On Mon, 17 Sep 2007 18:20:49 -0700, wrote:

>On Sep 17, 5:49 pm, Heather & Joe Way > wrote:
>> On Mon, 17 Sep 2007 16:17:47 -0700, wrote:
>> >I am considering buying an antique truck for deliveries...a small>
>How reliable would a Model A Sedan Delivery be compared to today's
>cars? Reliability is supremely important as there are few places to
>get an antique car fixed relatively inexpensively and conveniently
>where I am (Los Angeles). I was thinking a Model T with an electric
>starter is so simple, there isn't much that can go wrong! How's my
>line of thinking on that one?

Contrary to intuition, a Model T is a complicated beast, from the
perspective of keeping one on the streets as a daily driver today, and
there are so very few people who can work on them. The ignition
system is sensitive to humidity (wood parts), the transmission is not
exciting, and it has lead thrust bearings in a few places. It leaks
everywhere. It doesn't have enough power to accelerate to keep up
with traffic. The number of hours of maintenance compared with hours
on the street is remarkably high. I can't imagine its having enough
power to run an air conditioner and also run down the street.

The Model A is a much more modern vehicle and it has enough power to
get you up to speed. After mid-'28, its clutch is about like a modern
car and much of it could be repaired by a regular garage. The engine
isn't going to go a tremendous number of miles between overhauls,
though and the rod and main bearings are poured babbitt, so you'll
have to find somebody who knows how to do that. It also has
mechanical brakes that require constant adjustment and you don't want
to use them on a slick street if you can avoid it. A Model A at a
moderate cruising speed will outrun a Model T that running for all
it's worth.

One custom I heard of but never saw was a B-A-T: a Model B
four-cylinder engine from the mid-30s, a Model A frame, and a Model T
body. I can almost picture one of those as a daily driver, if you were
rich and put later brakes on it. Don't know how difficult it would be
to put air on it.

How about moving up to a Ford pickup from the late 40s, so it has
hydraulic brakes and a little stronger frame, and putting an engine
and automatic transmission from the 60s or 70s in it? If it's a
delivery vehicle, you won't be wearing out clutches and you can find
one that had air as an option.

You're talking about saving gas, but you can buy a tremendous amount
of gas for the $10K-20K you're talking about in parts, rebuild, and
custom work on the older vehicles. Expectations were different back
then and despite people's fond memories, they just weren't all that
good by today's standards.

Ed
Model T owner