UPDATE 1/14/2021 – It’s been a while since we first featured this barn find antique, but we recently spotted it again and noticed that the seller has lowered their asking price from $24,995 to $19,995 with the option to make an offer. Given how long it’s been listed, perhaps they are now ready to accept considerably less for it? It really is a cool find and with some fresh tires, looks like it would be ready for the reservation class at most Concours!
FROM 2/16/2019 – It is crazy to think that the more this century gets closer to the middle, the more 100-year-old vehicles we will have. This 1914 Ford Model T has surpassed its 100th birthday and is waiting for someone to buy it now for $24,995 and pick it up from Bozeman, Montana. It has quite a large amount of information in the listing that you will want to sift through. You can view that information here on eBay.
According to the seller, the engine does turn over, but they will not try to start it. They have a steel crank handle rather than an aluminum handle. There apparently is some minor damage to the engine in the form of welding on the cylinder head. The seller does not know how or why that weld mark is there unless the head was dropped at some point. It has been off the road since 1933 and the license plates show that date.
The interior is worn, fading, cracked, and incredibly dirty. Noted in the listing is that they noticed the top had been put down by someone at some point, who did not do it properly, and the seller is not going to attempt to put it up for fear of breaking it. It is a barn find vehicle so it has been in covered storage since going off the road over 80 years ago. Things also noted in the listing are a horn with switch on the steering column, speedometer, and interior side panels.
Much of the listing is coming from a historical point of view. The seller notes that they are deep into history and that they want the car to go to a home that will preserve it. They have done as much research as possible to verify numbers, production dates, and authenticity as possible. It is hard to say how much a car like this is worth, but it truly is an icon that would be worthwhile in so many priceless ways.
Interesting brass era car! Taken off the road during the Depression probably for repairs that weren’t in the budget? Amazing find! Hope it turns out to be a viable Tin Lizzy again!
man the weed must be some good in montana! if they think this money pit is worth 25 grand! 500 bucks when new! and what do you do with it? parade use? lucky to get 40 miles per hour out of it then figure out how to play with the 3 pedals that move it! lot better cars out there for this kind of money!
The weed is great in Montana! It’s great all over the northwest period. Have a great evening!
Define what is “better” …..
Look up Montana 500. These STOCK Model T’s hit speeds above 80mph
on a yearly endurance race of 500 miles.
You are living on stereotypes.
There are better things in life than speed.
I will agree with you.
I had several Model T’s. A ’24 and a Brassie ’14 just like this one. I owned them both for more than 20 years and this is my experience. Up until 10 or so years ago, they were a fun back road car. But then distracting driving and much higher speeds came into the picture. Having an oversized pickup coming at you at 70-80 MPH when passing a car in the other lane is terrifying in a 1914 T. You are constantly being passed by everything, not thoughtfully, but angrily, with rolling coal or a cloud of exhaust into the open interior. Town drives weren’t much better as cars are expected to brake later and accelerate harder than Model T can do. They were consigned to parade duty as my wife no longer enjoyed any drives in them. We held on to them until they turned 100, hoping the market might go up. But sadly the running, driving, shiny ’14 with a 2 speed rear end and rocky mountain brakes only went for $12,500, and that was after 3 months of advertising. The clean, driving ’24 went for $9800.00. As interesting as this one is, I’m afraid it is still 10k overpriced.
Jay–I don’t know where you live, but you need to move. I have several very slow cars and, here in small town Texas, I have never been treated rudely. I get smiles, thumbs ups and waves.
OMG!!! it’s the Beverly Hillbillies car!!
OK, am I that old that few remember that show?
Not… they had an Oldsmobile..
It still exists.
https://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/14355
Ok Steve, I node my head to you : ) and thanks for the link AMC Guy for bringing the old olds back into our thoughts as I suspect many here would not have know who the Clampets where, I certainly didn’t know what kind of “old vehicle” it was, this ad immediately brought back those childhood memories!! Cheers! Mark
I was just about to say that it looks like it was waiting for Jed, Granny, Ellie Mae and Jethro to pile in, LOL!! :-)
Yup–it just needs the chair fr Granny.
Holy guano, Batman. This car needs to be carefully cleaned and gently mechanically revived. This is awesome.
Yup. Incredibly valuable tool for restorers to know how the cars were assembled.
Wow, that’s an amazing find! Sadly, Model Ts, even Brass Era ones, are not worth anything like they used to, as most aficionados of Ford’s Universal Car are long in the grave.
At a wild guess, I’d say that this one is probably worth perhaps 40% of the asking price. I’m more than happy to be proven very wrong, for the seller’s sake.
Hope it goes to a loving home…
Agree. At $25K this T is WAY overpriced. :-O
I’ve actually been tracking through various online for sale lists for fully restored and driveable cars of this era.
A fully ready to go car like this one is common on the market for $12,000-$17,000.
$19,995 for this one is dreaming.
I’d contact the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, MI and see if they would buy this time capsule.
Agreed. T owner here. The brass era (up to 1919) are more valuable than the later cars but this thing is grossly overpriced. Also, any part ever manufactured on the cars is readily available aftermarket or through old parts suppliers. There were literally millions and millions built. They were dirt cheap from day one and they stayed that way. Not much special here although I do like the speedometer.
Quite possibly the oldest car I’ve seen on
this site. And while Model Ts are easy to
revive, it’s the cracked head that worries
me. It’s going to be tough locating an
NOS replacement these days. Hopefully,
everything else is all there, including the
accetaline tank and lines for the lights.
The brass should shine up with copious
amounts of Tarn-X and the body parts
could be carefully cleaned and brought
back again with a gentle hand buffing.
Better pack your woodworking skills too
as a Model T body is made mostly of
wood. I agree with BB when he said
that most all of the Model T collectors
have passed on and gone to that great
auto shop in the sky. Combine that with
the crash of ’08, and this is what we’re
left with. Don’t think you’ll ever find a
melenial or a gen-xer working on one
of these cars and that’s very sad. We
need to get our kids, grandkids, neices
and nephews into the hobby or else the
hobby will die with us. After all, gettin’
dirty is all about!
Gen-Xer right here, Kenneth. I haven’t owned one yet, but I will.
Millenial, here. I second what grant said.
Can’t stop looking at this. It calls me back when I leave the page. Ugh. And I’m not even a huge fan of these old cars. You can’t even contact the seller. When you click the link to contact him it takes you to some random page that say, we’ll look for an answer for you.
For a Model T, this thing is loaded! I’d bet it’d be another 10 years before a horn and speedometer were standard. I’m surprised it survived the patriotic scrap drives during the war, as it was a 25-30 year old car taking up space. Who knows, it might’ve belonged to an away GI, or a sentimental older person who bought it new, or someone of the “save everything” mentality of the Depression and those who survived it. I’d love to hear the car’s history, and see it shined up once more. He’s a saint to get half of his price though, and should sell it to the first person to come along since T’s are dropping in value every time the sun rises.
If it was in Montana at the time, that is what saved it from the scrap drives during the war. If it had been in a barn on a coast it would be long-since crushed. Wouldn’t have made as much economic sense to ship it to a crusher near steel mills.
Just looking at the photographs makes you wonder about the stories this car was part of in its short time on the road.
That’s probably right! The thought hadn’t crossed my mind.
Of course it’s black? Any one know why?
Henry had then all painted black because it dried the fastest of any paint color, therefore it didn’t needlessly slow production. That’s the story I have always been told. Any others?
Black is also the least expensive paint to buy–so I”ve been told by a paint and body man.
The black era cars were “painted” with a product called Gilsonite, essentially a tar oil. Body parts were dipped in vats and hung to dry. The thinner was quite “hot” and evaporated quickly, leaving a hard, shiny surface that did not stay shiny very long.
A quote from Henry, I once read…”You can have your car painted any color you want, as long as the color is black…”
Black Era (black only available) 1914-1925.
Various colors were used 1909-1914 and 1926-27.
Black Cars Matter !
I just sold a running driving 1914 Brass Model T that I had owned for more than 20 years. The market topped out at $15,000.00, I was very happy to get that. With so many model A’s for sale for that price it is hard to convince someone to buy a T. This one, in such poor condition is far overpriced.
Agree! $25K is WAY Overpriced in this condition (…even for a Brass-era T.).
(I just recently sold a Museum Quality pristine ’21 Model-T for only $10K. I’m now thinking that I should have asked DOUBLE that price!!) :-O
Come and listen to my story about a man named Jed
A poor mountaineer, barely kept his family fed,
And then one day he was shootin at some food,
And up through the ground come a bubblin crude.
Oil that is, black gold, Texas tea.
Well the first thing you know ol Jed’s a millionaire,
The kinfolk said “Jed move away from there”
Said “Californy is the place you ought to be”
So they loaded up the truck and they moved to Beverly
Hills, that is. Swimmin pools, movie stars.
That was the very first thing that I thought of when I saw it! Right?!
$25k? LMAO, seller is smoking a crack pipe
You can get a nice running Model T for $5 to $10k
https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_sacat=0&_fosrp=1&_nkw=ford%20model%20t&LH_Complete=1&LH_Sold=1&rt=nc&_trksid=p2045573.m1684
Awesome find and detailed listing in the ebay ad. Would absolutely love this car. Seems a little high but I wish the seller the best with this car
I don’t what this is worth either. It has great historical as well as survivor value.If you looked at practical or investment value not so much. In any case I doubt the seller is “upside down” in this car. At 25K I think the buyer would be though.
The Model T wins the prize as the worst car made. A POS engine with no oil pressure, (the spinning flywheel tossed some oil toward the crankshaft), no insert bearings on the rods and brakes on the rear wheels only. The low cost made it popular but few lasted very long if driven.
“…worst car made.”?!?
LOL! :-P
I guess that is why in the 19-teens & 19-20’s more than 50% of the cars on the road were Model-Ts?!?
Based on the number sold & the HUGE popularity of the Model-T at the time, I think it is safe to say that it was THE CORRECT CAR for that time period.
…
(Then again, I guess the 16.5 Million people who bought one new could have been wrong….) :-P
…& FYI: The brakes located on the rear wheels are the parking brake. The main brake system is located within the transmission.
All the Model T did was put America (and Canada) on wheels. No longer were automobiles exclusive to the Guilded Age Wealthy. The Soviets make propaganda films about the Great Depression to show their people how terrible things were in America, which backfired because Russian peasants noted that poor Americans actually owned their own cars. That alone makes it the greatest horseless carriage of all time.
Dont forget England, Germany, France, Australia, South Africa Etc Etc. I must of read this a 1,000 times
“The car that put America on wheels ”
What about the rest of the world.
@Rex Rice. In one word, “Rubbish”
Rex,
My dad drove my grandpa on a daily rural mail route in a 1916 Model T – until he graduated from high school in 1927. He would probably agree with you regarding some of the T’s deficiencies, but at the same time he would have insisted it was the only car built back then that could take the punishment – especially on those roads! Even when new, he had to remember to add a quart of oil every 25 miles. As I understand it, there were little scoops or paddles on the crank that splashed the oil around.
Rex, your paradigm is one of modern mechanics, not of building a motor vehicle to send out into a world of mule tracks or no roads at all. I am going to guess you’ve never owned or driven one. Clearly you have no historical perspective. No car had insert bearings at the time, just as few, if any, had pressurized oil systems. The idea was make them ultra-simple. Something that required minimal systems to repair and repairs, when needed, that could be done by anyone, almost anywhere. You know they didn’t have water pumps either, right ? Yup, … Henry designed a thermo-syphon system. Works great too ! In his design for a small, simple vehicle, Henry nailed it, and outsold all other car mfr’s. combined for 10 years !
This car’s value (whatever it is) is in NOT being just another over-polished trailer/car show queen. Parts for the T are stupidly easy to find and CHEAP … hell, Ford made 15 MILLION of them ! To anyone who’s revived a 52 Olds or a 1921 Packard, you know just how cheap and easy it is to own and drove a Model T. About on par with a 57 Chevy or a 67 Mustang, except less expensive.
As mentioned by others, if a person wanted a ’14 T touring with all the bling polished to a fine luster, they could buy one for half this seller’s asking price. The world is over-populated with shiny ones. This one should be maintained as much as possible in “as found” condition. Once that history is polished away, it is just another trailer queen.
I drive and heavy haul with mine 6 months out of the year.
…or fuel pumps. My grandfather had to back up the Lewiston, ID hill because it was too steep to gravity feed the gas.
Finally, a car older than me. 13 years older, but older. Love the car hope someone saves it and makes her road worthy again!
So glad it survived.
Price aside, it brings a smile to see it rescued and brought out into the daylight once again
Whatever your feelings about it, it was THE car that put America on wheels.
Here we go again “The car that put America on wheels “” what about the rest of the world ?
This would have to be a labor of love. It would be a blast to cruise the back roads in it. 20k too much for me
They are fun to look at, I would not want to own one they need work every 50 miles. These cars where very poorly made even for the times that they where built in…very affordable is why they sold well…cheaper then buying, housing and feeding a horse. They where considered a disposable automobile that everyone could afford. That was Fords market and that’s what Ford did well!
Paul, if you need to work on yours every 50 miles, that speaks to the level in which a person maintains their cars. I work on mine once a year, in the winter, when I put it up for the season. I check all the systems, fluids, change the oil, and just make sure things are tight. Then I drive the wheels off it when spring comes, and don’t do much else until the cold returns.
I suspect you have never owned one, or you would not be passing along the comments you are. Once brought up to good mechanical condition (like ANY car), they they are dependable and easy to work on. Now, if you are comparing ANY pre-1930 car to anything made after 1970, of course they are “high maintenance”. But that is an absurd comparison. As for “poorly built”, they are made of real metal and bolted together solidly. What is your comment supposed to mean ?
Let me be clear in this … Fords have been CHEAP cars since the Model T went to assembly line production in 1914. They were an honest, CHEAP car. But you got a lot for what you paid. By 1925, “fashion” had caught up to Henry’s frugality mindset and sales were falling off fast. It was Edsel and other management that honed the policy of putting lipstick on a pig that Ford still operates from today. At least when it was Henry’s T, you knew you were buying a pig, and not a date with Marilyn Monroe, only to be handed a pig with lipstick. The pre-26 T’s were primitive, but solid cars, with no frills and an honest presentation. If you want to call them “junk”, then by what standards, a Gray, a Grant, a Metz, a Northern, a Studebaker, a Chevrolet, a Star ?
This forum is great for passing along good intel. Sadly, it allows bad intel to be passed along just as easily. To use the greatest sales line ever, “Ask the man who owns one” – Packard.
Touche, Mr Burger, you hit the nail on the head. I love it when someone with real knowledge puts someone in their place. There are many blow hards on this site. Have a great day!
Not trying to play “smack-down”, but let’s not spread the hobby myths and BS about topics we don’t have firsthand knowledge of. I do not like Fords. Of the 115 years of Ford cars, I can think of just a handful I would consider owning. I am embarrassed by the association my T has with the rest of Ford’s lineage. So, it is not like I am some foaming over Ford nut. But the T was an honest car. It was designed for an age that few can wrap their head around, and it did very well for what it was designed to do. It was rapidly obsolete by the time paved roads became the norm. My beef is with so much of the hobby that thinks all cars should be judged by standards of muscle cars. These cars were scarcely more advanced than horse-drawn wagons, still driving on roads of the horse-drawn era. They do not go fast or have good brakes because the roads would scarcely let a vehicle get up to any speed for all the ruts, ponds, muck, etc. Heck, Henry didn’t even balance his Model T engines from the factory ! They would never rev high enough to know ! Today, one HAS TO balance them, or you’ll blow them up at the speeds our smooth, paved roads allow a T to go. But that is no different than over-revving a go-fast V-8 that had no balancing work done before assembly.
It is a shame so many only see old cars through the go-fast paradigm. I own a small group of 50’s and 60’s cars. They are smooth, they go like striped apes, they are fun. But I will sell them all before I sell my old T truck. Going slow and taking the backroads and meeting great people with wonderful stories is way more fulfilling and fun than any car show, parade, or other typical old car activity.
It only took me 50 years to figure out I had it all backwards ! 😜
Sometimes people need to be put in their place tho. That’s what I liked. I was born in 1947. So I have a love for older vehicles. Learned to drive in a model A. I have a nice collection of Mustangs myself. With the exception of a Porsche 356B Cabroliet I am presently restoring. Let’s say my sons and grandson are doing the work, I supervise. :-)
Great find. Indeed, Model T’s are a significant part of automobile history, and every effort should be made to preserve as many of them as possible. That aside, no matter if Henry himself owned this one, it’s not worth $25K. The market for cars of this era just isn’t there any more. They’re becoming almost give-aways at this point in time. Cut the price to $2500 and hope it goes to a good home
Two words: Jay Leno.
I like Americana. I like history. And I like design. And I have a touch of ADHD. I bore easily with common cars. I’ll take a ’22 Auburn over any post-war car any day, if to own and drive, or simply to look at. Chances are, I will never see another one. That alone, makes it more interesting. How many 55-70 Chevys (or Fords) can a person see before their eyes glaze over ? That’s not to say there aren’t rare and special versions, but they are they exception, and for those, I make the exception ! By and large, I am thrilled to see ANY old American car going down the road, and equally thrilled that there are those who will dump love and money into them to keep them doing so. But to talk smack about cars one knows nothing about ? I would never say anything about a car I have not wrenched on or driven, beyond my personal observations – like I do not like the looks of pre-1930 Chevrolets, … the headlights are mounted WAY too high for my sense of aesthetics. But to call them poorly built or crappy cars ? That call is above my pay grade until I actually take the time to learn firsthand what they are all about.
America was so lucky to have Ford contain the Model T to the USA. “The car that put America on wheels ” I am sure the T would of sold well to overseas countries. Pity the rest of the world missed out on the Model T, as a lot of break throughs would of happened around the world.
@Terry Furness. the rest of the world didn’t lose out on the Model T Ford. We had them in Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe) and South Africa and incidently Henry Ford’s first Model A, a 1903 model was bought by a South African at the New York Motor Show and Henry had it shipped to SA making it the first EVER Ford to be exported from USA. The car still sits in the Franschoek Motor Museum just outside cape Town. I tried to buy it at an auction in 1978 but couldn’t come up with the necessary scratch at the time, unfortunately. Ken Tilly UK
Henry’s first production line was – I think – in Manchester…. which was down south in England the last time I checked…
So we had Ts too, but the equivalent car for here might be the Austin 7.
WOW! what a conversation going on here! to jump back up a ways, Early Gen Xer here, and a “T” is high on my list! I am banking on the interest in early cars waning so the prices come back down to where I can afford one. That said, I consider myself abnormal for my generation. I am by far the youngest of the town historians in the surrounding communities.
The Model T was never about high performance or frills. It was built to be an entry level, reasonably reliable (for the time) automobile. There are many shortcomings in its design to keep cost low, but none that impeded basic functionality or expected reliability. Just look at the pages and pages of aftermarket upgrades offered in the magazines of the day!
Buying a T, you understood you were getting a base level, super-cheap car. you could then upgrade it to your heart’s content as your budget allowed.
To me owning a T today is about experiencing history. it’s a living window to a different time. that’s why I want one.
You hit the nail on the head–“it’s a living window into a different time”. I keep my cars for their antique value. I want my cars to drive and handle exactly as they did when they were made. My oldest car is a bone stock ’34 Terraplane, a hot rodder’s favorite, It’s a beautiful car, but drop an SBC in it, and my interest would drop to zero.
This is great. When you listen you learn. When we talk we only hear what we already know…………..there is a balance
“Yes, Grasshopper, but can any man afford such arrogance”? (one of my favorite shows) The BH references are great, and I thought their vehicle was a REO( Oldsmobile) truck. Anyway, people went off on a tangent here, considerable, and blew past the whole point of the Model T. I think several summed it up best. I’d say the Model T was THE most influential machine to ever be created. History revolved around it, and what’s a price on that? As time marches on, it’s natural to forget what made us great, but the Model T, without question, made us great.
I’d love to own this car but the asking price is crazy. Bring it down to $1500 and it would be in my garage.
Days gone by yard art etc
I’ve owned three, a 21′ Runabout, 24′ Touring, and a 26′ Pickup. Enjoyed them all. If properly maintained, they’re pretty reliable. Toured with the Touring and enjoyed the 35-45 mph backroad scenic drives.
This one’s going to need a complete restoration. Can probably leave the paint as is, but will likely want to repaint. Plan on investing some dollars into it. May be worth $12,000 once completely restored.
The crankshaft and con rods were lubricated via a scoop cast into the con rod cap. I owned three of these in high school, since I could buy them for $25 at the auto salvage yard! It’s with them I learned my mechanic skills that I use today to maintain vehicles old enough not to be computerized to death. And no, they did not need maintenance “every 50 miles”. Nor did any of mine require oil at every fill-up. Best emergency brake ever – just slam the reverse pedal!
Ford Motor Company and Panhard Levassor were selling are on Broadway in NY City and were sued by a NY lawyer who copywrited the word “automobile. Henry met with the PH representative who told him they used chrome vanadium steel for the frame, axles and axle housings of their cars. Henry did this and that is why his T and A cars lasted so well. He really did build a great car even though he was an antisemite just like FDR.
I saw this car the other day when I was watching the 3 Stooges.
Considering all the enthusiasm & knowledge for Ford in this post, I’m absolutely shocked that nobody mentioned the Ford Mustang taillights on the motorhome in the background of Ebay photo #1?🤣
i am confused. just what is a survivor.