"A Youth Movement"

The car as we know it in America has come a long way since it was first created. They are everywhere today, but they were entirely different during their early stages. Henry Ford started to build his own cars in the 1890s. In 1903, he decided to start his own company: the Ford Motor Company. In 1913, Ford began to use a conveyer belt to mass-produce its cars, the first automobile company to do so. Ford released the Ford Model T in 1913, and were originally sold for $850, but by 1924 the cars were offered for $290. By the time the Model T ended production, over 15 million models had been sold. In 1927, Ford introduced the Model A, which also sold very well but only had a production run until 1931.

In 1939, Ford created the Mercury in 1939 as a higher-priced companion car to Ford. This move was to keep up with other motor companies competing with Ford at the time. Henry Ford purchased Lincoln Motor Company in 1922, as further buffer to compete against other automakers. Ford was hired by the Soviet Union in 1929 to create the Gorky Automobile Plant and help with industrialization in Russia. In 1964, Ford introduced the Mustang. It revolutionized the term “American muscle,” boasting a 6-cylinder version along with a 4.3 liter V8 version. The Mustang was expected to draw less than 100,000 customers, but ended up selling over a million units over its first 18 months. There have been 6 generations of Mustangs and even still in its sixth generation, the Mustang still has 2 main models, a V6 version and a V8. Today’s V8 is a 5.0 liter engine with 435 horsepower. The Mustang continues to perform, selling millions of examples each year, further flourishing the American economy.