Model A Fords.
1. A Ford Model A photographed in India during the 30s.
The owner is seen here with his 1930s Ford Model A and his employees, ready for a long trip. Note the very 'approximate' angle of the front headlamp aim...
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The notes on the back of this pre-war (?) photograph read as follows .. "Ready for home, Sam, Andrew, Eve, car & Sakaram". Sadly it is un-dated, but by the looks of it, the chap all in white works for the guy in the hat (with pipe), either in the house and/or acting as chauffeur in the Model A Ford. The car is a 2 door example, unfortunately the registration number is obscured. Above the plate however is a small square badge, with a white cross on it - Scottish perhaps?
The picture dates to the 1930s I think, which would tie in with the British Empire feeling to this photo.
The Ford Model A came out at the end of 1927, as a direct replacement for the legendary Model T, or 'tin lizzie'. The Model A featured a host of revisions and improvements over the older car, not least a switch from thermo-syphon cooling to a driven water pump. The gearbox now contained three forward speeds as opposed to just two on the T, and the magneto ignition of the old car was replaced by a coil on the A. All Model As came with safety glass fitted as standard, not a common occurrence back in the twenties.
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The Fordor was the most expensive car in the range, costing $570. Power came from a 3.3 litre 4 cylinder engine. Production of the Model A didn't last too long mind, as it was replaced by the Model B and V8 Model 18 in 1932 after less than 4 years of production. Well over 4 million examples of this classic Ford had been built during this period.
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2. A Ford Model A out in Australia.
Brian sent over the second Model A photograph, this time an example of the Model A tourer. It shows his now-wife Lynne stood on the car's running board in 1951. Brian adds: "My father also had an A Model Ford although I have no photos. This is one of the few side on photos I have seen of the A and I think it was a very stylish car." Thanks for sending it over.
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3. An Irish-registered Model A.
This photo turned up in a collection I bought some time ago, it features an Irish-registered (Mayo) Ford Model A "Fordor", RHD obviously.
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4. Another Ford out in Empire.
No notes accompany this next photo, featuring a Model A tourer, but everything about it suggests that it was taken out in the British Empire somewhere. Despite the heat, the Ford's roof is raised, no doubt to protect the car's occupants from the sun.
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5. A Model A Tudor.
A lady is seen in this next shot, sat in the driver's seat of a c1931 Ford Model A Tudor ("Two-Door") sedan. I don't know where this photograph was taken, but judging by the muddy tyres and wheels it was probably in a rural part of the States.
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6. Model A Fordor.
Following on from the two-door model, a clear side view of the two-window "Fordor" Model A Ford, with two ladies plus a youngster on board. Various aftermarket badges are fitted to this car's radiator, as is a leaping animal of some description to the Ford's radiator cap. The filler cap for the fuel tank can clearly be seen ahead of the car's screen, the Model A's tank was mounted in the scuttle, providing a gravity-feed fuel supply to the engine's carburettor.
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7. A Model A and its successor.
Two classic Fords now, a Model A parked to the right, while to the left its successor, the Ford Model B. The building in the background is, according to the legend set into the glass above one of the doors, the Westmeath Hotel in Ireland. I cannot find any mention of this establishment online, so how this building looks today - if it's still standing - I don't know. Neither of the Fords' registration plates is visible either which is a shame.
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8. Front view of a lady and her Ford.
This photo has been on file for years, as I wasn't sure whether to include it or not. However, while not a brilliant study of Ford's Model A, there's something about the atmosphere of the shot that appeals to me, so it gets to appear on this page. If nothing else a look at fashions of the time (1930s), gives a few clues as to how people dressed when such cars were an everyday sight, and how perhaps owners of preserved cars could dress today while driving their Model A today. Maybe.
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9. A 1930 Standard Roadster.
Thanks to Rich Olson for this next image, a side-on view of a 1930 Ford Model A Standard Roadster. The car was his father's, and the photograph was taken in Massachusetts. Close inspection of the picture (by people who know their way around Model As, not myself) reveals that the rear wheel is 19" diameter on this example, while the front is 21" from a 1928/1929 Model A - and both are missing their centre wheel caps.
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External Model A link of interest.
Model A Ford Club of America
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Return to Motoring Photographs Page 2.
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Model As to be found elsewhere on this site.
A visitor to the site in 2015, Reg, sent over the story of how he and a friend bought - and modified - a Model A Tudor, before taking it on a drive around Europe, in the early 1950s. Photos of the car, and a write-up of the trip, may be found on this page. A neat period photo of a Model A Open Cab pickup in British Columbia, can be found here, while this page features a cracking early photo of a Model A van on it.
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