DK - Drive: The Definitive History of Driving

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Inventing the car

18851905

Looking at the pioneer automobiles of the late 19th century and the slick, targeted consumer products of today, its almost impossible to believe that they are one and the same thing. The car: it is a very big leap indeed.

Nowadays, the built environment seems to be absolutely subordinated to serving the vehicle. However, in the beginning, townscapes and countrysides across the world were not prepared for the self-propelled, individually directed vehicles that would shortlyand unremittinglybe imposed on these communal spaces.

If it werent for the advent of the reliable, rapid, and widely popular railroad between 1820 and 1850, the transportation revolution of driving might have progressed a whole lot sooner. Steam power applied to the roads did not work nearly as well, and there was an interval of some 125 years between the earliest (in effect) boilers-on-wheels hissing at French citizens and the invention in Germany of the small internal combustion engine that could finally make a carriage horseless.

An uncertain reception

Across wider society, there was less love and more loathing for the first automobiles. In the UK, cars were restricted to virtually a walking pace, and in France road racing was banned after a series of accidents in which out-of-control drivers, ignorant spectators, and even wandering cattle collided, with devastating results. Across the rural vastness of the US, there were few roads that consisted of anything but dirt. So it was little wonder that, while Europe busied itself making playthings for the rich, American car designers concentrated on mechanical durability and the ability of their products to conquer long distances without breaking into pieces. Sill, ambitious individuals, partnerships, and companies everywhere faced tremendous problems in turning automobile designs into manufactured products. It was an era of hand tools, and of trial and error. Perhaps surprisingly, electricity was equal to gasoline in those early years as a source of motive powernot for concerns about air pollution, but for sheer ease and dependability of use.

Across the rural vastness of the US, there were precious few roads

Reliability and refinements

Once the nascent mechanical technology had mostly been mastered, carmakers and their customers turned to creature comforts. The advent of the pneumatic tire was an enormous advance in improving the driving experience. Further improvements came fast and furiousfrom attention to the layout of cars to make them safer and easier to handle, to solid improvements in lighting and weather protection. This all helped to broaden the appeal of the automobile from its place as a Sunday afternoon diversion into something more significant.

Mass car commuting, though, was something no one had yet considered. For one thing, automobiles were simply not trustworthy enough. That was why so-called reliability trials rose to prominence much earlier than competitive racing as a way to break down widespread public skepticism. Slowly, however, the increasing versatility and performance of the internal combustion engine meant that the automobile crept into every sphere of modern life. Something unstoppable was clearly afoot.

PIONEERING DRIVERS IN THE 19TH CENTURY

BATTERY-POWERED VEHICLES SHOW EARLY PROMISE

RELIABILITY TRIALS BRING IMPROVEMENTS TO CAR DESIGN