57

Listed Now

$24,920

Avg. Asking Price

1912–1929

Year Range

Transmission Distribution

Automatic 49%

Manual 37%

Condition Distribution

Excellent 14%

Good 19%

Fair 4%

Poor 2%

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The planetary transmission is the most commonly misunderstood and most frequently worn component on surviving Model Ts. The transmission bands (which control forward low, forward high, and reverse) wear with use and must be adjusted or replaced. A car that slips or refuses to hold in gear needs immediate band service. The flywheel magneto ignition system is unique to the Model T and has no equivalent in any other vehicle. Weak magneto coils are common on cars that have sat for years. Replacement coil sets are inexpensive and widely available, but the flywheel must be removed for replacement. Wood rot in early body styles is a significant concern, particularly in cars that were stored in damp conditions. The wooden body framing can appear sound and still be structurally compromised. A specialist inspection of any car with wooden body framing is strongly recommended. Overheating is common on cars with blocked cooling passages, a Model T engine runs fine when the cooling system is clear and fails quickly when it is not. A chemical flush and thermostat check should be among the first maintenance tasks on any newly purchased car.

Engine block authenticity first. The casting number and date code on the block are the primary provenance indicators. A correctly dated engine for the claimed year is the foundation of any significant valuation. Transmission condition second. The planetary transmission is the most mechanically consequential component. A smooth, positive-engaging transmission without slipping indicates recent service or careful preservation. Body style and year-correct detail third. Model T body styles and trim details changed annually in ways that are well-documented by the marque registries. A car presented as a specific year should have year-correct body hardware, lamps, radiator core style, and fender profile. The Model T Ford Club of America's technical library is the authoritative reference.

Driver-quality touring car or runabout in honest running condition: $12,000–$22,000. Restored, correct-specification touring car: $28,000–$45,000. Concours-quality marque-verified restorations: $45,000–$70,000. Brass-era cars (1908–1914) in correct condition: $35,000–$80,000 for the finest examples; rarest body styles and very early production (1908–1909) can exceed $100,000. Commercial body styles (depot hacks, snowmobiles, early trucks): $20,000–$55,000 depending on rarity and condition. The Model T truck and commercial variants are increasingly collected by a separate buyer community.

The Model T's 177 cubic inch inline-four engine was not significantly changed from 1908 to 1927. Ford made incremental improvements, but the basic engine design that powered the final 1927 car was recognisably the same as the one in the first 1908 production vehicle. Henry Ford offered the Model T in any colour a customer wanted, as long as it was black. The famous line, however, was not entirely accurate: earlier Model Ts were available in other colours, and black only became truly universal from about 1914 to 1925, when the fast-drying Japan black paint was required for production-line efficiency. From 1926, additional colours returned.