Ford Quadricycle (replica)-1896

While a young man, Henry Ford took a job with the Edison Illuminating Company in Detroit, Michigan.  While serving as Edison’s chief engineer, Ford began building his first car.  Like other car makers of his day, he had no ready-made components with which to work.  For the engine, he modified plans found in American Machinist Magazine, adding a second cylinder and water jackets for cooling. The cylinders for the engine came from a length of scrap pipe from a steam engine bored out to the right diameter; the flywheel came from an old lathe; the wheels came from bicycles; and the horn was a domestic doorbell screwed to the front.  Ford completed his car in June 1896, but in his enthusiasm to get it finished he had failed to consider how he was to get it out of his tiny workshop.  Finding the door too narrow, he demolished the frame with an ax and removed some bricks in order to move the car on to the street.  In his haste, legend has it that he ran out of fuel a few blocks away! He considered this first drive a huge success.

Like all inventors, Ford was eager to move on to his next car and sold his Quadricycle for $200 a few months later. Two years later, he bought it back for $60. The original resides at The Henry Ford museum in Michigan.

 

 

Specifications:

 

Manufacturer: Henry Ford

Country of Origin: U.S.A.

Drivetrain Configuration: Mid engine, rear wheel drive

Engine: 2 cylinder

Transmission: 1 speed

Top Speed: 20 miles per hour

Year of Production:  1896

Number Produced: 1

Original Cost:  ____