards it would be considered a two speed, since one of the three speeds was actually reverse. The Model T's transmission was controlled with three foot pedals and a lever that was mounted to the road side of the driver's seat. The throttle was controlled with a lever on the steering wheel. The left pedal was used to engage the gear. When pressed and held forward the car entered low gear. When held in an intermediate position the car was in neutral, a state that could also be achieved by pulling the floor-mounted lever to an upright position. If the lever was pushed forward and the driver took his foot off the left pedal, the Model T entered high gear. The car could thus cruise without the driver having to press any of the pedals. There was no separate clutch pedal.

The middle pedal was used to engage reverse gear, and the right pedal operated the engine brake. The floor lever also controlled the parking brake, which was activated by pulling the lever all the way back. This doubled as an emergency brake.

Although it was extremely uncommon, the drive bands could fall out of adjustment, allowing the car to creep, particularly when cold, adding another hazard to attempting to start the car: a person cranking the engine could be forced backward while still holding the crank as the car crept forward even though it was nominally in neutral. Power reached the differential through a single universal joint attached to a torque tube which drove the rear axle; some models (typically trucks) could be equipped with an optional two speed rear axle shifted by a floor mounted lever. All gears were vanadium steel running in an oil bath.

The car was sold in the beginning at a price of $850 when competing cars often cost $2000-$3000. By the 1920s, the price had fallen to $300 (about $3,400 in 2006 inflation-adjusted dollars) because of increasing efficiencies of

assembly line technique and volume. Henry employed vertical integration of the industries needed to create his cars. He specified how to make the wood crates that outside suppliers used to ship him parts. Then he disassembled the crates and used the preformed wood pieces in the bodies of his cars. He also used wood scraps to make charcoal and sold it under the brand name "Kingsford," still a leading brand of charcoal .

Henry Ford's eccentric approach to research and development meant few changes to the vehicle were made over its lifetime; he believed the Model T was all the car a person would, or could, ever need. As other companies offered comfort and styling advantages, at competitive prices, the Model T lost market share. Eventually, on May 26 , 1927 , Ford Motor Company ceased production and began the changeovers required to produce the Model A.

Model T engines continued to be produced until August 4 , 1941 . Almost 170,000 engines were built after car production stopped. Replacement engines were required to continue to service already produced vehicles. Racers and enthusiasts, forerunners of modern hot rodders, used the Model T's block to build popular and cheap racing engines, including Cragar , Navarro , and famously the Frontenacs ("Fronty Fords") of the Chevrolet brothers, among many others.

The Ford Model T was the first automobile built by various countries simultaneously. First built abroad by Ford of Britain in 1914, they were also assembled by Ford Germany and in various South American countries, including Argentina and Brazil .

Cars built before 1919 are classed as veteran cars and later models as vintage cars . Today, two main clubs exist to support the preservation and restoration of these cars: The Model T Ford Club International and the Model T Ford Club of America . Many steel Model T parts are still manufactured today, and even fiberglass replicas of their distinctive bodies, which are popular for T bucket style hot rods (as immortalized in the Jan and Dean surf music song "Bucket T," which was later recorded by The Who ).

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