Page 18 - All About History - Issue 16-14

Transport

How to

DRIVE THE FIRST DRIVING INSTRUCTIONS

Engine
Steering
The rear-mounted
The steering of this three-
engine is very light
wheeled car is controlled by
for its time, at around
a tooth rack, which pivots the
PETROL CAR a horsepower (0.50kW)
100kg (220lb). It
unsprung front wheel.
produces two-thirds of
at 250rpm.

TAKING TO THE ROADS, GERMANY, 1886

5 TYPES OF Expensive, loud and smelly; an early
car was a hard sell. The very first
EARLY AUTOS petrol car was created by German
engine designer Karl Benz and was
FARDIER À VAPEUR named the Benz Paten Motorwagen.
1769, FRANCE Business was slow at first, but
Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot developed Benz managed to sell 25 of them,
this three-wheeled machine to constructed by his small staff,
haul artillery. It reached a top between 1886 and 1893 and his lead
speed of 3km/h (2mph) and was was soon followed by eager inventors
the first steam-driven tricycle. with their own designs. The growing Brake lining Transmission
FIRST MARCUS CAR popularity prompted the introduction of road These were invented when automobile is a simple belt
The transmission of the
Martha Benz took the car on
traffic laws, but the absence of a driving test
1870, AUSTRIA-HUNGARY meant the road and its possibilities was open for its first long-distance trip and system that provides a single
This so-called ‘car’ was in fact business – as long as you could afford it, of course. asked a shoemaker to nail speed, though more gears
no more than a handcart with leather on the brake blocks. were added to later models.
an internal combustion engine
attached and was the first vehicle
propelled by gasoline.
FLOCKEN
ELEKTROWAGEN

1888, GERMANY
Developed and built by
Andres Flocken, the Flocken
Elektrowagen is widely regarded
as one of the first practical
electric cars in the world.
PRÄSIDENT
1897, AUSTRIA-HUNGARY
This four-seated car resembled
a carriage without horses, rather
than a modern car, and was
steered via handlebars.
MODEL T Become wealthy Pack a tool kit
If you want to be one of the first people to drive a petrol
A car mechanic? What’s that? If something goes wrong
1908–1927, AMERICA 01 car, you’ll need the funds to back it up. Automobiles are 02 with your car on the road you’ll be hard pressed to find
Produced by Henry Ford, the rarely seen due to their hefty price tag and the only people someone who knows how to fix it. It’s best to pack a tool kit and
Model T was the first widely
affordable automobile, propelling who can drive these unusual machines are eccentric and rich. get those sleeves rolled up. A variety of items were used to fix
their entry and lasting popularity If you have your heart set on it, you’ll have to dish out $1,000, the first petrol car on its maiden journey, from using a hatpin to
on the mass market. estimated to be around $250,000 (£150,000) in today’s money. clean the carburettor to using a garter to insulate a wire.

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