“During World War I, the Allies used thousands of Model T cars and trucks because of their low cost and ease of repair. The ambulance version's light weight made it well-suited for use on the muddy and shell-torn roads in forward combat areas. If stuck in a hole, a group of soldiers could lift one without much difficulty. By Nov. 1, 1918, 4,362 Model T ambulances had been shipped overseas.
The light wooden body was mounted on a standard
Model T auto chassis. The 4-cylinder engine produced about 20 hp. There was no
self-starter; the engine had to be cranked by hand. This vehicle was equipped
with an early form of automatic transmission and could carry three litters or
four seated patients and two more could sit with the driver. Canvas
"pockets" covered the litter handles that stuck out beyond the
tailgate. Many American field service and Red Cross volunteer drivers,
including writers Ernest Hemingway and Bret Harte and cartoonist Walt Disney
drove Model T ambulances.
"Hunka Tin," a poem written as a parody
on Rudyard Kipling's "Gunga Din," appeared in the American Field
Service Bulletin and was used in Ford dealers' advertising throughout the
United States. The final stanza read:
Yes, Tin, Tin,
Tin.
You
exasperating puzzle, Hunka Tin.
I've abused
you and I've flayed you,
But by Henry
Ford who made you,
You are better
than a Packard, Hunka Tin.”
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