(first posted 9/26/2016) A gigantic red roadster from the first decade of the 20th century is not typical fodder for this website, but I was so bowled over by its whole presentation that omitting it altogether would be tantamount to automotive heresy. This is a 1907 Ford Model K, a car that is only a year or so removed from the Model T, one of the most famous and revered pieces of rolling sociology known to man. How is this gigantic force of nature nearly forgotten?
It’s largely because of this man, Alexander Malcomson. Henry Ford, for all his fame, had a knack for alienating people, and sometimes downright doublecrossing them. Malcomson was a prominent Detroit coal magnate who largely bankrolled Ford’s third try at an automobile company, the one that would finally stick. By 1906, Ford and Malcomson were at odds over the company’s direction, Ford wanting mass production for the masses, Malcomson wanting higher prices and profits. In an industrial coup (the rest of Ford’s shareholders must not have liked Malcomson very much either), Malcomson was forced out of the company he backed, well before the insane profits really manifested themselves.
In a way, Malcomson was like the Pete Best of the automotive industry, forced out before the wheels of success really started to roll. Don’t feel too bad for him, however, as he doubled down on coal and passed away at 59 with a fortune of about two million dollars.
Thus, the Model K was Alexander Malcomson’s last stand with Ford Motor Company, a 405 cubic inch six-cylinder behemoth that was an orphan before it even got a chance to make something of itself in the world. While you can find dozens and dozens of tomes related to the history of the Model T, and car shows like Greenfield Village’s “Old Car Festival” reinforce the Model T’s continuing popularity, the Model K is almost unknown today. In my substantial automotive library, I only found a few lines of facts about a car that figuratively knocked me out, a big red tour de force that comparatively few people wanted.
The Model K’s 40 horsepower (same as a 1928 Model A, which had half the displacement) was routed through Ford’s favorite planetary transmission, which was not yet an anachronism, but was perhaps not the most sporting of choices for a fairly high priced vehicle (around $2500). Contrary to popular belief, however, the Model K wasn’t an abject failure. Apparently, much of Ford’s profits in those heady last days before the Model T were funneled straight from Model K sales, although the facts are a little cloudy. So maybe Malcomson wasn’t too wrong after all.
Either way, it would be a while before a Ford was this rakish again, arguably almost 30 years, until the debut of the swoopy 1933 models, if you don’t count the numerous garage-built Model T specials and Deuce hot rods. Even the popular Model A was fairly upright and conservative compared to this monster. Just look at that long hood; could this Model K have influenced later Fords like the Continental and Mustang? Probably not, but I’d like to think that someone in Ford Design checked out the Model K in profile at one time or another.
Long hood, short, uh, back seats? It’s the design language that made a lot of sporty cars sporty.
And while this little buggy may have had a lot more influence on America as a sociological unit, the Model K is the one I’d rather take for a Sunday drive.
Great car, never seen one before. So that’s the famous reason why Ford never wanted to make sixes in the 30s…
Any idea how many were made?
My initial thoughts exactly about Henry Ford’s aversion to 6-cylinder engines! Don’t recall the name Malcomson in early Ford history, but have heard references to a Model K.
Also read that Edsel Ford tried to modernize the Model T with a lower slung chassis and other modern styling cues. Henry looked at it, sat in it, drove it for a few feet, then got out, smashed the windshield, tore off the doors and then warned Edsel never to do anything like that again.
Wondering if he was thinking about how it resembled the Model K and Malcomson.
The business was actually called ‘Ford & Malcomson Ltd.’ until it was renamed the Ford Motor Company after Henry’s second Grosse Pointe race win and an additional capital raising had been undertaken around 1903. (Robert Lacey; ‘Ford’)
One of my books says that production for all models was lumped in to a model year total, but I believe another source said well under 1000 were made in 1906-’07.
So I get that it wasn’t the type of car he wanted to make, and that he bristled at Malcomson having a say in the direction of the company, but wouldn’t the thing still have been his own design? Unless someone else designed it, I can’t see why that would prevent him from giving a six another try 30 years later.
Maybe I just don’t know enough about Ford’s psychology…
Hmm. I suppose I should make the effort to read a whole entire book about Ford, but whatever I read about him (see Halwick above) suggests he was an utter nutbar.
Perhaps anything that reminded him of Malcomson sent him over the edge?
It’s also important to note that Henry was always the “idea man,” but other engineers did much of the heavy lifting. C. Harold Wills comes to mind. A guy named “Spider” Huff designed the flywheel magneto electrical system. Charles Sorenson was the talented patternmaker behind a lot of Ford’s ideas.
My impression was that Ford often had an idea, and it was up to his cadre of talented engineers to figure out how to make his flights of fancy actually work.
Low is the word! Note the longitudinal front leaf springs, mounted way up there to get the engine down. Hood is right on top of the engine. And the seats are NOT chair-height. Driver’s legs are close to horizontal. Many of these proportions didn’t return until 1960.
First time I’ve even seen a picture of a restored one, much less one in the metal. Everything I’ve known previous to this article has been less detailed and based on period catalog photos. Thank you very much for filling in the details.
Pretty advanced for 1907- Sat Nav and a USB port! Most cars didn’t get those until around 2007!
LOL! Yeah, I was thinking the same thing…the first thing I saw when I looked at the picture of the dash.
Interesting read.
Interesting article about one of the lesser-known early Ford models. Most people know about the Model T, but very few would be able to name the preceeding models, such as the Model K. During 1908, Ford were simultaneously building five different models – K, N, R, S and the new Model T.
That picture with all of the spots on the concrete remind us that this car is from the days when about lubricated component on a vehicle was merely a temporary home for the lubricant.
I recall reading somewhere that Ford’s planetary transmission design was quite an advance in that given the poor state of metallurgy, it allowed the owner to avoid stripped gears, which were common in sliding gear transmissions of the day.
I love these really early cars. Pure machinery. And wow, .1 horsepower per cubic inch, I wonder if that was a respectable figure for the day, or if this was like the Y block of those early mega-displacement engines.
That picture with all of the spots on the concrete remind us that this car is from the days when about lubricated component on a vehicle was merely a temporary home for the lubricant.
Those pix were taken next to a horse trough, so some of those stains could be from the other mode of transportation at the Village.
The streets that the Village’s Model Ts run on regularly are easily recognizable by the heavy, continuous oil slick. We old buggers remember well into the 60s and later how only brand new pavement did not have that oil slick. Now, they are almost gone. I typically only see a small stain where there is a bump in the pavement that shakes drips off of passing cars.
Well, I ride to work on a motorcycle, and on rainy days (which are frequent in Glasgow) I see rainbow oil spots every 30 feet or so. (sometimes huge slicks)
I do ride through some quite industrial areas, and also some pretty rough parts of town, so I suppose it could be from truck drivers overfilling diesel tanks, or could be explained by the fact that so many cars in these areas are on their last legs.
Aaron, thank you for this. While a Model K is definitely a car few of us can relate to, it is so vital in showing how things progressed and grew over time.
Your having seen one is icing on the cake. If I’ve ever seen one, it was in a museum and quite dormant.
The Model K has always stuck with me as it is indeed the reason Henry hated inline sixes. I read this a long time ago and simply cannot remember is this dislike was from the association with Malcolmson or some manufacturing / reliability issue with the engine itself. I’ve also read (again details are sketchy) that the reappearance of a straight six prior to Henry’s death was one of the few items Edsel was able to slip past the old man (or gain his agreement).
The stories I’ve read over the decades have always centered on the Model K being a “rich man’s car” while Henry was dedicated towards motorizing the “common man”. And it’s always been left at that, with no further details. Until today.
Sounds like what I’ve been reading over all those years was the same story as laid out above, only the bad guys being nameless “backers” rather than putting forth the name of the actual person(s?) who were trying to push Henry in a different direction.
Nothing was ever said about lack of reliability (what passed for reliability in those days), and books on vintage cars were always very quick to talk about reliability problems affecting the producing company. See EMF (Everett-Metzger-Flanders) as a prime example. That’s all most people know about the brand – it was the Yugo of the late 1900’s and early teens.
And nobody has ever said who was the actual designer of the Model K. I’d always had the impression that for at least the first five years all designs of the Ford Motor Company came from Henry Ford and were then worked on by whatever he had for an engineering staff backing him up, turning his ideas into reality.
Which insinuates that Ford designed the car he hated so much. Which, to anyone who’s familiar with Henry Ford’s history, seems to turn this car into Henry designing something he didn’t want – a bloody impossibility.
And the later flathead six (Edsel’s push) came about because even old crotchety Henry had to admit that the Chevrolet and Plymouth sixes were killing him in the market. The small 60hp V-8 didn’t compare, and there were certain low cost buyers who didn’t want the complexity of 8 cylinders. Period. And there were enough of them to matter.
Very interesting car in that it’s a 4-seat roadster, and with what appear to be four individual seats rather than two benches. The distant antecedent of the “4 door coupe”? Probably not…
Definitely quite rakish compared to the T, and projects such a different image.
Dang that’s where BMW and Mercedes got the inspiration for that abomination they call “four-door coupes”. 😛
Silly me! I thought it came from Rover.
Speaking of early six cylinder Ford’s, there was an awesome antique auto museum on US route 1 in Wells, Maine called the Wells Antique Auto Museum. I’m sad to report that they are now permanently closed. However one car that they had on display was a 1910 Ford Model J. I know what you’re thinking, same thing I was, Ford never built a Model J. Apparently they did build at least one. It was basically a six cylinder Model T. It looked like a T engine with two extra cylinders. I’m going by memory on this but I think Edsel had a big hand in getting it built. I remember reading about a guy in Australia who had a six cylinder, I think it was a Model S. Info is scarce on much of this stuff.
We’ve captured a Model S, but there was no information provided, nor did I elaborate on it. Note it’s right-hand drive.
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/museum/museum-classics-the-heartland-ford-museum/
Hunting around on a Model T website, someone stated that Edsel Ford had six Model T’s equipped with six cylinder engines as an experiment. Henry Ford found five of them and had them destroyed. The sixth one was in Maine which is why it survived. Edsel Ford was known to vacation in Maine and later built a very nice estate in Seal Harbor, which Martha Stewart now owns.
Another contribution to Ford Motor that Malcomson made was when he seconded a clerk from his coal business to Ford, James Couzens.
The made for TV movie from the 80s credits Couzens with actually getting Ford Model As to market by getting them on rail cars to an auto show, over Ford’s objections, so some revenue would start coming in, while Ford wanted to keep tinkering with them.
Couzens parted ways with Ford later on, but thanks to the stock Couzens had bought at the start, he was a very wealthy man and went on to election to the Senate and a life of philanthropy. He donated money for a residence hall to the University of Michigan, which is known as Couzens Hall.
I believe you’re talking the original 1903 Model A, not the 1928 version?
I believe you’re talking the original 1903 Model A, not the 1928 version?
Correct.
Aaron, somehow I missed running into you at the Festival, again, and I remember seeing that K at the horse trough.
I was back at the Village yesterday. There are several patches in the lawn in front of the church that have been roped off and reseeded where the car’s wheels sank into the rain soaked ground. Elsewhere, they just filled in the ruts and are apparently letting the grass fill in on it’s own.
Still looking forward to the Model T school report. Inquiring minds want to know what went on behind those doors.
We ought to have a CC mini-meetup next year. Even though I live in SC, I have combined the OCF with a visit to family in SW Michigan the last three years.
I’ve never been anywhere with so many truly “old” cars. Seeing and hearing them run around Greenfield Village is almost surreal.
As I’ve said before, I’m jealous of you guys who live in the area and have all of the region’s auto festivities to choose from. This year, I managed to catch the Walter P Chrysler museum on 9/11 before heading to the airport. A very nice museum and I talked for almost an hour with a retired Chrysler engineer about hybrid and electric vehicles. He was not a fan by the way and was particularly opinionated about Tesla and Mr. Musk! I find them intriguing, but not enough to open my wallet to one yet.
I have combined the OCF with a visit to family in SW Michigan the last three years.
I’ve never been anywhere with so many truly “old” cars. Seeing and hearing them run around Greenfield Village is almost surreal.
You can change it up some and come to Michigan in June, and catch the “Motor Muster” at the Village, which includes cars from about 1934 to 1976. The Motor Muster cars don’t cruise the village as much as the OCF participants do. Could be due to the narrow streets and the size of 60s and 70s models.
Or, your family is in SW Michigan? You could go to the Gilmore Museum in Hickory Corners (between and a bit north of Kalamazoo and Battle Creek.
For those who have not made the Old Car Festival, I shot this bit of video last year. Gives you an idea of the traffic density in the Village.
I believe this 1906 Ford roadster is another Model K. I took this photo at the Pioneer Village in Minden Nebraska a few years ago. I can’t recall the information they had on this car, it seems like it had been set up for speed. It is odd to think of the very early Fords being relative luxury items.
A very worthwhile read is this book. Most of the book concerns the early years of Ford’s career and efforts to launch a successful manufacturing company. There is good coverage of the other big players in the Detroit area. The Dodge brothers stand out.Ford had quite a head strong personality, which initially led to his success until it began to drag it down. It took quite a bit of effort for his heirs to turn it around.
Correct me if I’m wrong about this, but wasn’t one reason HF the first disliked 6-cylinder engines was that at the time, they were very “unbalanced” compared to a 4? I may be misremembering that…
I’ve always found the model K interesting (I find ANY car of that era interesting!). Perhaps FoMoCo wants to forget about it, since like the Edsel, it wasn’t particularly successful?
I remember seeing one several years ago in a display on the north coast of Tasmania (http://www.wondersofwynyard.com/1907-ford-model-k/)
From the website, it is estimated that just 20 of the roughly 900 cars built are still in existence. Also in the first year of the car (1906) the K represented 85% of Ford profits.
Henry Ford is quoted as saying “I’ve got no use for a motor car that has more spark plugs than a cow has teats” – clearly this would change, or somehow his reasoning moved to two cows!
I also remember reading something about Ford dealers being forced to take a Model K in order to get Model N’s, or S’s that they could sell, and many of the dealers ended up using the K as a personal car. A scenario that has repeated itself a few times over the years!
The Model K pictured is my Roadster. It’s my second Model K, having owned and toured with a K touring car prior. The Model K, contrary to “modern folklore,” was not pushed by A. Y. Malcomson. In fact, Malcomson secretly planned the launch of his own automotive company, Aerocar, before November 1905. He signed a contract with the Reeves company on November 1, 1905, for delivery of 1,000 engines for his new “Aerocar.” Meanwhile, Ford Motor Company board of directors learned of Malcomson’s new endeavor and onnDecember 5th, 1905, the board unanimously demanded in writing that Malcomson resign from the FMC board because he would be competing with FMC.
Why do we know the Model K wasn’t Malcomson’s “baby?” Malcomson’s 1906 Aerocar, using the Reeves engines he contracted for in late 1905, were four cylinder air-cooled 20-24 hp motors. They were placed in a 102 inch wheelbase chassis, combined with a three speed sliding gear transmission. The car, nicely trimmed and appointed, sold for $2800.
In contrast, the Model K, as with all Fords through 1927, had a two speed planetary transmission. The K also possessed a conservatively rated six cylinder, 406 cubic inch motor. While light and less lavishly appointed (Henry Ford trademarks), the Model K sold for $2500. The two cars could not have been more dissimilar.
Furthermore, for 1906 and 1907, Ford produced more six cylinder cars than any other marquee, including new RR Silver Ghost of 1907, and well known six makers Frankln, Stevens-Duryea, and National.
Interestingly, due to production delays of the Model N in 1906, the Model K provided 85% of Ford’s new car profits for 1906, keeping Ford in the black. Ford audit records show the Model K provided healthy profits for the company each of the three years they were offered, 1906-1908.
One last note, the 1907 Ford Model K set a world 24 hour speed record, defeating several competitors, including a 60 hp Thomas. This is the same Model Thomas Flyer that would win the New York to Paris race the next year. This is the only world speed record held by a stock Ford through the 1950’s that I’m aware of.
Rob Heyen
Nebraska
The K roadster was guaranteed by Ford to go over 70 mph. I’ve driven ours 72.4 mph (GPS) to check truth of the statement.
Thanks for your insightful comment. Love your big K, and would have been very happy to be riding alongside you when you hit 72. Good for you for keeping Henry honest. 🙂
Most of the history surrounding the model K Ford written in the past hundred years is truly in error. The one truth about it, may be the question of whether the model K was ultimately the car that Henry wanted to build. The fact is, that it is not the car Henry ultimately wanted to build. The model T Ford was, and several quotes attributed to Henry made before the model K was marketed indicate that.However, at that point in time, Henry was still trying to figure out exactly what the car needed that he wanted to build. Put another way, Henry was still experimenting, and trying to make enough money to build the factory he needed to built ultimately the model T. Many design features that became the model T, were first tested in the real world on the model K.. Many other things were proven, or found lacking, and then improved upon before the model T we know and love.
While most history books mostly regurgitate untruths about the model K Ford, if one wants to know what people, including Henry Ford, really thought of the car in the context of its day? One needs to read some of what is said about them in period newspapers. And look even further, into the mid 1910s, and see what the model K was selling for as an outdated used car compared to other cars of the 1905 through 1909 period. One finds that model K Fords consistently ask (and presumably get) nearly twice the price of comparable large and originally expensive cars. That could only be if people actually liked the cars.
History books also often say that the transmission in the model K Ford was its weakest point, and its undoing. First. One of the ultimate facts of the first decade of the twentieth century automobiles, is the transmission was the weakest point in almost ALL automobiles, regardless of what type transmission was used. It should be noted, and seriously paid attention to, that the 1907 Thomas Flyer that won the 1908 New York to Paris race required a total transmission replacement before the car completed crossing the USA continent. The Thomas (regarded by many along with Rolls Royce and Mercedes) as one of the best built automobiles in the world that decade, needed additional transmission repairs before the around the world run was completed. As did at least one of the other competing cars that made it to Paris. (I don’t recall offhand whether it was the Italian Zust or the German Protos, and don’t have my notes for that detail handy)
The Model K’s planetary transmission was not considered a significant hindrance in its day.
Rob has done excellent research on the model K’s true history, and posted many (MANY!) copies of news reports, articles, and notes from the car’s era onto forums interested in them (including the model T and Early Ford sites).I want to thank him for that. I always believed the history books were flawed, and now know I was right. One of the reasons I figured the books were flawed, was a simple fact. A lot of model K Fords (relatively speaking) survived to be seen in museums around the world. Survival rate for them is nearly twice what it is for most cars of their class and era. I figured they wouldn’t have survived two world wars, scrap drives, and the great depression, if their owners didn’t have fond memories from when the cars were new. A few things simply didn’t add up to what the history books said.
Why did Henry stop building the model K? Well. I won’t pretend to know what all the thoughts were inside Henry’s head at that time. But I do know some things. The model T Ford was being readied for production. Many flaws were still being worked out. And, the little factory and out-buildings that had sufficed for several years, were NOT going to cut it anymore. Ford had made the deal to buy the land for the new plant. Construction was beginning. New designs for a new idea using the moving assembly line to manufacture automobiles were also being worked out and included into those plans. Henry Ford had a LOT on his mind, and needed to spend a huge amount of money to accomplish all this. The little facility could NOT keep up with the demand for the new car. New facilities were NOT ready. Henry put all his resources into the model T’s production and the new facilities. There was NO room for the model K at that point in time. It was years before the ability to produce the model T could keep up with the demand.
Ford did not bring the K back later. Only Henry knows why. But one thing is fairly certain. Almost anyone that reads, and really looks at, the early Ford company ledgers, and their director’s meeting notes, along with the design advances of the model K, should realize that if Henry had not produced the model K? And willingly so? Between the design improvements, and the profit margins the model K provided (which helped to buy that land!). The model T may have never been the success that it was.
Malcomson “forced out” to stop him sharing in profits of the man he’d set up in business? Surely not! Not by nice Henry Ford who sold Model T’s with a copy (in English) of Mein Kampf, free. Not nice Mr All-Amercan Ford who wrote antisemitic diatribes and was admired by his hero Hitler! Not good captain of industry Ford who paid uniformed thug strike-breakers to shoot problem employees! Jewish Communist propaganda!
Starting this Roadster surely is a complicated procedure, as you have headlights and leaf springs in your way while turning the crank. They changed that for Model T.
Always loved this painting of a 1907 Model K touring car featured on an Esso calendar from the ’60s, we’ve used it as a Christmas card.