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Ford built significant quantities of the Dixie Wide Track Model T's, in various modified chassis and body forms, such that there remain a healthy number of them today. No where have I seen sales figures that speak to these sales volumes, and what cost and lead time terms may been in place to purchased one of these. Related, I'm not familiar with how common this chassis configuration may have been for other auto and truck makes of the time. Are there other makes from this time period where the Wide Track was a noted feature? Many thanks to folks here who may have related info.
Regards,
Scott

The Metz of the same era was made with wheels that easily reversed, making the auto a wide track or normal. Pretty great idea!

I've seen , both a 1910 Buick wide track & a 1910 EMF wide track .

Here’s a ‘15 Ford wide track. Note the spring perches are 4” from the spindle yokes making the tread 60” instead of 56”.

I have a wide-track 1912 Buick model 35. The front and rear axles are longer. The fenders are normal, but the splash aprons are wider to keep the fenders centered over the wheels. This is the entry-level Buick; it has a 101-3/4" wheelbase, an engine smaller than a Model T (same bore, but 1/4" less stroke), 25" wheels with 33x4 tires, and a three-speed sliding-gear transmission. I tell the guys with the '50s cars that I have a MOPAR wide-track Buick, and they look at me funny; wide-track in the '50s meant Pontiac, and MOPAR has always meant Chrysler. But in 1912, wide-track meant a southern car, and the president of the Buick division of GM was Walter Chrysler, before he started his own empire.
I also know a guy with a wide-track 1911 Cadillac.

I have wide axles for a 2 cylinder Reo

Wow, excellent feedback Gentlemen...thank you. Clear this feature was an industry standard. A long time T member tells me that the 1909 Ford Wide Track was initially produced with unique wider bodies, with special front fenders, but where aprons and running boards and rear fenders were standard size. After I launched this post, I came across similar info pertaining to light express trucks, and see where International Harvester also offered wide tracks, where the wider versions have the suffix "B" with the model number. Sounds like the Metz approach was a study in production efficiency.
Regards,
Scott

Hello George:
Looks like the fenders on the 1915 example shown offer little splash protection. Do you figure this may be a standard body sitting on a Wide Track chassis?
Regards,
Scott

I remember in my early years, I bought two NOS axle shafts, with the Ford script down in the keyway. When I slid the axle housings over the axles, boy did I have a surprise. They were wide track axles! I pressed off the axle gears and had them shortened to the standard length.

Howdy Scott,
Yeah, the body is standard size but all the rest of the sheet metal is wide track wider. It’s s very unique maintained original brass T.

Doing a search about wide tracks it seems that it had to do about cars having driving and handling issues on dirt roads that were still being used by wagons that caused wider ruts.
I don’t know if it makes the cars more valuable according to older posts but it is interesting
to see what was going on transitioning in transportation.

I have been around T’s 60 plus years and haven’t heard much about the wide tracks or seen any at swap meets but learn somthing about them from time to time on the forum.

A bit more Metz trivia. Really an amazing company with a leader , Charles Metz, on par with all the big auto names. A contemporary of Henry Ford and a good friend, I’ve read where Charles tried to get him to relocate to MA before he got so big. Charles idea of the “plan car” brought the Waltham company back from serious financial trouble. For a far northern company, their Wide Track selling feature shows the reach of their products. A very large producer of autos, but met their demise when forced into war production work for WWI. They started to really struggle when slow or delayed or nonexistent repayment from the government for this war work.

Scott, Back in the 1970's, I bought the third T that I have owned. It was a 13 wide tread touring that other than standard tread 13-14 running gear, was completely original down to the lights and carbide generator. At the time, I lived 30 miles west of Houston. The collector and club member who I bought it from, lived in Houston. The wood in the car was soiid as a rock. The metal was rust and dent free. The paint had been stripped and primed, making the restoration, easy. The hard part, I thought, would be replacing the standard tread axles with the original wide tread. I contemplated replacing the four fenders with reproduction stardard 13-14 fenders. Then, through two strokes of luck, I had everything that I needed, First, a collector who lived 20 miles west of me, told me he had a complete wide tread front axle, complete with spindles, tie rod, and radius rod, lying in the field behind his shop. Then a club member told me of an old gentleman who lived in Galveston, about 80 to 90 miles southeast of me, who might have a rear end. I was invited by the older gentleman to come to his house and look. in his basement, in a century old house in Galveston, among all the parts he had stashed, were two original 13-14 wide tread rear axle housings, the special wider rear spring necessary for the wider axle, and two wide tread axle shafts; everything that I needed to complete the conversion back to wide tread. How lucky was that? Most people would probably equate it to winning a lottery. The left photo shows the car on the first day that I bought it home with the standard tread axles. The right photo shows the car restored with the proper 60" tread axles.

My 14 is a wide-track. The body is standard T but in addition to chassis components, the fenders are wider. It's an interesting contrast when parked to a standard T.
Terry

Some great reading here Gentlemen....many thanks again for these excellent posts. Got to wonder whether there was a practical need that drove the wider southern track, or whether this evolved as a matter of purely preference? By the turn of the 20th century, hundreds of wagon, buggy and carriage builders were shipping these rigs all over the US. I will assume these same track standards applied to those vehicles as well.

Someone a while back had posted a photo of a new 1909 Ford Wide Track Town Car sitting in front of a dealership (may have been one of Don Watson's collection). I can imagine that top heavy body would have been a substantially more stable driver as the result.

Regards,
Scott

Scott, Indeed, there was a reason for the 60" wide or Southern tread Model T's and other car makes. Prior to 1926, when the first U.S. highway to cross the southern U.S. (U.S.90) was opened, very few, if any paved roads existed. Even with U.S. 90, most state and county public roads were still not paved at that time. For whatever reason, horse and mule drawn wagons hauling cotton and heavy loads over unpaved southern roads had been made for decades with the 60" tread, possibly to make them more stable when carrying such heavy loads. These heavily laden wagons produced deep ruts, 6" or more, which stayed in the road's surface even after the mud had turned to hard, stable dirt in dry weather. Trying to straddle the deep 60" ruts in a 56" tread vehicle was tricky and harrowing, especially given the Model T's primitive planetary steering gear. Driving a vehicle with 60" tread meant that if a driver couldn't straddle the deep ruts, that he could simply let his vehicle fall into and follow the ruts. As more and more public roads became paved (and that progress started in the northern states and spread to the south), Ford and other vehicle manufacturers decided the need for two different tread arrangements for their vehicles were not needed and practical, and a significant production cost could be saved.

I posted some of this previously on the old forum but I think it is relevant here also.

Ford offered a 60 inch tread for the southern roads for the 1908 Model S Roadster (part numbers are listed in the 1908 Price List of Parts but not the 1907 Price List of parts). It was clearly available on the S Roadster – as the wider fenders etc. were listed in the 1908 price list of parts. Of interest to some is the posting by Trent at: http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/59 ... 1465616855 see the Wednesday, June 08, 2016 - 08:44 pm: which in part says:

++++++ Quote ++++++

"The wide track Model SR's [S-Roadster aka mother-in-law seat] used a front axle identical to the Model T wide track axle, including the two front spring perches. It also used the early Model T front spindles and spindle bolts. The front radius rod for the wide track Model SR's was also unique to this car because the front radius rod was inserted into the front spring perches, as on a Model T.

The standard 56 inch track Model NRS cars had their spring perches forged as an integral part of the front axle. "

++++++ end quote ++++++

An article from the May Jun 1996 “Vintage Ford” page 26 (used by permission) discusses the wide track Model Ts. If we hadn't moved everything out of the house to redo the floors I would be able to locate my CDs and add the photos. If someone else has the photos from the article please feel free to add them.

++++++ begin article ++++++
by Russ Furstnow
Flagstaff, Arizona

A distinctive and unique Model T, known as the
“wide track” or “Dixie tread,” was produced on a
limited basis by Ford from 1909-1916.
The car looked quite different from a “regular”
Model T because the wheels were placed 60 inches
apart rather than the standard 56 inches.
The wide track Ford was made to be driven in
the southern United States, including Florida,
Georgia, Mississippi and Alabama, as these states
produced horse-drawn wagons with a 60” wide
track. Ford surmised that it would be easier to sell
his cars in the south if his cars would track in the
60” ruts produced by the wagons.
In the northern states, the 56 inch “standard”
tread worked fine, yet when the standard track
Ford went south, drivers had difficulty maintaining
control of their Fords while driving in the wider
ruts left by wagons.

The wide track Ford had numerous parts which
made it unique. Also, this option made the Model
T appear more massive and stable when driven on
a good paved highway-or at least, it was more
stable than the 56 inch standard tread car.

Early versions of the wide track Fords (1909-
12) had wider fenders, aprons and running board
brackets that were unique, yet the fender line was
smooth and appeared to “fit” together. (See Photos
1 & 2.)

In 1913, Ford began to utilize the “standard”
apron and running board brackets, necessitating
the use of very wide appearing fenders. (See Photo
3.) These fenders extended beyond the standard
width running board, making the car look somewhat
ungainly. These wider fenders were used
until 1916, when Ford discontinued this option.

The 60” tread Ford was identified in the sales
brochures as a special order option. It is assumed
that the cost of the standard and wide track models
were the same. This assumption is based on the fact
that Ford’s Price List of Parts did not add a premium
for the unique 60” tread parts over the standard
56” parts.

It is unknown how many wide track Fords were
produced, as no records have been found identifying
the production figures for these unique vehicles.
However, it is believed that a very small
percentage of Model Ts produced were ordered with
the wide track option.

The demise of the wide track was likely caused
by three factors: improvement in road conditions,
decreasing demand, and Ford’s need for stand-
ardization. The quality of roads in America were
improving and the mud and deeply rutted roads
were becoming the exception rather than the rule.
With improving roads, the demand for the wide
track option is believed to have declined.

++++++ end article ++++++

Respectfully submitted,

Hap 1915 cut off

Why did the wagons in the south that hauled bales of cotton need to have a 60 inch tread rather than the 56 inch tread used further north?

Cotton bales in the USA today are standardized size & weight (ref: National Cotton Counsel of America at https://www.cotton.org/tech/bale/bale-description.cfm )

500 lbs
Length 54-55 inches
width 20-21 inches
Average bulge: 33 inches or less
Density 28 lbs/ft cubed

But as late as 1928 -- many states did not have any rules for how big or heavy the bale should be and of the states that did have laws or guidelines they often varied from state to state (see: https://www.google.com/books/edition/St ... frontcover for a proposed Federal standardization bill May 16, 1928 on Google Books. )

Ref: http://www.laurenscoga.org/PhotoViewScr ... lSize=true for the wagon below with the cotton bales - photo taken in Georgia:
Note the front bale is stacked length wise -- probably to allow the front wheels on the wagon to be turned more before they would hit the cotton bale (Hap's guess). But the rest of the bales are stacked the other direction. Notice how close the rear wheel is to the bales. Two inches closer would not be good.

Respectfully submitted,

Hap l9l5 cut off (I still haven't gotten down how to put multiple photos where I want them to appear. So will post a couple more times.)

And from: https://louisianadigitallibrary.org/isl ... gfm%3A1097 photo taken in Louisiana:
Note how far the bales hang over the wagon at the front wheels and how close they are to the rear wheels. Again moving the wheels 2 inches closer on each side would not work well.

Respectfully submitted,

Hap l9l5 cut off

And for comparison below is a photo of what I believe is a 56 inch tread wagon (photo taken in Texas). Notice how they have to load the cotton bales so they do not hit the wheels. Also that the middle bale is turned 90 degrees but is clear of the wheels. They are only moving 4 bales per wagon and the wider wagons in the above posting were able to hold 10 or 11 bales (the wagons may have been heavier duty also).
Respectfully submitted,

Hap l9l5 cut off

Hap, very informative article, as all of your articles are ! It just confirms most of what I had stated in my post above yours. Thanks, Terry

Wide tracks were produced till 1918. Have a parts book that list parts for them. I have never seen an original 1917/18 WT, but I did at one time have an NOS 17/18 WT rear fender. This was a crowned fender, not a flat fender like a 15/16 fender.
I have owned 3 wide tracks at one time. Now only have 2 . A 1915 Roadster( 3rd owner) and a1914 Roadster (original owner). Have enough parts to make my 1913 Roadster in to one. Dan

Brush Runabouts were also available in 60" tread.

Interesting that Ford in 1914 was planting the seed to eventually eliminate the wide tread version. June 1914 Ford Times

I agree with Dan and have seen a 1917 widetrack touring on the 1991 Gulfshores, Alabama tour. I remember it well and have never seen the car again.