FACTS ABOUT THE MODEL T FORD

1. Ford went through Models A through S before arriving at the Model T in 1908. He replaced it in 1927 with the Model A (since it was a totally new car, he decided not to call it the Model U).
2. Ford did not invent the assembly line. Ransom Olds developed it to make the Oldsmobile Curved Dash in the early 1900’s.  He went from making 425 in 1900 to 2,500 in 1902.  The car was the equivalent of the Model T at that time –  affordable and mass-produced.  Ford added a conveyor belt.  He got the idea from meat being disassembled at a meat packing plant.  Using the moving assembly line, Ford cut the time to produce a Model T from 12 ½ hours to 3.
3. It was called the “flivver” and “Leaping Lena”, but most famously, the “Tin Lizzie”. This came from a race up Pikes Peak in 1922.  Noel Bullock competed in a Model T he called “Old Liz”.  It was old, with faded paint and no hood.  Spectators mocked it calling it “Tin Lizzie” because it looked like a tin can on wheels.  Bullock won the race and reporters wrote about it using the new name.
4. Ford famously said: “Any customer can have a car painted any color that he wants so long as it is black.”  But he actually offered different colors until 1914 when he went to only black because it was cheaper and lasted longer.
5. After 1917, Ford refused to advertise the car. He figured word of mouth was enough.  This policy was partly responsible for Chevrolet overtaking Ford in sales in 1931.
6. Ford refused to give consumers different options in models at first. People were replacing the rear seats with a wooden bed to convert it into a truck, so Ford relented and produced the Model TT which was a truck version.
7. It had a 20 horse power engine that could reach 45 miles per hour.
8. It was not easy to drive. You had to start it with a hand crank.  You had to work a lever that controlled the throttle and a lever that controlled the spark plugs. There were three foot pedals:  one to brake, one for forward gears, and one for reverse.
9. In the 1920’s, the Polish army added armor to the Model T and a machine gun.

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