Ford made cars cheap, at least cheap enough for the average person. But those cars were never disposable. Every Model-T was a serious investment in both money and time on the part of the new owner. And owners kept them going for a decade or more. Back then it took knowledge and work to keep a car on the road, to deal with inevitable roadside breakdowns long before cellphones. People took pride in such car-related skills. Henry Ford did not invent cars to be fixed only at the dealer and then be thrown away after the lease/warranty expires. That is a very modern phenomena.

Model T 1918 price: $680

680$ in today's money: $14,732