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More on the Ford story
Lloyd Mathews, Contributing Writer
03-01-2010
The year 1924 was really the best year the Ford Motor Company experienced since Henry turned out his first car in 1896. In the year 1924 Ford sold over 1.7 million cars, more then six times as many as second place Chevrolet, and more than half the cars sold in America.
To make it an even more special year, the ten millionth Ford rolled off the assembly line. It was a touring car. Profits reached a hundred million dollars, an all-time high at that time. The Ten Millionth Ford was produced that year, and Ford chose Frank Kulick, who had driven Ford’s first race car across the country from New York to San Francisco, for the task of showing off the car, driving once more from New York to San Francisco. Kulick was amazed to find millions of Americans lining the sides of the highway, just to catch a glimpse of this special car.
Style-wise there were very few changes from the touring car of 1923. It had four windows, and was painted black. The cost ranged from $295 to $380, and was 20 horsepower.
1927 was an end of an era for Ford cars, as the company manufactured 81,181 cars, and among them was the last Model T. Henry Ford’s promise to build a car affordable for every American family had come true. Through the years until that time, over fifteen million Model Ts were produced, a record for a single model until 1972, when the Volkswagen Beetle beat it. Ford closed its manufacturing facilities in May of 1927, and in seven more months the Model A was ready to make an appearance.
Ford touring cars outsold the entire lines of every other manufacturer during the Model T era. 1928 was a year of change for Ford. The Model A had 40 horsepower, nearly twice that of it’s predecessor, and a three speed manual transmission, which was a lot easier than the three pedal version of the Model T.
In 1930 the Great Depression was taking hold, leading to the worst economic decade in American history. Ford’s popularity was gained through attention to five basics: attractiveness, reliability, economy, comfort, and safety. Because of the depression, sales dropped 30%, while those of Chevrolet dropped 50%. The Standard Ford Coupe sold for $495.
From 1930 through the Depression, Ford continued to have record sales, and yearly improvements that satisfied the public. The V8 engine was improved, and Ford rode into the sunset bringing satisfaction to customers, and millions of dollars to the company. Many people today look back on the time when they owned their first car, and proudly say it was a Ford.
– Lloyd Mathews is a retired land surveyor and historian who lives in Pulaski.
