The 1928 Model A Ford arrived with a serious challenge awaiting it. After all, it was succeeding the Model T Ford, a car that had established an astonishing reputation and earned an enviable loyalty from its drivers.
Ford had introduced the Model T in 1908 and built it into 1927. Despite continuous evolution, its basics remained essentially unchanged and it therefore was far out of date when replaced. Its virtues of simplicity and durability were still virtues, but the automotive world had passed it by; roads were better and cars were correspondingly more comfortable and civilized. There were 15,000,000 Model Ts by May 26, 1927, according to The Fords, but the reality was that it was finished.
After the Model T, a Waiting Game
When the assembly lines stopped that day, there was no seamless changeover to the Model A. The new car really was a new car and building it required a new operation; the first pre-production Model A was completed on October 21, 1927, according to The Legendary Model A Ford, and initial assembly soon followed.