Category: Market Control

• Model T Disposal Plot

  This theory claimed that Ford or Ford-aligned dealers deliberately removed, scrapped, or crushed aging Model Ts in order to prop up new-car demand and prevent the cheap used-car market from undermining prices. In its strongest form, the allegation held that mass automobility had created a secondary market so large that Ford needed to destroy older cars to preserve profitability and control. The theory drew on a real economic tension: as car ownership expanded, used vehicles became a growing problem for manufacturers trying to sell new models, and rival firms later developed aggressive trade-in practices to move fresh inventory. The specific claim that Ford paid people to crush old Model Ts in a coordinated disposal campaign appears much more weakly documented than the general history of used-car pressure.