Automobiles are wheeled vehicles that carry passengers and are powered by an internal combustion engine. They are designed to run primarily on roads and have seating for one to seven people. The automotive industry is the world’s largest manufacturing industry and one of the most important technological developments in modern history. It has transformed the lives of millions of people and shaped society in many ways. It has also brought new economic vitality to rural America and stimulated travel-related businesses such as hotels, restaurants and highway construction. The automobile has increased participation in outdoor recreational activities and helped decongest the urban population.
A person who owns an automobile can get to work, school and other destinations much more quickly than those who depend on public transportation. Having an automobile can reduce the amount of time spent waiting for buses or trains, and it gives individuals more freedom to schedule their day. Although cars can be dangerous if operated by reckless drivers, they are safer than walking or taking a taxi to and from a destination.
The term “automobile” derives from two Latin words: auto (self) and mobilis (movable). The automobile was one of the cluster of major technologies that began transforming modern life in the first decades of the twentieth century. This revolution was enabled by advances in metallurgy, engineering and electrical science. It was also aided by the development of petroleum processing, electric power generation and distribution, and radio and telephone communications. The automobile was the first mass-produced personal vehicle to become affordable for a wide range of consumers.
Early self-propelled vehicles were a mixture of steam and human power. Inventors including Samuel Franklin Martin, Oliver Evans and Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot developed steam-powered road vehicles in the early 1770s. But it was Siegfried Marcus of Austria who perfected the internal combustion gasoline-powered motorcar toward the end of the 1860s. He attached a small, gasoline-powered internal combustion engine to a bicycle and patented his invention in 1870. This crude vehicle had no seats, steering or brakes and ran only on city gas.
In the United States, George B. Selden won a patent for an internal-combustion gasoline engine in 1895. He combined the engine with a four-wheeled chassis, and he was the first to develop a practical electric ignition system. The car became a household staple in the United States after the introduction of the Model T, which sold for less than the average annual wage at the time of its introduction in 1907. The Ford Motor Company outpaced competitors in reconciling state-of-the-art design with moderate price. The Cycle and Automobile Trade Journal praised the four-cylinder, fifteen-horsepower, $600 Ford Model N of 1906-1907 as “the very first instance of a low-cost motorcar driven by a gas engine having cylinders enough to give the shaft a turning impulse in every turn which is well built and offered in large numbers.”
After World War II, Japanese manufacturers turned their attention to developing cars. Some of these companies, like Daihatsu and Mitsubishi, started as makers of non-automobile products before the war. Others, such as Toyota and Nissan, used Western technology and models to start their car production. Today, many countries in large free trade areas produce cars, reducing currency risks and customs controls as well as being close to their customers.