Ford Model T: The Car That Put the World on Wheels [Hardcover]

Lindsay Brooke (Author), Bill Ford (Foreword), Patricia Mooradian (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 15, 2008

The story of Ford Motor Company’s Model T is the story that launched the American automobile industry--and America’s love affair with the car. When he introduced the Model T in 1908, even an eternal optimist like Henry Ford could not have predicted the far-reaching changes he was setting in motion. One hundred years later, this illustrated history looks back at the beloved Tin Lizzie. The book follows the Model T from design considerations (its ground clearance, for instance, had to allow for the abysmal state of U.S. roadways at the time) to its lasting legacy, and along the way describes the mechanical, manufacturing, and marketing innovations that the car’s production entailed.

Author Lindsay Brooke also relates the adventures and misadventures that were part of owning and driving a Model T. He chronicles the changes the car’s unprecedented popularity wrought in the auto industry (including Ford’s introduction of the “$5 day”), and he tracks the Model T through popular culture, from its role in early motorsports to its resurgent popularity in the 1950s and 60s as a platform for T-bucket hot rods. Illustrated throughout with period art and evocative photography, this book celebrates as never before the car that epitomized the American automobile.

Editorial Reviews

Book Description

One hundred years after the introduction of the Model T, this illustrated history looks back at the car that launched the American automobile industry. We follow the Tin Lizzie from design considerations (its ground clearance, for instance, had to allow for the abysmal U.S. roadways) to its lasting legacy, along the way witnessing the mechanical, manufacturing, and marketing innovations the car’s production entailed. The adventures and misadventures of owning and driving a Model T; the changes the car’s popularity brought to the auto industry (including Ford’s introduction of the “$5 day”); and the Model T’s place in motorsports and hot rodding--all are part of the story of the car that epitomized the American automobile.

From the Inside Flap

When Ford Motor Company introduced the Model T in late 1908, company officials knew they had a winner. Ford was already the national sales leader and the new car was a significant improvement over its predecessors. Yet even an inveterate optimist like Henry Ford could not predict the far-reaching changes his “Tin Lizzie” would affect.

One hundred years later, this marvelously illustrated history of the automobile that launched an American industry takes on all aspects of the Model T’s genesis, production, marketing, and legacy. Veteran automotive journalist and editor Lindsay Brooke examines everything from infrastructure considerations that influenced the car’s design (its ground clearance, for example, was predicated on the abysmal state of U.S. roadways) to the production methods that evolved to meet the burgeoning demand for the car, and Ford Motor Company’s introduction of the revolutionary “five-dollar day.” Brooke also covers the Model T’s predecessors, early sales and marketing efforts, model changes, and T trucks, as well as adventures and misadventures with Model Ts and the car’s role in early motorsports and hot rodding.

Illustrated throughout with photography and period art, much of it from the Benson Ford Research Center at The Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan, Model T: The Car That Put the World on Wheels is a fitting tribute to the first automotive icon.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 208 pages
• Publisher: Motorbooks; 1st edition (April 15, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0760327289
• ISBN-13: 978-0760327289
• Product Dimensions: 11.2 x 9.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #477,669 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Good, General Model T History, June 18, 2008

By 

Thomas J. Webb II "Kar Knut" - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Ford Model T: The Car That Put the World on Wheels (Hardcover)

This year makes the 100th anniversary of the Model "T" Ford, and consequently a lot of books about Henry's Flivver are appearing in the market place. This one is a good attempt, and there are many historical photos and newer color ones as well, but honestly the book "The Legendary Model T" by Tom Collins - despite also having some small errors - is a much better effort in my opinion, with more photos and accessed archives from The Henry Ford in Dearborn.

5.0 out of 5 stars Fun book, October 22, 2011

By 

Carlton Currie - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Ford Model T: The Car That Put the World on Wheels (Hardcover)

If you are a Model T aficionado as I am this is a book you must have. If you are just mildly interested in T's, this is probably the book you should start with. Lindsay Brooke is the best.

1 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Ford Model T, The Car That Put The World on Wheels, May 17, 2008

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Larry Smith - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Ford Model T: The Car That Put the World on Wheels (Hardcover)

Nicely done. Good research. Good historic photos. There is another book that just came out called The Legendary Model T Ford. I wouldn't spend the money on that book, you see, it is the 100th anniversary of the Model T.