DEARBORN, MICHIGAN - Maybe the idea was inspired by the new forms of transportation that were the product of the industrial revolution of the time. Perhaps it was a personal frustration with the then-standard of horse-drawn carriages or a fascination with the mechanical brilliance of the day - diesel engines from Germany, internal combustion, steam and electric engines in America - but whatever the source of that spark that led Henry Ford to turn his attention to personal, motorized vehicles, is the stuff of legends.

The mere mention of the name Henry Ford in automotive circles will illicit a variety of opinion. No, he did not invent the automobile - but he did perfect mass production to make them faster, cheaper - and thus available to the masses. He was at once a champion of labor, bringing his workers a high wage with a $5 workday - but never did endear himself again to those same workers after waging a bitter, unsuccessful fight against the United Auto Workers.

Of all the things Henry Ford is credited with - he did light the spark that changed the landscape of America. And in so many ways those changes affected our culture.

He put us all in affordable cars, something that his company still does today, 100-years later. His company joined the effort in both World Wars, churning out tanks and artillery and aircraft for the Allies at a rate beforehand unimaginable - turning also to a new form of worker - "Rosie the riveter," - again laying the groundwork for change in the mores and workforce of a Postwar nation.

During the optimistic decades of the 1950’s and 1960’s - Ford’s automotive creations were the stuff of dreamland. Those were the days of big cars for a big nation with big dreams and hope for the future - and in many ways, that road was traversed behind the wheel of a big Ford or Lincoln or Mercury.

Ford’s Mustang erupted the era of the Pony car, which was soon followed by the Big Three with the Muscle Car era and the most powerful and fast cars ever built. The Horsepower Wars of the Big Three compares in cost and engineering investment only to the Space Race between the Soviet Union and the United States.

The 1970’s ushered in the OPEC Oil Embargo and fuel shortages, increasing government-mandated safety laws, and an economic recession. The result was less exciting cars, "econo-boxes," and the worst quality products that plagued carbuyers for the next two decades. Motorsports carried the torch.

And then, resurgence.

It did not begin overnight, nor perhaps was it deliberate but rather a gradual, necessary epiphany. Ford reflected on its past, embraced its heritage and all the good that it had done, and could possibly do. The rebirth started with the F-150 in the early 1990’s, followed shortly by the Mustang - the first car to be associated with the term "retro," - and then still more with the rebirth of Lincoln, the segment-defining SUV’s, the Thunderbird and more.

Today, we look at Ford and see real Ford’s. And Ford looks back at us with a promise to build real cars, for real people, for our time.

LIFE’S A TRIP - Enjoy the drive. Be a safe and courteous driver, never drive impaired, obey all highway laws and buckle everyone up. Copyright © 2003, The Weekend Drive, All Rights Reserved.