Creation history

Although such attempts were done before consider that one of the first auto was created by Karl Friedrich Benz who was a German automobile engineer. It was a single-cylinder, water-cooled, 958 cm³, 0.75 hp (560 W) unit, but the whole three-wheeled vehicle, and it was first driven through Mannheim in 1885 by his wife Bertha Benz. Simultaneously Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach in Stuttgart made the motorized vehicle. They also are known as inventors of the first motor bike.

The chronological scale of automobile history is here (British classification). All vehicles are divided into two large classes; Antique (1885–1979) and Modern (1980–present). By its part antique autos are subdivided into four group; Veteran (1885–1904), Brass or Edwardian (1905–1918), Vintage (1919–1930) and Classic (1931–car over 25 years old). These groups also called eras. In addition in Classic era there are two periods: Pre-war (1931–1948) and Post-war (1949–1979). Antique period is the most interesting when every year new technologies were being invented step by step, vehicles were becoming faster, cheaper and safer.


First mass automobiles manufacturing for people began in Veteran era. Up to 1900 there were already car producing companies in France and USA. One of the first companies was Parhard et Levassor; formed in 1889, in France. The company was quickly followed by Peugeot two years later. In the United States in 1893 was founded the Duryea Motor Wagon Company, becoming the first American automobile manufacturing company. Moreover Oldsmobile (dominated in this era), Cadillac, Winton and Ford were largest auto-producers of that time.



Next automobile era is called Brass or Edwardian, during this era, development of automotive technology was rapid, that time appeared lots of small manufacturers and majority of sales shifted from the hobbyist and enthusiast to the average user. That time were founded such companies as Chevrolet and Isuzu. Henry Leyland former head of Cadillac began new Lincoln Motor Company. Lots of inventions were done. It is electric ignition and the electric self-starter both were invented by Charles Kettering, for the Cadillac Motor Company. Engineers devised independent suspension, and four-wheel brakes. The most vivid models of this era were Ford Model T, Bugatti Type 13, Maxwell AA Runabout and Mercedes Simplex.


The Vintage era changed appearance of automobiles; the most recognizable features came front engine location, instead of middle engine, closed body types of vehicles. Also multi-valve and overhead cam, V8, V12, and even V16 engines were produced. Cars became much more practical, convenient and comfortable during this period. Car heating was introduced, as was the in-car radio. Instead of ordinary brakes were used hydraulically actuated. Power steering was also an innovation of this era. Cadillac presented crash proof windscreen and gear box synchronizer. Examples that could give imagination of this era are; Austin 7, Bugatti Type 35, Ford Model A and Cadillac V-16.


Started just after American’s Great Depression Classic era however ended much later. By the 1930s, most of the technologies used in automobiles had been invented; however it was often re-invented again at a later date and credited to someone else. Power window, front wheel drive, independent suspension, turbocharger and many other innovations had been used in that time. During the Second WW although civil auto producing was slowed down; lots of inventions were done in military engineering that later were implemented for peaceful car industry. The marking and outstanding autos of Classic era are: Volkswagen Beetle, Citroen Traction Avant, Oldsmobile 88, Jaguar E-type, Ford Mustang and Porsche 911.


Modern era defined as the 25 years preceding the current year. It was surprising us every day. The hi-tech auto features such as installed computer, hybrid technology, new and composite materials for body and engine, researches of new kinds of fuel (as a fuel cell, hydrogen, solar battery etc), improvement of car design… these all and more became true in modern era. Vehicles became essential part of social life; the price of it could emphasize importance of owner, besides cars became more universal and common. The modern tendencies pick out the hatchback, minivan, and sport utility vehicle (SUV) car types. This is the most popular body-styles now. There are great models among brands’s model range and auto producers meaning VW Golf, Honda Accord, Toyota Carina, Ford Taurus and Jeep Grand Cherokee. The auto-industry now is one of largest in the world.

What moves progress? The answer is easy - LAZINESS!
This strain will always pursue human being serving as trigger of technical progress for the purpose of making our life easier as possible. Automobile is one more invention, which proves this statement…

Neither more, nor less, but automobile became a part of our life. “The ideas of automobiles” has been always existing in human’s dreams and imaginations. It was reflected, for example, in Leonardo da Vinci’s sketches in “Atlantic Codex” devoted to self-powered vehicles, and even Heron of Alexandria wrote about substitution of horse power by steam power and invention of a new way of transportation in 150 BC.

The automobile as we know wasn’t invented in a single day by a single creator. The history of the automobile represents an evolution that took place worldwide. As Nostradamus predicted the extremely first self-propelled road vehicle was invented in 1769 by French inventor Nicolas Cugnot (1725 - 1804). Historians, who admit that early steam-powered road vehicles were automobiles, contend that he was the inventor of the first automobile.
The first experiments with steam were run as far back as 17th century. In 1643 Evangelista Torricelli discovered the power action of air pressure. 37 years after a Dutch Christian Huygens projected a power plant that was based on gas expansion from powder explosion in a cylinder. By the way it was the first combustion engine. The power of explosion was substituted later for steam power by a French physicist Denis Papin. In 1690 he constructed a condensation steam vehicle known also as “steam-boiler”. It consisted of a piston that moved upwards with the help of boiled water and moved down as a consequence of cooling.

Basing on the earlier experiments Cugnot invented the first steam-powered car in 1769. It was a large vehicle that moved at the speed of a walk (6 km/hour) and was meant to move cannon for the French Army. It had three wheels with the engine in the front along with the boiler. The vehicle had to stop every ten minutes to put up steam power. It was far too heavy and slow to be of practical use.

Burning fuel was heating water in the boiler, the steam produced from it expanded and pushed the pistons. Pistons turned the crankshaft, which then turned the wheels. This simple “system” made the first vehicle to move. It’s important to say that during the early history of self-propelled vehicles - both road and railroad vehicles were being developed with steam engines. Steam engines were overloading the road vehicles and they proved a poor design; however, steam engines were very successfully used in locomotives.

Incidentally, Cugnot was the first person to get into a motor vehicle accident in 1771, when he drove one of his road vehicles into a stone wall. The vehicle may still be seen today in the Conservatoire Nationale des Arts et Metiers in Paris.

On the 18th of October 1893 Donat Bankee and Yanosh Chonk took out a patent on an atomizing carburetor unit, titled “An Improvement for Petrol Engines”. The concept of this carburetor was the following: if petrol is atomized in the air in particles small enough that leads to its even distribution among the cylinders; vaporization inside cylinders occurs due to the heat produced under compression. Bankee suggested imbibing petrol into the air flow via a dosing jet for providing the atomizing effect; for providing the constancy of mixture composition he suggested maintaining a steady level of petrol column behind the jet. The jet itself was constructed as a hole (or several holes) in the sides of a tube put obliquely to the flow; for maintaining the flow consistency a small chamber with a floating unit was used, which kept the petrol column on a certain height (the float-chamber). The amount of petrol imbibed is in direct proportion to the volume of air flow being sucked in. In fact, Bankee suggested a method of calculation of a simplest carburetor.

Can you imagine your life or human civilization on the whole without automobile – very scarcely. And do you know what was the cradle of modern automobile and its roots?...

The whole automobile history began when wheel was invented. It relates approximately to 3500 B.C. to the region of Mesopotamia.

It’s natural that man always dreamed of moving quicker spending on it less energy. As a result there is a lot of fairy tales of the magic-carpet and seven-league boots. In that ancient times man knew only going on foot, sailing, riding a horse and scrappers-moving.

Remarkably the first wheels invented bear the features of modern ones: they were made of segments and in the form of grating for making the weight lighter that finally lead to spokes and center boss invention.


Historically the first transport mean was one-axle bullock cart with draught oxen. Then after they were removed for horses chariot appeared. It was of considerable diverse: for 2 and more seats, 2- and 4-wheel, open and with canopy, simply and luxury. Chariots were used for solemn equipages, competitions, harvest transportation and as mobile lodging. So one can see that chariots in their functionality were the same as modern vehicles. Their structure included freely spitted wheels on static axle. The wheel diameter was 1.5-2m. to make the chariots more fast-speed and passable. But the Roman Empire dissolution suspended all the further transport improvements for about 1000 years. The only thing that was made – front axle became turning.

In XV the carriage body was first suspended on the belts and was the birthday of the coach. Masters soon started to finish them with leather? Glass and even bed-seats though they were rather inconvenient.

Parallel to horse-carriage improvement in XV century first self-moving vehicle projects appeared. Leonardo da Vinci suggested a vehicle that was droved by the bypassing or sitting in it people. Then German artist A. Dourer designed the ever first full-drive vehicle. Another invention was made by Russian Leonty Shamshurenkov – it is “auto-running carriage” with distance counter. Ivan Kulibin (1735-1818) also made very important invention: 3-wheel pedal-cycle droved by one person. The traction from pedals was transmitted via control-rod to cog-wheel on the axle. The vehicle had free wheeling like modern bicycle but the speed on the cobblestone road was just 10 km/h. The advantage of this invention is its steering drive very like the modern of automobiles.

F. Dries from Germany found it easier to make a push-cycle. A driver sitting on the vehicle was to push the ground to move ahead. The max speed the driver could make move it was still just 15 km/h but the vehicle was very manoeuvrable.
But the most important inventions were made in the end of XIX century: push-cycle was given pedals and became bicycle, new wheels got rubber pneumatic tires and steel spokes; the chassis became tubular that lightened the vehicle’s weight. The next bicycle invention such as ball-bearing and chain-drive had a great subsequent meaning for automobile invention.

The evidence of close ties between automobiles and non-engine vehicles one may find in such terms as coupe, phaeton, cabriolet and landau (the car-body types) – come from the conformable carriage types; “sedan” term is more old and relates to a kind of scrapes in ancient times. Consider also the tradition to estimate the engine capacity in horse powers – h/p.

Despite all the common features the basic sense of automobile lies not only in its ability to move on its own. It is also that automobile allows man to choose a route and speed, to start and stop whenever and wherever man desires. That is what makes automobile quite different from all the rest transport types.

Thus technical inventions and the idea of man independence and freedom finally lead to automobile creating in the form we have it today – convenient, fast and strong.