THE FORD MODEL T, ALSO KNOWN AS "THE TIN LIZZIE"

When you hear the name Model T, what do you think of ?

A lot of people think of the first car manufactured in America, you're half right. Automobiles had already been built for decades. Their adoption had been limited, and they were still mostly scarce and expensive.

The first production Model T was produced on August 12, 1908. The car left the factory on September 27, 1908, at the Piquette Assembly Plant in Detroit, Michigan.The Model T made 1908 the historic year that the automobile became popular for the mass market. The Model T was produced by Henry Ford's Ford Motor Co. until May 27, 1927.

It was the first affordable automobile. The car that allowed travel for the common middle class American. The Ford Model T received the title as the world's most influential car of the twenty first century. in an international poll. This was due in large part to Ford's efficient fabrication, including assembly line  production instead of individual hand crafting.

On May 26, 1927, Henry Ford watched the 15 millionth Model T Ford roll off the assembly line at his factory in Highland Park, Michigan.

There were several cars produced or prototyped by Henry Ford from the founding of the company in 1903 until the Model T was introduced.

Although he started with the Model A, there were not 19 production models (A through T); some were only prototypes. The production model immediately before the Model T was the Model S.

 Ford wrote in his autobiography that in 1909 he told his management team that  “Any customer can have a car painted any color that he wants so long as it is black”. However, in the first years of production from 1908 to 1913, the Model T was not available in black, but rather only grey, green, blue, and red. Green was available for the touring cars, town cars, coupes, and Landaulets. Grey was only available for the town cars, and red only for the touring cars. By 1912, all cars were being painted midnight blue with black fenders. It was only in 1914 that the "any color so long as it is black" policy was finally implemented.

The standard 4-seat open tourer of 1909 cost $850, in 1913, the price dropped to $550. In 1914, an assembly line worker could buy a Model T with four months' pay. By the 1920s, the price had fallen to $260 because of increasing efficiencies of assembly line technique and volume. The Model T was the first automobile mass-produced on moving assembly lines with completely interchangeable parts, marketed to the middle class.

***Where did the name "Tin Lizzie" originate from, In the early 1900s, car dealers would try to create publicity for their new automobiles by hosting car races. In 1922, a championship race was held in Pikes Peak, Colorado. Entered as one of the contestants was Noel Bullock and his Model T, named "Old Liz." Since Old Liz looked the worse for wear (it was unpainted and lacked a hood), many spectators compared Old Liz to a tin can. By the start of the race, the car had the new nickame of "Tin Lizzie." To everyone's surprise, Tin Lizzie won the race 

*** About.Com, By Jennifer RosenbergAugust 15, 2007

Special thanks to Wikipedia, an excellent online source for information.