Johannesburg - The two cars sit nose to nose on the tarmac, one sparkling in gold metallic paint, the other in the only colour option at the time: black. They are so radically different, yet have so many similarities.
Upright and stern, the ghost of Henry Ford sits behind the wood-rimmed steering wheel of the 1917 Ford Model T.
The 2015 Ford Fiesta 1.0 Ecoboost Ambiente hasn’t even been in Ford’s local media fleet for 98 days, never mind the 98 years the “Tin Lizzie” has been popping and spluttering - but the two cars have more in common than you would think.
In its day, the Model T - the first mass-produced car in history and one of the best-sellers, too - was at the cutting edge of automotive technology. Remember, it had been barely three decades since Bertha Benz ‘borrowed’ her husband’s experimental single-cylinder horseless carriage and drove off to visit her sister. So, the Model T’s four-cylinder, in-line, 2.9-litre side-valve engine was, in the second decade of the 20th century, an amazing piece of kit.
The little Fiesta is, likewise, an automotive talking point because of its engine, a 998cc, turbopetrol three. Many people (especially in South Africa where we seem unable to forget the days of braaivleis, rugby and big-engined cars) have said such a tiny motor is not up to the job.
But it certainly is, pushing out 74kW - that’s the equivalent of 100 horsepower in the old measurements. The Model T churned out 20 - one fifth of the power from three times the capacity of the Fiesta. Now that’s progress.
Then there are the drivetrains - again, cutting edge for their times. The Model T has is a system of bands that convert engine torque to rotational speed. It was said to be a “three speed”– two forward ratios and one reverse.
The Fiesta has Ford’s clever dual-clutch PowerShift technology that offers six speeds - plus reverse .
STARTING UP
The first part of the test - convened at the James Hall Museum of Transport in La Rochelle in Johannesburg - involved starting the Model T.
One of its keepers, young Ford fanatic Shawn Venter, shows me how to turn over the crankhandle, which is just below the radiator. It’s tough! The car kicks into life on my third attempt, but by then I feel as though I’m losing a bicep. I find out later that I should have held my hand the other way around - Model Ts and other crank-started cars apparently have a nasty habit of kicking back against compression - and that can break a wrist if it’s in the wrong position.
Shawn, who helps care for two of the Model Ts in the collection (along with other enthusiastic volunteers), then gingerly heads out for a spin around the adjacent park, forcing me re-learn everything about driving to master this vehicle.
First, the throttle is on the steering wheel - and you adjust engine speed with a lever. You also need to re-set the ingition timing constantly, using another lever on the other side of the wheel.
There are three pedals on the floor - but they’re not the same as we are used to in a modern car. The left one is the gear lever or actuator, the centre one is the reverse engagement and the one on the right is the brake.
What you do is increase engine revs with the throttle and then engage the drive by pushing forward with the left pedal - the opposite of what you do with a clutch. There is no clutch and the car is normally held steady against the throttle by the handbrake, which is on the extreme right-hand side.
Shawn makes it looks easy and we are soon attracting stares and cellphone pics as we trundle through the park.
BUCKET LIST MATERIAL
Then, he asks me if I would like a go. Obvious answer: if you’re a petrolhead like me, driving an icon such as this has to be on your bucket list.
We take the older, 1912, white coupé version. Shawn takes the first stint before pulling over and swopping seats. The wooden wheel, although large, feels just right; the hand throttle less so. But once the revs have been dialled in and the handbrake released, pushing the gear pedal forward starts us off.
It’s a bit jerky and progress is very slow – I don’t want to damage a museum piece – but it doesn’t take long before we’re bouncing along. And the Model T does bounce, thanks to cart-like transverse springs. But, because the seats are generously upholstered, it’s not uncomfortable.
That came as a surprise – I expected the ride to be hard, especially on skinny wooden wheels and tyres. The steering is heavy – but power assistance wasn’t an option in those days.
The tiny-engined Fiesta starts first time, its electronic systems, multi-valve layout and turbo-charger working in perfect unison. Flick the lever from Park into Drive or Sport, take your foot off the brake, squeeze the accelerator and away you go.
And a lot quicker than the Model T, thanks to that turbo. The Model T has a top speed about just under 80km/h, reckons Shawn, but if you do that you have to be acutely aware of other motorists.
“They love this car so they often pull over in front of you and stop to take photos, not realising the brakes on this car are awful!”
I apply the brake - pushing hard and then harder and then almost full leg extension before progress is retarded at all - and remember this is at less than 20km/h.
EFFECTIVE CLIMATE CONTROL
Another issue with the old car is overheating and Shawn tells me that after short runs such as these, with no airstream to cool the radiator, the cap will soon start spewing steam.
Although the museum has never measured the fuel consumption of the Model T, there is a lot of literature out there which says the Tin Lizzie would return between 11 and 18 litres per 100km.
That was considered economical at the time.
By contrast, the Fiesta returned an scarcely believable 5.3 litres per 100km on a 1300km round trip to the Lowveld. And that was with the aircon going all the time in temperatures hovering around 40 degrees. (The Model T also has effective climate control – the sides are open to the cooling breezes.)
So, in actual terms, you cannot compare the two cars. As a piece of transport, the Fiesta does everything better, but the Model T is an icon...
A century later, the Fiesta still delivers on Henry Ford’s original promise of providing affordable motoring for the people.
I wonder, though, whether people will be comparing a Ford Fiesta with a Ford Hyper-Drive Molecular Transporter in a century’s time...
MOTOR MUSEUM A REAL JEWEL
How about a different kind of outing around Johannesburg? If you’re interested in transport - of just about every kind with wheels that is - then why not pop around to the James Hall Museum of Transport? Situated on the Rosettenville Road in La Rochelle, directly adjacent to Santarama and opposite the Rand Stadium, the museum houses a world-class collection of all kinds of conveyances.
The exhibits - all original and authentic - range from rickshaws and horse-drawn Cape carts to the Joule, the South African-designed electric car, and include London and local buses and trams; traction, stationary and railway engines; bicycles and motorcycles, and even a penny-farthing bicycle.
Literally, all imaginable kinds of transport (short of aerial or rocket-propelled) are on show, many of which are still driveable and some even offer rides to the visitors.
The collection is worth many millions of rand, and illustrates just about every imaginable aspect of the history of transport and what we had to put up with before the convenience of the modern car.
The museum is open from 9am to 5pm daily; admission is free and there is ample secure parking on the grounds.
Conducted tours for school or other groups are available; visit the museum's website for more information.
Saturday Star