Ford Model T
The Model T, according to Henry Ford, was available "in any color you choose, so long as it's black." This may be Ford's most famous statement about his most famous car, but it is not the most telling. The comment that most accurately reflects the nature of Ford's gift to the world is a little-known remark he made in October 1908, on the occasion of the birth of the Model T: "I will build a motor car for the great multitude."
That is exactly what the Model T was. With that vehicle, Ford revolutionized not only the automobile industry but American society, and arguably all of Western culture. With the introduction of the Model T, automobiles became available to everyone, not just the well-to-do.
Although the "Tin Lizzie," with its four-cylinder motor, magneto ignition, and planetary transmission, was a technically advanced automobile, it was by no means technically revolutionary. Rather, it was Ford's manufacturing process that revolutionized the industry. He was not the first to build a car on an assembly line, but he perfected the system. After Ford opened his new Model T plant in 1913, he produced one Model T every 93 minutes, a remarkable reduction from the 728 minutes per car that was previously required. By the time the last Model T was built in 1927, the company was producing an automobile every 24 seconds. In part because of this efficiency, the Model T's price dropped from its original 1908 cost of nearly $1,000 to under $300 in 1927. This was possible in spite of the fact that, beginning in 1914, Ford paid assembly-line workers $5.00 per day at a time when prevailing wages averaged about $2.35 per day.
Ultimately, this combination of efficiency and high wages led to the fulfillment of Ford's prediction. The Model T was, indeed, a motor car for the masses. Not only was it cheap, but thanks in part to Ford's wage scales, ordinary workers for the first time had the disposable income necessary to purchase one. With the Model T, the automobile, which had once been an expensive plaything for the wealthy, began its transformation into an everyday necessity.
Ford Model T
The Model T, according to Henry Ford, was available "in any color you choose, so long as it's black." This may be Ford's most famous statement about his most famous car, but it is not the most telling. The comment that most accurately reflects the nature of Ford's gift to the world is a little-known remark he made in October 1908, on the occasion of the birth of the Model T: "I will build a motor car for the great multitude."
That is exactly what the Model T was. With that vehicle, Ford revolutionized not only the automobile industry but American society, and arguably all of Western culture. With the introduction of the Model T, automobiles became available to everyone, not just the well-to-do.
Although the "Tin Lizzie," with its four-cylinder motor, magneto ignition, and planetary transmission, was a technically advanced automobile, it was by no means technically revolutionary. Rather, it was Ford's manufacturing process that revolutionized the industry. He was not the first to build a car on an assembly line, but he perfected the system. After Ford opened his new Model T plant in 1913, he produced one Model T every 93 minutes, a remarkable reduction from the 728 minutes per car that was previously required. By the time the last Model T was built in 1927, the company was producing an automobile every 24 seconds. In part because of this efficiency, the Model T's price dropped from its original 1908 cost of nearly $1,000 to under $300 in 1927. This was possible in spite of the fact that, beginning in 1914, Ford paid assembly-line workers $5.00 per day at a time when prevailing wages averaged about $2.35 per day.
Ultimately, this combination of efficiency and high wages led to the fulfillment of Ford's prediction. The Model T was, indeed, a motor car for the masses. Not only was it cheap, but thanks in part to Ford's wage scales, ordinary workers for the first time had the disposable income necessary to purchase one. With the Model T, the automobile, which had once been an expensive plaything for the wealthy, began its transformation into an everyday necessity.