1921 Ford Model T Tourer
Registration no. BS 9234
Chassis no. 3879923
Engine no. 11270932

After spending his formative years as a motor manufacturer experimenting with a variety of models, Henry Ford pared the company's range down to just one - the legendary Model T - destined to become the world's first truly mass-produced automobile. Introduced in October 1908, the Model T boasted a simple 100"-wheelbase chassis that contrived to be both lightweight and durable thanks to the pioneering use of vanadium steel. The chassis' track width of 56" was the same as that of a horse-drawn wagon, thereby enabling the Model T safely to negotiate rutted dirt roads. The engine was a 20hp four-cylinder sidevalve displacing 2,896cc and the transmission a simple-to-use two-speed planetary unit. It is said that throughout the Model T's 19-year production life the thing that changed most often was the price, although in actual fact Ford made detail improvements to the car on an annual basis. Notable early developments were the adoption of electric lighting in 1915, a switch from brass to a black-finished radiator the following year and the option of an electric starter in 1919. By 1915 Ford had ceased to offer a range of colours, settling on just one - black - because the paint dried more quickly, although some dealers began repainting cars in brighter colours after receiving them from the factory. By the start of 1919 Ford had built more than 2.8 million Model Ts and manufacturing/assembly plants had been established in a number of foreign countries.

This left-hand drive Ford Model T tourer was acquired by the late owner at an Essex auction in September 1983 (auction catalogue on file). Initially the Model T was used for touring the North Leicestershire countryside, particularly the Charnwood Forest area, but in recent years has been driven only rarely. We are advised the car runs but is in need of a little cosmetic work. Accompanying documentation consists of the aforementioned auction catalogue, a V5C registration document, and an old-style logbook from 1962 (when the registration was 'FB 2331'). A 12-volt ignition coil is the only notified deviation from factory specification.