Curbside Classic: 1925 Ford Model T – A Short Encounter With A Century-Old Legend

Front view of a black 1925 Ford Model T touring car with wooden-spoke wheels and whitewall tires. There is a red accessory gas tank on the right running board.

Text and photos by Steve Lenius.

When I was younger, I had an elementary school principal who owned two Model A Fords, one a car and one a Model AA pickup. My family also had friends in Pennsylvania who had a beautiful Model A with a rumble seat. I am lucky enough to have a picture of some members of our families riding in that Model A, but I’m not nearly as familiar with the once-ubiquitous Ford Model T, so it was a pleasure to have a nice-looking 1925 example cross my path recently while traveling — a chance encounter with a 100-year-old car.

Ford Model A roadster with two people behind the wheel, three kids in the rumble seat, and a man in a red shirt standing behind the car

With our friend’s Ford Model A roadster

 

My partner and I had just spent a week experiencing the area around Winona, Minnesota, and we were on our way back to our home in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. We took U.S. Highway 61, which is one of my favorite roads because it offers scenic views of the bluffs along the Mississippi River.

We stopped for lunch in Kellogg at the Town & Country Café, which is famous for its home-style meals and homemade pie. As we approached the café, I was amazed to see a very old car parked in front of the restaurant. As we got closer, I thought to myself that it looked like a Model T Ford, and that is what it turned out to be.

Side view of a 1925 Model T Ford Touring Car with the top up, parked on a small town street. It has wooden wheels with whitewall tires.

I assumed that the Model T’s owner was inside the Town & Country Café having lunch. I didn’t know how long I would have to document this unexpected find, so I whipped out my phone and started taking pictures.

The license plate on the front of the car was from 1925. I believe that is the car’s year too — which means this little car turns 100 years old this year!

1925 Minnesota license plate on the front of a Ford Model T Touring Car

Note the transverse-leaf-spring front suspension. And, of course, the starting crank, although as I found out, some Model Ts had Bendix electric starters.

This car is a five-passenger Model T Touring Car, which was the most popular version of the Model T in 1925. It cost $290, plus an extra $65 for an electric starter. If you have seen earlier Ts, the wheels might look too small. Older Ts had 30-inch wheels, but balloon tires on 21-inch wood wheels became optional in 1925 for about $20 extra.

Right side of a black 1925 Ford Model T Touring Car. There is a red gas can on the right running board, and a modern white pickup truck parked behind it.

I noticed that the owner was carrying a red accessory gas can on the right rear running board inside its own little fence. The Model T did not have a fuel gauge, and the fuel system was by gravity feed (no fuel pump), so the owner’s manual warned not to let the gas tank run too low.

Front three-quarter view of a black 1925 Ford Model T. The white modern pickup truck parked next to it is bigger and almost as tall.

I noticed a “Keep Cool With Coolidge” sticker on the windshield. Nice touch.

Rear view of a 1925 Ford Model T Touring Car with the top up, parked in front of a red building. There is a triangular orange sign on the rear of the car.

The rear of the Model T had an orange-and-red “slow-moving vehicle” warning sign attached to the spare tire. The Model T is not very big, but it has only 20 horsepower, so it might do 45 mph on a good day. Of course, there were no freeways back when it was new.

I also noticed that the tires were whitewalls. I wondered, did Model Ts ever really have whitewall tires? Wouldn’t that have been awfully extravagant? (When I did an online search later, I found some vintage photos of Model T Fords wearing whitewall tires, but they were the exception rather than the rule.)

Front three-quarter view of a 1925 Ford Model T Touring Car parked on a small town street. Three is a modern black Ford Escape parked behind it.

I noticed that the driver’s side had a rear passenger door, but no driver’s door, just a door-shaped stamping in the sheet metal where the door would have been. The closed bodies had real driver’s doors, but the Roadster and Touring Car did not. (The Touring Car got one in 1926.) Tool boxes for the running boards were common accessories for Model T Fords.

Front view of a black 1925 Ford Model T Touring Car

The top and the paint seemed to be in good condition. Of course, the paint was black. (Starting in 1926, it was possible to order a Model T in some other colors, but black was still the only choice in 1925.)

Brass Boyce MotoMeter on the radiator of a black 1925 Ford Model T

The radiator was crowned with a Boyce MotoMeter, which has a thermometer showing the radiator temperature. The Model T Ford did not have a temperature gauge on the dashboard, and it did not have a sealed cooling system, so the radiator could boil over easily. The MotoMeter also adds a touch of glamor to the plain black enamel radiator shell. Look at the detailing: the gold zigzag pattern inside the circle; the leaves around the edge of the circle; even the pair of wings spreading from the shiny gold platform rising from the radiator. Model T jewelry!

Time to move in closer for some interior shots, beginning with the back seat:

Wide back bench seat of a 1925 Ford Model T Touring Car. There is a FORD floor mat on the floor.

The Model T Touring Car had black imitation leather upholstery. Here is the front seat:

Front bench seat of a black 1925 Ford Model T Touring Car, viewed from the right side

The upholstery looked too nice to be 100 years old. It was probably redone at some point, but it looked appropriately serviceable.

Dashboard and steering wheel of a 1925 Ford Model T Touring Car

Clearly, the Model T did not have much on the dashboard: just the switch for the ignition and lights, plus an ammeter. I wondered if the ammeter was an aftermarket add-on, but I found out after that it was standard equipment on Model T Fords. (The wires aren’t supposed to be exposed like this, though.)

Dashboard of a 1925 Ford Model T with electric starter and ammeter. There are several exposed wires under the ammeter.

A Model T Ford does not have an accelerator pedal, just a throttle lever on the right side of the steering column. The left-most pedal on the floor operates the clutch for the two-speed planetary transmission. The middle pedal is for reverse, and the right pedal engages the transmission brake. Note the plaque on the bottom right side of the dashboard, which says “Ford Motor Company, Detroit, Mich., U.S.A” and lists all the patents under which the Model T was constructed.

After taking all these pictures of the car, I went inside the restaurant to order lunch. About halfway through lunch, a gentleman who had been dining by himself finished his lunch, got up, paid, and went out the door. I stood up and watched to see if he went to the Model T. He did. Yep, that was the owner.

I remember him walking all around the car, but I don’t remember seeing how he got in it. (Did he climb in on the right side and slide over to the driver’s side or climb over the stamped not-door on the driver’s side? I don’t know.) I was waiting to see if he would use the crank to start the car, but it turned out that was not necessary — instead, he just turned the key on the dashboard and the engine came to life. What a weird and distinctive noise the engine made! It sounded nothing like a car, nothing like a motorcycle, and nothing anything else I had ever heard. Unfortunately, I was not able to get any photos of his car’s engine, but here is the engine from a different Model T Ford:

Four-cylinder engine in a 1925 Ford Model T

The 176.6 cubic inch four in a different 1925 Ford Model T Touring Car / Bring a Trailer

 

The Model T owner backed the car up and drove away. Shortly after he left, another car pulled into the same parking spot: a new-looking white fifth-generation Toyota Prius. It struck me that this was the polar opposite of the Model T that had been there just a few minutes before, and almost as improbable to see in the sleepy little town of Kellogg, Minnesota. The person who originally bought this Model T a hundred years ago would probably feel the same way looking at the Prius as I felt looking at the little Ford — it would still be recognizable as a car, but radically different in technology, equipment, and design.

I sat down again and finished my serving of homemade Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup pie. It was the perfect ending to an unexpectedly memorable dining experience.

Photographed in Kellogg, Minnesota, May 10, 2025.

Related CC Reading

Curbside Classic: 1911 Ford Model T – Any Colour They Want (by Daniel Stern)
Driving Impressions: Ford Model T – These Are Not The Controls You Are Used To (by Dave Saunders)
Curbside Classic: 1926 Ford Model T Touring Car – Part I, Darlene’s ‘Silver Streak’ (by Ed Stembridge)
Curbside Classic: 1926 Ford Model T Touring Car – Part II, “A Jalopy Load of Feminity” (by Ed Stembridge)
Curbside Classic: 1926 Ford Model T Touring Car – Part III, “The Gypsy Coeds” Ride Again (by Ed Stembridge)
Curbside Classic: 1926 Ford Model T Coupe: T Stands For Tall (by Paul N)