MOTOR SPORT FLASHBACK
King Kenny
There was a strong desire to buy English cars but to counter this several Canadian-sourced Ford Model Ts toured the main street in Timaru in 1926, some wearing windscreen banners declaring “Fords are British”. On the basis that Canada was a member of the Commonwealth and therefore British local press advertisements proclaimed: “Ford cars are British produced”.
AS SEEN ON MURIWAI BEACH
Henry Ranger opened the first Ford agency in Christchurch’s Chester Street in 1910, selling many Model Ts often with local leather seating. By 1914 seven Model T vans were being used in South Canterbury for rural mail and newspaper deliveries and soon after an ambulance was built on a Model T chassis in Wellington. In 1915 a Model T fire appliance was built for the Devonport Fire Brigade in Auckland, crashing on one corner during a callout in 1924 and killing the local fire chief. Two police paddy wagons were built on Model T chassis in Wellington and the longer Ford TT chassis became the basis for a school bus in 1924.
Stan Andrew, brother of John Andrew, founder of the prominent John W Andrew Ford dealership that still exists today, set a five-mile speed record in the red JWA Model T racer at Muriwai Beach, averaging an impressive 86.1 miles an hour (138.5kph). He also led the 50-mile New Zealand Motor Cup in the modified JWA before retiring near the end of the race.
Motorists remained suspicious of closed cars but a sedan variant arrived here in 1915 followed by a convertible that was known as the ‘runabout’. Finally electric lights were offered, powered by the magneto, which meant bright lighting only when the engine revs climbed.
By 1914 Ford’s plants in England and Ontario, Canada, were turning out 100 Model Ts a day while the much larger Highland Park complex had 1000 rolling off its lines. The
Canadian Fords were fitted with larger top radiator tanks than the US versions apparently to cope with hotter weather.
Henry Ford’s master stroke was to reshape manufacturing technology and bring down the cost of a new car to attainable levels. So while the first Model T in 1908 retailed for an expensive US$850 in its home market by 1916 a basic model was a mere US$360 (US$7K in today’s money). The same year the New Zealand retail price for a basic Model T fell to a remarkably low £180 ($360). Today international prices range from $15K to $50K. New Zealand examples on offer recently have included a 1924 roadster for $24,500, a 1920 sedan for $28K, and a 1926 roadster in parts for $10K.
John Stokes from Rangiora has written a splendid book,
Ford in New Zealand, released by New Holland Publishers in 2017. Subtitled Putting the Car Before the Horse it details the early days of the Model T in New Zealand and has a wealth of information on Ford’s influence on local motoring more than a century ago.
The affectionate label ‘Tin Lizzie’ came from the name ‘Lizzie’ being slang for a good dependable servant.
Arrival of the Model A heralded a significant change. It had twice the horsepower, better appointments, and a more modern appearance. Yet it was Ford’s pioneering Model T, the ‘universal car’, that made the greatest impact on early life in New Zealand, transforming motoring from a rich man’s hobby to a vital facet of everyday life — indeed putting our world on wheels.
Canada was a member of the Commonwealth so the British press ads proclaimed: “Ford cars are British produced”