Seminal Homegrown: Henry Ford’s Quadricycle

Henry Ford didn’t invent the automobile, but he definitely deserves credit for initiating what became the auto industry. This effort was flagged off on June 4, 1896, during the first test of what Ford christened his Quadricycle.

[Welcome to Homegrown—a limited series about homebuilt cars and the ingenuity of their visionary creators. Do you know a car and builder that might fit the bill? Send us an email to tips@hagerty.com with the subject line HOMEGROWN. Read about more Homegrown creations here.—Ed.]

America’s most notable inventor was 32 at the time and employed by the Edison Illuminating Company of Detroit. Though his formal schooling ended at the eighth grade, Ford held the lofty title of chief engineer at Edison. While residing in a rented Detroit home, he devoted his spare time to experimenting in his shop, constructing his first car from scratch using a steel frame, 28-inch rubber tires, and large spoked bicycle wheels. A tiller steered the front wheels and the engine drove the rears through a two-speed transmission, a rubber belt, and a chain.

Naturally, Ford didn’t hesitate to build his own engine. The Quadricycle—it still exists—is powered by a twin-cylinder, air-cooled motor with “atmospheric” (self-opening) intake valves and overhead exhaust valves. Burning ethanol fuel, it produces an estimated 4 horsepower running up to 500 rpm with no throttle of any kind. Given the Quad’s modest 500-pound curb weight, no reverse gear or brakes were deemed necessary.

Building momentum, Ford constructed a second Quad in 1899 and a third in 1901. His boss, Thomas Edison, cheered on this inventor. Although Ford sold his first car for $200—an awesome sum in the 19th century—he bought it back later for $65. That had to be the used car deal of any century. That Quadricycle can be seen, in pristine condition, at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn’s Greenfield Village.

A 13-floor office building now stands at 58 Bagley Avenue, where Henry and his wife Clara resided. Their only child, Edsel Ford, was born in 1893. Although Henry’s brick workshop is long gone, he had an accurate replica erected; it’s available for your examination at Greenfield Village. Because the Quadricycle stood 45 inches tall, 45.5 inches wide, and 78.5 inches long (with a 49-inch wheelbase), it was far larger than the workshop’s door opening, and Henry had to remove the door frame and several bricks to facilitate his test drive.

Realizing he was on to something, Ford won backing for his first industrial enterprise, the Detroit Automobile Company, in 1899. Unfortunately, that effort ground to a halt after only 20 cars were built. His second try, the Henry Ford Company, also failed, but Henry Leland recycled those resources in 1902, contributing his own engine, to found the Cadillac Automobile Company. The following year, Ford’s third attempt, the Ford Motor Company, finally stuck. In 1908, Ford’s epic Model T was introduced as the car for the masses. Employing high-speed assembly lines yielded 15 million such Fords sold over two decades.

Let Henry’s homegrown Quadricycle be a lesson. While building your own car can be done, you’ll have to bring truly genius inspiration to the table for any chance of success.