I have now owned my Model T for 9 months and I reflected tonight on this ownership.
My 1913 Tourer is not my first veteran sitting alongside a 1910 Hupmobile in my garage. The two cars designed about the same time are however quite different. The Hup is pretty and dainty and oozes fragility I drive it frequently but with trepidation -each trip is an adventure and arrival at the destination is never assured . This was probably the normal state of affairs for low priced cars of this vintage .
In comparison the T is solid, dependable and oozes reliabilty. It does what it was designed to do really well, with the minimum of fuss and I get the impression it would do so for ever. Driving it is an absolute pleasure. Its easy to see why the T destroyed its competitors when released !
I agree with the dependability and reliability. I would not be afraid to drive either of ours anywhere. Might take a while, but I have every confidence in their reliability. And they are both pretty well stock. I have this confidence in the original configuration. I have to snicker inside when people make the claim that had to put a distributor or alternator or water pump or ..... on theirs to make it more reliable. Something I just don't get.
I don't know if I would say the T is solid. Solid enough for it's intended purpose, no doubt. And solid enough to give the reliability and dependability discussed above. But I had a different perspective. My first antique was a Model A. I did a full restoration on it and became pretty familiar with all of it's parts and pieces. When i got into T's, I was shocked at how much lighter the whole thing was constructed. I'm not familiar with Hupmobiles, but it sounds like your experience was just the opposite of mine. Funny how one's perspective affects their perception of things.
Dean Yoder is a good example of someone who believes in the reliability of Model T's. He has driven his in 49 of the 50 states, and he does it alone.
Ben and Nancy Hardeman fit into that category as well. They have been on trips to Alaska and back to Texas with groups of Model T's, but they recently bought a T in Alaska and drove it home, alone.
While not even close to being in their league, I drove my T from NW Arkansas to Richmond for the Centennial in '08. I was with a group of club members for one day of the trip up, otherwise flew solo up there and back. Total trip was 1,800 miles. I had to adjust the clutch once (it was new) and the bands once, otherwise no trouble at all. (No disturbutor, no water pump.) Several folks drove their T's all the way from the left coast to the Centennial.
If you get your T in good shape, it's an amazingly reliable machine.