1921 Classic Cars for Sale
Ford drops the Model T below $400, Duesenberg wins the French Grand Prix with a straight-eight, and the US industry posts its worst production year since 1914
1921 was a correction year, sharp and painful. Total US automobile production fell to roughly 1.5 million units, down from 1.9 million in 1920 and from peaks that many had assumed were floors. The postwar recession bit hard. Dozens of marginal manufacturers either shut down or were absorbed. The industry that came out the other side was leaner and more consolidated.
Fred and August Duesenberg were not thinking about recessions. In 1921 their straight-eight racing engine, a 183-cubic-inch overhead-cam unit, won the French Grand Prix at Le Mans with Jimmy Murphy driving. It was the first time an American car had won a major European Grand Prix. The engineering credibility this built for the Duesenberg name was real and lasting, even as the passenger car business remained precarious.
Ford's response to the recession was characteristically blunt. He cut prices again, bringing the Model T Touring to $355 by late 1921, and he squeezed dealers and suppliers without sentiment. It worked. Ford's market share held. But the strategy also exposed how narrow the Model T platform had become. A buyer could have a new Chevrolet 490 for $525 and get an electric starter. The gap was closing.
- Jimmy Murphy drove a Duesenberg to victory at the French Grand Prix on July 25, 1921, the first American car win at a major European Grand Prix event.
- Ford Motor Company reduced the Model T Touring price to $355 by late 1921, the lowest it had been since 1913 and a direct response to the postwar recession.
- Total US automobile production fell to an estimated 1.47 million units in 1921, a 22 percent decline from 1920 and the lowest annual total since 1914.
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Dealer
United States
1921 Ford Coupe
Dealer
United States
1921 Dodge 1 Ton
Dealer
United States
1921 Ford Model T
Market: The 1921 Duesenberg Model A is among the most historically significant cars of the brass and nickel era, with correct examples reaching $150,000 to $250,000 when racing provenance or early coachwork can be documented. Standard market Fords and Chevrolets from 1921 trade at $8,000 to $20,000 for honest drivers. The Lincoln Model L, acquired by Ford in 1922, attracts buyers who want the pre-Ford version with original Leland engineering.
Buyer's note: On 1921 Duesenberg Model A cars, verify the straight-eight block casting numbers against known production records, since later engine replacements using non-original Lycoming or Duesenberg units are common and substantially affect value.