First up, below, is a Runabout roadster with 1922 California license plates. The 1922 year model was a continuation of the previous year, which had introduced all-new body features. In 1922, one of these little numbers would have set you back a whopping $269...and for an extra $70, they'd add the optional starter! Ford built 160,000 roadsters in 1922.
This gentleman on the right is enjoying life behind the wheel of his 1925 four-door sedan. The product line hadn't seen any major changes since 1923, but subtle details suggests the 1925 year model. Equipped with an electric starter as standard, this five-passenger model cost $680...but keep in mind that median income was about $1,400 (by comparison, the median US income in 2015 was 55,000, so percentage-wise, this equates to a 26,000 car).Model Ts were tough cars and stayed around. Though the photo below was taken in 1932, the car is either a 1922 or 1923 four-door touring car. Note that the top has been removed completely. Chas. Martin looks fairly young, so it's a fair bet that this used car is his first one, hence the occasion for a snapshot.
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Lastly, this guy is assuming quite the pose with his Model T. License plates are from 1944 (and Model Ts were last produced in 1927).
The first picture appears to be a touring car, you can see the set of top bows between the front and rear seats on the passenger side of the car.
ReplyDeleteNot surprised to see a Model T looking this good in 1944 and out providing transportation. No new cars were available during those WWII years, and people drove anything that would run. I remember seeing ship yard workers with lunch boxes in hand, riding on the back of a model T flat bed 1 ton truck. They were on their way to work and bounced over rail road tracks on old US99. You could see daylight between their butts and the deck of the old truck! They were airborne. Another Model T touring car carried more workers, with its weathered and tattered top flying loose in the wind. Hey, these cars still provided a way to get around and received a special C ration sticker which allowed them to purchase more gasoline per week than the average vehicle which had an A sticker, just 3 - 5 gallons per week. THe C or commercial sticker allowed even more, depending on your profession or role in the defense effort and the number of passengers you were transporting.
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