How Much Do You Know About the History of Automobiles?

As far back as the 1770s, inventive types were hoping to make automobiles that ran on steam. But these primitive vehicles were nothing like gas versions that eventually came to rule the world.

In the 1880s, Karl Benz, a German entrepreneur, built the first gas-powered automobile. German and French engineers were the first to really set the industry into motion.

Steam and electricity were used in some very early cars. But by 1905, the auto industry was set on gasoline as its fuel of choice, and more than a century later, gas is still king.

Gas cars, particularly the early versions, had much better range than steam or electric models. It meant that you could drive a lot farther without stopping to refuel.

The Ford Model T is, quite simply, the most iconic car of the early American car industry. It was reliable and affordable, which made it accessible even to families of modest means.

For nearly 20 years, Ford cranked out Model T cars at a prodigious rate. By the time the "T" was put out to pasture, more than 15 million had been sold.

Early black paint dried faster than other colors ... meaning that Ford could make Model T cars more quickly if they stuck with that color of paint. So, for a decade, all Model Ts were black.

Steam engines had a few pros during the early days of cars. But they would occasionally explode, something that gasoline engines typically only do in movies.

Ford didn’t invent assembly line production, but he made it an effective option in the auto industry. Soon, Ford’s mass production techniques were building cars at an astonishing rate.

Jeep wasn’t one of the so-called "Big Three." The Big Three were Ford, Chrysler and General Motors.

Japan bombed Pearl Harbor in December 1941, and America immediately mobilized every heavy industry to produce war goods. From 1942 until 1945, there were no civilian vehicles made in the country.

During WWII, Detroit became known as the "Arsenal of Democracy." The city’s heavy concentration of car manufacturers meant that it was a vital supplier of war goods.

Steam engines gradually improved until about 1930. But the interwar years were a booming time for gasoline engines, so steam technologies were essentially mothballed.

Germany, again, was a leader in auto engineering, especially when it came to electrics. In 1888, an engineer named Andreas Flocken made a working electric vehicle that’s generally regarded as the world’s first.

Founded in 1891, Panhard was the first company to build nothing but cars. The company has been through many changes in its long life, but it is still in manufacturing today.

The steam-powered Stanley Steamer completed a one-mile journey in just 28 seconds in 1906. The car’s top speed was around 127 MPH, fast even by today’s standards.

Jackson and his partner Sewall Crocker were the very first people to drive all the way across America in a car. They started on May 23, 1903 and headed east from San Francisco.

In a time when paved roads were still rare, particularly in the West, the cross-country trip was a wild ordeal. It took Jackson and his mechanic 63 days to go from San Francisco to New York City.

Ford didn’t just make car manufacturing more efficient, he also changed American labor, providing a standard work week schedule and better pay and benefits.

After decades of American dominance, Japan took the lead in car manufacturing in 1980. In all corners of the United States, businessmen and politicians sounded the alarm.

The 1901 Mercedes was simply called the Mercedes 35 hp, which denoted its horsepower rating. It was a true car instead of the stagecoach-like versions that preceded it.

Even in the earliest days of cars, engineers wanted the machines to go faster and faster. The 35 hp model was a racing machine that was later refined for civilian use.

In 1906, the Model N cost $600, making it a truly affordable option for many Americans. After accounting for inflation, $600 would be around $16,600 today.

Starting in the 1920s, GM began pushing styling and "newness" as a car selling point. The idea was to condition people into buying new vehicles regularly even though their older cars still suited their needs. "Planned obsolescence" is still very much a profit driver in the car industry.

In 1982, Honda was selling so many cars in America that it simply began making them there. The first factory opened in Marysville, Ohio.

Because tires and gasoline were restricted by rationing, civilian motor vehicle travel plummeted. Few people had the means or money to use a car regularly during the war.

As Hitler sharpened his Third Reich, he realized that the German people needed affordable motor vehicles. He dreamed up what eventually became the Volkwagen Beetle, which became the world’s best-selling car.

In 1968, VW broke trail as the first company to include a computer it is models. The computer was used to control the electronic fuel injection system.

It’s true, after 20 years in production, the Model T was far cheaper than it was in the early days. In the mid-20s, you could buy a coupe Model T for less than $300, about half of the initial cost.

The compact and fuel-efficient Toyota Corolla was introduced in 1973. Since then, Toyota has sold more than 40 million of these little cars, making them the best-selling vehicle in history.