Ford in South Africa

Our Ford Model A Tour was shown on TV

Ford Model A Tour on 1st April 2001 from Cape Town to Tulbagh.

First Ford sold outside North America

The first Ford to arrive in South Africa was a 1903 Ford Model A, which was
imported by Mr Arthur Youldon of Johannesburg.

In September 1903 Mr Youldon, an importer, was in New York where he saw
Henry Ford demonstrate his new car. He immediately placed his order with
Henry Ford, who informed him that it would be the first Ford to be sold
outside North America. The Ford Motor Company was founded earlier that
year, on 16 June 1903.

The car only arrived in February 1904 in Port Elizabeth from where it had to
be transported by train to Johannesburg. This car survived to this day and
can be viewed at the Heidelberg Transport Museum near Johannesburg.

The first two Ford agents in South Africa are believed to be Arkell & Douglas
of Port Elizabeth and Georges Chapart of Durban. Mr Chapard, a Frenchman,
travelled throughout Natal and later also the Orange Free State, selling the
popular Ford Model N, the predecessor of the Model T.

Other early Ford dealers followed such as Mr H.G. Holmes of Kimberley who
later moved to Cape Town and Atkinson's Motor Garages of Bloemfontein,
which much later were incorporated in the McCarthy Group of companies.

During July 1923 Mr Holmes and Mr H.F.A. Stockelbach visited the Ford
factory in Canada to investigate the possibility of starting an assembly plant
in South Africa. Due to preferential tax and duty applicable to Commonwealth
Countries, it was advantages to source the kits from the Canadian Ford factory
rather than the USA.

This was realised in February 1924, when an old wool packing shed in Port
Elizabeth was used to start to assemble the Ford Model Ts.

1906 Ford Model S

1906 FORD Model S

1908 - 1927 Ford Model T

Ford Model T Engine
The Ford Model T had a 2.9 litre (176.7 cu in.) engine developing some 20 horsepower.

Ford Model T History 1908-1926

Ford Model A Restoration

1928 Ford Model A

Ford Model A History
1928 - 1931

Ford Model A Engine

The Ford Model A offered a 3.3 litre (200.5 cu in.) side-valve four cylinder
engine which was larger than the T's 2.9 litre (176.7 cu in.) unit, and at 40
horsepower, twice as powerful.

1929 Ford Model A

1930 Ford Model A Roadster

1930 Ford Model A Phaeton & Sedan

1931 Ford Model A

1932 Ford V8

1933 Ford V8

1934 Ford V8

1935 - 1940 Ford V8

1941 - 1970 Ford

News Reporter

The NEW Limited Edition Centennial Ford Model T

Just-Auto.com reports that Ford is working on a new limited edition of
the Model T. Ford Motor Company built more than 15 million Model Ts
from 1908 to 1927. Now, 74 years later, the company is bringing the
Model T back into production again but making only six. The 1914
Model Ts are being built at Ford's global headquarters in Detroit and the
company stresses they are not reproductions but are identical to the
originals with everything either original or hand-tooled from original
drawings.

The project is part of plans for Ford's global centennial
celebrations in 2003 and involved painstaking research on 700 parts
comprising the Model T. Ford wanted to use as many original parts as
possible and sourced around 450 of these through collectors. Other
parts had to be totally rebuilt including major ones such as the engine
cylinder block and head, front and rear axle, chassis and frame.
Ford's Model T-100 program team took 11 months to source all
of the parts and to build the first car.

Although the team didn't know it at the time, that's exactly how long it
took Henry Ford to build the first Model T in 1908. The cars are not
for sale but will be housed in museums following the 2003
commemoration.