Automotive urban legends are sometimes fun to think about, but most are not believable by people that know the truth about how cars and the industry operate.
The assassination of water-fueled engine inventors, the carburetor that gets 100 miles to the gallon, and even the legality of driving barefoot are all easily debunked myths to anyone with some time and an internet connection.
A truly magnificent urban legend is one that seems like it could be plausible, but with no way to verify the authenticity of the claim. I found one of these a few weeks ago, and I have been researching it ever since, and I still cannot say for sure if I know if it is true or not.
I am a better technician than a journalist, that is for sure!
I came across a picture on Twitter of several early seventies model Ford Mavericks, which were situated in an underground cave. The caption on the picture stated that due to the decrease in sales of the Maverick, Ford rented space in the cave to store the Mavericks until demand caught up with the supply, and they were stored “for years.”
The cave’s location was said to be in Kansas City, Mo. After seeing this, I immediately thought that it could be true, but I have never heard of this before. I have studied this colorful area of automotive history extensively but admit that I learn new things about it all the time. So, I started digging.
The name of the mine is Subtropolis, and it was a limestone mine owned by the late oil baron Lamar Hunt. Hunt had a wide range of investments, including major sports teams. After the mine was depleted of the limestone, it was set up as an underground storage area for many businesses.
The place is enormous at over 1,100 acres and all of it underground. The interior is kept at an average temperature of 65 degrees and a low humidity of 40%. Since the founding of Subtropolis, many companies have leased space for many reasons, and most of them did so because of the perfect conditions in the mine for storage.
But was there a connection to Ford Motor Company?
In the August 30, 1965, issue of the Ford Kansas City News, a corporate paper written for the employees of the plants close to this mine, a headline reads “Ford Starts Operation Underground.” The full-page article describes Ford’s plans to store parts and supplies in the caves to use at the plant near to it. Pictures are shown at the cave’s mouth, with a Ford Custom parked inside.
Further photos show tractors and other Ford cars around the pillars that hold the roof of the cave up. These caves look identical to the ones showing the Mavericks, supposedly waiting for buyers.
Ford operates out of Subtropolis today, taking trucks from their nearby assembly plant in Claycomo, Missouri and modifying them for industrial use. You can find pictures of F-150 and Transit vehicles today inside Subtropolis.
The only truck I don’t see in pictures of the caves is, ironically, the new Ford Maverick, which is built in Mexico. I am not sure if they have caves there, but the Maverick truck is selling so well that Ford is turning away orders and deposits.
Times sure have changed.
What is still murky to me is any details of the Ford Maverick of the 70’s being hidden away in Subtropolis, outside of the one picture and what someone typed out on the internet. I have no reason to believe the picture is not authentic but cannot find any evidence that they were there due to poor sales and overstock.
With nothing to go on, I reached out to my friend, Jimmy Dinsmore, who is a Ford historian and has written books on Ford in this time period. He had never heard of it either, so I feel like I am in good company.
Keeping unsold cars in storage is rare, but not unheard of.
With supply chain restraints, many pictures of partially built and unsold units in holding lots were a mark of the pandemic. My gut is telling me either the picture has been captioned out of context and the Mavericks were stored short term.
While the Maverick wasn’t the greatest car Ford ever built, they had a market for people that wanted an American built yet small and economical commuter car for the price of a Volkswagen.
I think Lee Iacocca would have traveled door to door selling them before he let them sit for “years.”
What do you think about this urban legend? Let me know in the comments.
I’ll see you on the road, above ground!
