The History of Cars
The History of Cars
Background Information for Teachers
Our World is a Car World
Try to imagine our world without cars. Of course not every person in the world
owns or even needs a car to live their lives. However, in North America our
quality of life is often defined by the power and style of our vehicles. It is
important to us that our cars take us to where we need to be and to where we
want to go. They get us to work and take us out to the movies. Today, we’d be
hard pressed to get our groceries, let alone go on vacation without the vehicles
that we drive or even the public transportation that we use. Some of us even
drive our cars for pure enjoyment.
The Wheel
The invention of the wheel paved the way for transportation as
we know it today. Historians don’t know exactly who invented
the wheel, but the oldest wheel discovered so far is believed to
be over 5,500 years old.
The development of the wheel began when humans sought easier methods for
moving large objects. It was recognized that round objects, such as a log, could
be placed under something heavy to push it along with less force.
Next humans began using a sledge. A sledge is essentially what today we would
call a sled. A sledge worked well over smooth ground or with logs placed under it
as it was pulled along. Eventually the sledge wore grooves in the log rollers. The
grooved rollers worked better since there was less friction between the sledge
and the rollers, so less energy was needed to drag the sledge.
It wasn’t long before humans cut away the wood between the two inner grooves
created by the sledge. The wood left between the grooves became the axle.
These were the first carts. Next, axles were designed to fit through holes in the
center of each wheel. Finally, axles were designed not to move themselves, but
rather to have the wheel rotate on the axle.
The ancient Egyptians, Indians, Greeks and Romans continued
to improve the design of the wheel, adding spokes and creating
a variety of wheels for different sorts of vehicles including
chariots for war, hunting, and racing, two-wheeled farm
carts, covered carriages, heavy four-wheeled freight wagons
and passenger coaches. Horse Power
For centuries wheeled vehicles were pulled by oxen, horses or even people. Until
the invention of the internal combustion engine, the horse was Europe's most
important source of energy. The term 'horsepower' is still used today to measure
the power limits of machine engines.
Horses allowed civilizations to extend
their power and expand their territories.
When paired with wheeled vehicles
such as carts, chariots and carriages,
this harnessed power allowed people
more freedom to travel, explore and
settle new land.
However, even horse drawn transportation came with its own source of pollution.
Waste from horses was a serious concern in cities and it became more and more
difficult to maintain sanitary conditions as the number of people and, therefore,
horses grew. Concerns over these conditions led some innovators to look
towards alternative forms of transportation.
Steam Powered Vehicles
In the 1700s, steam-powered vehicles, dubbed “horseless carriages,” came on to
the scene. However, it was not until the early 1800s and the invention of the high
pressure steam engine that these steam-powered vehicles were considered as
potentially practical.
Limitations in building technology and the poor condition of road surfaces
limited these “steam cars” as personal transportation until the19th
century. At first, their sheer heaviness meant that they needed the
support of iron rails to move effectively. This of course led
to the use of steam engines in trains, thus powering the
railroad industry. By 1902, 485 out of 909 new car
registrations were for steamers. In 1906, the land speed
record was broken by a Stanley steam car. The car and
driver reached 127 miles per hour!
The steam engine powered the vehicle by burning wood, coal or oil to heat water
in a boiler. The steam that was generated drove pistons up and down within
hollow cylinders. The movement of the pistons drove the crankshaft, which
ultimately turned the wheels.
In addition to their considerable weight, steam powered vehicles had several
other disadvantages. They required long start-up times and required frequent
stops to get water. Electric Vehicles
In the 1830s, inventors also began to use electric motors to power
vehicles. Like electric cars today, they ran on energy stored in
rechargeable batteries. Unfortunately, the energy storage capacity of
the early batteries was very limited, and these vehicles could travel
relatively short distances before the batteries needed to be
recharged. Although the range of early electric vehicles was limited,
they could travel further on a single charge than steam-powered vehicles could
go without stopping to renew their water supply.
Initially, the electric car’s limited range was not a liability because the only good
roads at the time were in towns. The electric car also had several advantages
over other types of vehicles until the early 1900’s. Driving electric cars, like
steam-powered vehicles, did not require changing gears, which was a difficult
maneuver in driving early gasoline-powered cars. In comparison to cars with gas
engines, electric vehicles were also quieter, offered a smoother ride, and were
relatively odor-free. They also did not require a long start-up time like the steam
car or the considerable manual effort that was required to start a gas-powered
car with a hand crank.
In 1899 and 1900, the sale of electric cars surpassed those of all other types of
vehicles in the U.S. However, the prominence of the electric car was destined to
be short-lived as several developments shifted the advantage to gasolinepowered vehicles.
Internal Combustion Engines
As more and more good roads were built to connect cities, the electric car’s
limited range eventually became a liability, and vehicles with gasoline engines,
which had a much longer range, became more popular. Other developments also
helped the gas-powered car gain prominence. The price of gasoline became
more affordable with the discovery of vast oil reserves in Texas in 1901, and the
introduction of the conveyor belt assembly line system by Henry Ford in 1913
reduced production costs of gas-powered vehicles, making them more affordable
as well.
However, the development which had the biggest impact was probably the
invention of the electric starter in 1911. Before this invention, gasoline-powered
internal combustion engines had to be started by a hand crank. The hand crank
was difficult to use and sometimes even quite dangerous. Improper cranking
could cause a backfire strong enough to break the arm of the cranker! With the
invention of the electric starter, cars with gas engines became safer to start and
what had been the electric car’s major advantage was eliminated.
Background Information for Teachers
Our World is a Car World
Try to imagine our world without cars. Of course not every person in the world
owns or even needs a car to live their lives. However, in North America our
quality of life is often defined by the power and style of our vehicles. It is
important to us that our cars take us to where we need to be and to where we
want to go. They get us to work and take us out to the movies. Today, we’d be
hard pressed to get our groceries, let alone go on vacation without the vehicles
that we drive or even the public transportation that we use. Some of us even
drive our cars for pure enjoyment.
The Wheel
The invention of the wheel paved the way for transportation as
we know it today. Historians don’t know exactly who invented
the wheel, but the oldest wheel discovered so far is believed to
be over 5,500 years old.
The development of the wheel began when humans sought easier methods for
moving large objects. It was recognized that round objects, such as a log, could
be placed under something heavy to push it along with less force.
Next humans began using a sledge. A sledge is essentially what today we would
call a sled. A sledge worked well over smooth ground or with logs placed under it
as it was pulled along. Eventually the sledge wore grooves in the log rollers. The
grooved rollers worked better since there was less friction between the sledge
and the rollers, so less energy was needed to drag the sledge.
It wasn’t long before humans cut away the wood between the two inner grooves
created by the sledge. The wood left between the grooves became the axle.
These were the first carts. Next, axles were designed to fit through holes in the
center of each wheel. Finally, axles were designed not to move themselves, but
rather to have the wheel rotate on the axle.
The ancient Egyptians, Indians, Greeks and Romans continued
to improve the design of the wheel, adding spokes and creating
a variety of wheels for different sorts of vehicles including
chariots for war, hunting, and racing, two-wheeled farm
carts, covered carriages, heavy four-wheeled freight wagons
and passenger coaches. Horse Power
For centuries wheeled vehicles were pulled by oxen, horses or even people. Until
the invention of the internal combustion engine, the horse was Europe's most
important source of energy. The term 'horsepower' is still used today to measure
the power limits of machine engines.
Horses allowed civilizations to extend
their power and expand their territories.
When paired with wheeled vehicles
such as carts, chariots and carriages,
this harnessed power allowed people
more freedom to travel, explore and
settle new land.
However, even horse drawn transportation came with its own source of pollution.
Waste from horses was a serious concern in cities and it became more and more
difficult to maintain sanitary conditions as the number of people and, therefore,
horses grew. Concerns over these conditions led some innovators to look
towards alternative forms of transportation.
Steam Powered Vehicles
In the 1700s, steam-powered vehicles, dubbed “horseless carriages,” came on to
the scene. However, it was not until the early 1800s and the invention of the high
pressure steam engine that these steam-powered vehicles were considered as
potentially practical.
Limitations in building technology and the poor condition of road surfaces
limited these “steam cars” as personal transportation until the19th
century. At first, their sheer heaviness meant that they needed the
support of iron rails to move effectively. This of course led
to the use of steam engines in trains, thus powering the
railroad industry. By 1902, 485 out of 909 new car
registrations were for steamers. In 1906, the land speed
record was broken by a Stanley steam car. The car and
driver reached 127 miles per hour!
The steam engine powered the vehicle by burning wood, coal or oil to heat water
in a boiler. The steam that was generated drove pistons up and down within
hollow cylinders. The movement of the pistons drove the crankshaft, which
ultimately turned the wheels.
In addition to their considerable weight, steam powered vehicles had several
other disadvantages. They required long start-up times and required frequent
stops to get water. Electric Vehicles
In the 1830s, inventors also began to use electric motors to power
vehicles. Like electric cars today, they ran on energy stored in
rechargeable batteries. Unfortunately, the energy storage capacity of
the early batteries was very limited, and these vehicles could travel
relatively short distances before the batteries needed to be
recharged. Although the range of early electric vehicles was limited,
they could travel further on a single charge than steam-powered vehicles could
go without stopping to renew their water supply.
Initially, the electric car’s limited range was not a liability because the only good
roads at the time were in towns. The electric car also had several advantages
over other types of vehicles until the early 1900’s. Driving electric cars, like
steam-powered vehicles, did not require changing gears, which was a difficult
maneuver in driving early gasoline-powered cars. In comparison to cars with gas
engines, electric vehicles were also quieter, offered a smoother ride, and were
relatively odor-free. They also did not require a long start-up time like the steam
car or the considerable manual effort that was required to start a gas-powered
car with a hand crank.
In 1899 and 1900, the sale of electric cars surpassed those of all other types of
vehicles in the U.S. However, the prominence of the electric car was destined to
be short-lived as several developments shifted the advantage to gasolinepowered vehicles.
Internal Combustion Engines
As more and more good roads were built to connect cities, the electric car’s
limited range eventually became a liability, and vehicles with gasoline engines,
which had a much longer range, became more popular. Other developments also
helped the gas-powered car gain prominence. The price of gasoline became
more affordable with the discovery of vast oil reserves in Texas in 1901, and the
introduction of the conveyor belt assembly line system by Henry Ford in 1913
reduced production costs of gas-powered vehicles, making them more affordable
as well.
However, the development which had the biggest impact was probably the
invention of the electric starter in 1911. Before this invention, gasoline-powered
internal combustion engines had to be started by a hand crank. The hand crank
was difficult to use and sometimes even quite dangerous. Improper cranking
could cause a backfire strong enough to break the arm of the cranker! With the
invention of the electric starter, cars with gas engines became safer to start and
what had been the electric car’s major advantage was eliminated.
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