“Heart And Soul” Helped Shape 20th Century (NAPSA)—For centuries humans attempted to develop means for faster, more economicaltravel, developing vehicles powered by animals, springs, wind, steam and even clockwork. The emergence of the automobile in the early 1900s changed the concept of transportation forever, increasing the distance traveled by the average American during the 20th century from approximately 1,200 miles in a lifetime (mostly on foot) to nearly 12,000 miles by automobile alone, in just one year. While it is generally conceded that the automobile was conceived and born in Europe, full credit can be given to Henry Ford for putting the world on wheels by mass-producing simple, reliable automobiles that the average family could afford. Since its founding in 1903, Ford Motor Company has produced more than 1,000 distinctive models in its 100-year history. As part of the company’s 100th anniversary celebration, Ford asked the auto- motive press to reflect upon the last century and identify the 25 vehicles that truly represent the “heart and soul” of the company. The 25 products selected are featured in a newly released book, The Ford Century: Ford Motor Company and the Innovations That Shaped the World (Artisan Books). A few of the highlighted vehicles include: * Model T—Affectionately known as “Tin Lizzie,” the 1914 Model T wasthefirst automobile to be produced on a moving assembly line, allowing for more cars to be produced in less time, which lowered the price. More than 15 million Model T’s were sold worldwide. Pits Piet a ket aS @ For many people, the cars of the time helped define the 20th century. 1941 Lincoln Continental— The only American luxury car ever honored for design excellence by the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. 1948 Ford F-Series—The most successful vehicle line in history, F-Series spent 20 straight years as the nation’s top-selling vehicle and 25 years as its topselling truck. 1964 Ford Mustang—Touted as “the car designed by you” becauseofall the different options it offered, Ford sold 22,000 “Pony Cars” the first day it was available for order. “When you look at the extensive product history of Ford andall its brands, it’s a daunting task to select only 25 vehicles, but we think the media did an outstanding job in choosing products that truly do have ‘heart and soul,”said J Mays, vice president, design. For a complete listing of the 25 “heart and soul” vehicles as well as the latest information on the company’s 100th anniversary events and activities log on to www.ford.com.
