1929 Ford Model A for Sale

Body styles and how many were built

• Sedans: the two-door Tudor and the four-door Fordor. Fordor bodies came from Ford and from the outside suppliers Briggs and Murray, and details differ between them.
• Coupes: standard, sport and business coupes, plus the cabriolet with a folding top and roll-up windows.
• Open cars: the roadster and the phaeton.
• Station wagon and pickups: a wood-bodied station wagon and the half-ton pickup.

Published production totals for 1929 vary with how they are counted, but all of them put 1929 at roughly one and a half million cars or more, the highest of any Model A year.

Engine and drivetrain

The 1929 car carried over the 201 cubic inch L-head four at 40 hp, the three-speed sliding-gear manual and four-wheel mechanical brakes. The brake linkage changed during 1929: a one-piece cross shaft replaced the 1928 equalizer. Wheels are still 21 inch with 4.50 tires.

Tudor or Fordor?

The Tudor is the simpler and more common sedan. Fordors differ by body builder: on Murray doors the top of the window has a slight arch, while Ford and Briggs doors are straight across. Most Briggs and Murray bodies carried a maker's tag on the firewall, but many tags are lost or have been replaced, so check the firewall hardware too: Briggs used D-nuts, Murray caged nuts, and Briggs stamped a small "bug" mark on the lower cowl.

Is it a real 1929?

The engine number was the Model A's serial number and the one on the title. It is hand-stamped on the left side of the block above the water inlet, between two star symbols. Some frames repeat it on top of the left frame rail near the first body bolt, but many were never stamped. Engines have often been swapped, so ask about any mismatch, and treat a number struck through with X stamps as a renumbered engine.

What to inspect before you buy

• Body wood: sedan and coupe bodies are framed in wood. Sagging doors and poor door fit point to rot.
• Engine: babbitt bearings, not modern inserts, unless the engine has been converted. Ask when it was last rebuilt and listen for knocks.
• Brakes and steering: mechanical brakes need correct adjustment, and worn steering adds play. Drive the car if you can.
• Metal: fenders, running boards, splash aprons and the bottom of the body.

Related listings

• 1928 Ford Model A, 1930 Ford Model A and 1931 Ford Model A for sale, or every Ford Model A.
• Its predecessor: Ford Model T for sale.
• Background: where the assembly line really began, pre-war engine originality and the Model A as a street rod.