Why Henry Ford Didn't Want To Build The Model K
History credits Henry Ford and the Model T for optimizing the modern assembly line and making mass-produced automobiles more affordable. However, the road to greatness wasn't smooth sailing, and Henry Ford failed twice before establishing the Ford Motor Company we know today.
However, before the Model T came to fruition, Ford sold the Model K from 1906 to 1908 to replace the Model B. The Model K was a car that was the exact opposite of what Ford had in his vision of bringing motoring to the masses.
When Ford successfully launched the Ford Motor Co. in 1903, he did it with help from deep-pocketed business people and industrialists. One of those was coal merchant Alexander Malcomson. He convinced Ford that luxury cars were the future of motoring, an idea that made sense in the early 1900s. Back then, motorcars were status symbols of the wealthy elite, and producing a car for the middle class remained a pipe dream.
[Featured Image by Pseudopanax via Wikimedia Commons | Cropped and scaled | Public Domain]
The epitome of vintage luxury
Unlike the compact-sized Model T, the Ford Model K has an extended wheelbase and a more potent inline-six engine — the only inline-six in a production Ford vehicle until the 1940s. Featuring 6.6 liters of displacement and a seven-bearing main crankshaft, the engine routes 40 horsepower to the rear wheels using a two-speed planetary gearbox.
When the Ford Model K debuted in 1906, it was unique for its monstrous six-cylinder engine. During those days, motor cars with six-cylinder engines were few and far between, and most automakers only had four or fewer cylinders for their vehicles. Moreover, the Model K came in a roadster or touring car body style. It was quick, too, capable of reaching 62 mph (100 kph), a rarity at that time.
Nearly 1,000 Model Ks left the factory before Ford became the president and controlling owner of the Ford Motor Company in 1906. He allowed Model K production to continue until 1908 before introducing the Model T, the car Henry Ford wanted to build since he dreamed of becoming a car builder in 1893.
Historians claim fewer than 10 Ford Model K roadsters exist today, and prices have gone through the roof. If you have a Model K sitting in a barn, you have a $379,000 fortune that awaits — a considerable sum given a brand-new Model K from 1906 to 1908 sold for about $2,000 to $2,500.
[Featured Image by Greg Gjerdingen via Wikimedia Commons | Cropped and scaled | CC BY 2.0]