1903 Ford Model A Sold at Auction for $264,000

DETROIT - One of the oldest surviving cars sold by Ford Motor Co. was auctioned for $264,000 in Hershey, Pa., according to The Detroit News. 

The original 1903 Ford Model A Rear Entry Tonneau, a model sold from July 1903 to March 1904, sold for less than half of its 2007 auction value of $630,000, according to RM Auctions.

According to The Detroit News, RM Auctions did not release the name of the winning bidder or how many bids the 8-horsepower vehicle received. The car had last gone to auction in 2010, receiving a high bid of $325,000, but that amount did not meet the auction reserve.

RM had estimated the value of the vehicle, the only surviving Model A from the first production run of three cars, at $350,000 to $500,000.

The 1,250-lb. car originally retailed at $850, according to an archived ad on the website, EarlyFordRegistry.com.

According to the news release, the Model A has had five owners during its 11-decade lifespan, the most recent being John O'Quinn, a Houston trial lawyer who died in a 2009 auto accident. The Model A was one of about 1,200 automobiles in O'Quinn's vintage collection.

The car comes with extensive documentation which details its history and condition. RM said the car has performed "flawlessly," including during the famous London to Brighton Veteran Car Run in 2003, the same year the car turned 100 years old.

RM said the car retains all of its original early features, including the rare Kingston carburetor and the original coil box stamped No. 30.

An RM vehicle description said Henry Ford and an associate originally placed part orders for the 1903 Model A which included: car bodies with C.R. Wilson Carriage Co. at a cost of $68 each; a set of wheels from W.K. Pruden Wheel Co. at $26 per set; and tires from Hartford Rubber Co. at $40 per set.

From The Detroit News: http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20121015/AUTO0102/210150402#ixzz2BMhDBqmb