A brief history of the world’s most affordable cars Ford’s mass-produced Model T set the standard for cheap yet high-quality cars; the Austin 7, VW Beetle, Mini and Eastern Bloc imports ensued 8 May 2021 • 6:30am The genius of the Ford Model T was that it was cheap but not cheaply made. It set the trend for affordable cars that continues to this day Credit: Pep Roig/ Alamy Henry Ford didn’t invent the production line, as is often believed. Manufacturers had been using similar assembly methods for decades. Ford merely adapted and refined the techniques to reduce costs and produce a motor car cheap enough for Mr Average, rather than Mr and Mrs Rich, who were the only likely internally combusted customer in the late Victorian era.