The Ford Mack Avenue Plant, a rented wagon manufacturing shop in Detroit, Michigan, was the first facility used by the Ford Motor Company to assemble automobiles.[1]: 10–11 Henry Ford began to occupy it in April 1903 in preparation for the company's incorporation, which occurred on June 16, 1903.[1]: 11 Production of the original Ford Model A began that same month after the incorporation.[1]: 11–12 Soon after, the building was expanded and a second story was added to increase production.[2] The Model A was followed by the Model AC, which was a Model A with the larger Ford Model C engine.[3] Most of the major car components were manufactured by outside companies, including the "running gear" (the chassis, engine, transmission, drive shaft, and axles), which was supplied by the Dodge Brothers Company.[1]: 11 A total of 1,708 cars (670 Model A's and 1,038 Model AC's) were assembled at the Mack Avenue Plant.[1]: 12 [3] The company occupied the building until October 1904, when its manufacturing operations were moved to the Ford Piquette Avenue Plant in Detroit, where the Ford Model T would later be built.[1]: 10, 13
The Mack Avenue Plant's address was originally 588–592 Mack Avenue when Ford Motor Company occupied the building.[2] Its address became 6520 Mack Avenue after the city of Detroit changed its street numbering system in January 1921.[2] The building burned down in August 1941.[2] A replica of the Mack Avenue Plant, one-fourth the size of the original, was built in 1945 at Greenfield Village, an open-air museum in Dearborn, Michigan.[4]
| Car model | Image | Engine | Transmission | Wheelbase | Lowest sale price | Production period | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Model A | 
|
8 brake horsepower (6.0 kW) opposed 2-cylinder |
2-speed planetary |
72 inches (182.9 cm) |
$850 (equivalent to $28,824 in 2023) |
June 1903 (on or after June 16) – December 1903 |
Ford Motor Company's first car model.[1]: 10 |
| Model AC | 
|
10 brake horsepower (7.5 kW) opposed 2-cylinder |
2-speed planetary |
78 inches (198.1 cm) |
$850 (equivalent to $28,824 in 2023) |
January 1904 – September 1904 |
The Model AC can be visually distinguished from the Model A by its larger six-by-three-bar radiator.[5] |
- ^ a b c d e f g h Hyde, Charles K. (June 2005). "National Historic Landmark Nomination – Ford Piquette Avenue Plant" (PDF). National Park Service. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 22, 2017. Retrieved August 18, 2017.
- ^ a b c d "The Real Story of the Ford Mack Avenue Plant". Mac's Motor City Garage. March 20, 2014. Archived from the original on August 29, 2017. Retrieved August 29, 2017.
- ^ a b c Kimes, Beverly Rae; Clark, Jr., Henry Austin (1989). Standard Catalog of America Cars: 1805–1942 (2nd ed.). Krause Publications. pp. 547–548. ISBN 9780873411110.
- ^ "Ford Motor Company (Mack Avenue Plant)". The Henry Ford. Archived from the original on August 21, 2016. Retrieved August 29, 2017.
- ^ "1904 Ford Model 'AC' 10hp Four Seater Rear Entrance Tonneau: Engine No. 982". Bonhams. May 2014. Archived from the original on April 26, 2016. Retrieved August 29, 2017.