Benz Patent Motorwagen: The First Car to Replace Traditional Carriages. Karl Benz – The Father of the World’s First Car.
The inventor of the world’s first car was German engineer Karl Benz. He was born in 1811 and was one of the pioneers in the field of automobile manufacturing. Karl Benz studied at Karlsruhe Polytechnic School at the age of 19. In 1872, he married Mrs. Bertha Ringer, who supported him a lot in his scientific research and automobile manufacturing.
In 1886, Karl Benz gave birth to the Motorwagen with an internal combustion engine, running on gasoline, with a speed of 16 km/h. After many efforts to improve and improve quality, in 1888, this vehicle completely replaced horse-drawn carriages in Germany and France. The appearance of the Benz Patent Motorwagen marked an important turning point in the history of transportation.
Benz Patent Motorwagen has a unique design with a three-wheeled design, mainly made from steel pipes and seats using wooden planks painted in a beautiful golden brown color. The wheels are made of steel with many interlocking spokes and use solid rubber tires. The driver will sit in the seat and control the vehicle’s movement using a handheld unit attached to the vehicle axle.
The engine of this car is an internal combustion engine, developed based on the principle of the four-stroke engine that Nikolaus Otto invented earlier. Advanced equipment on the vehicle includes a fuel tank (carburetor), accelerator pedal, spark plugs, battery electric ignition system, clutch, gear shift system, and cooling system. water engine.
When Karl Benz introduced this car, he received a lot of ridicule like “what car doesn’t have a horse to pull it?” For the whole world at that time, the large vehicles used to carry many people or to travel long distances were horse-drawn carriages. However, in August 1888, Karl Benz’s wife Bertha Benz made a historic trip. Hiding everything from her husband, Bertha and her sons decided to take the car for a test drive on the 106 km journey to Pforzheim and back to Mannheim. This trip not only demonstrated the vehicle’s usability but also offered suggestions for improvements to perfect it.
In 1886, Karl Benz registered the copyright for the Benz Patent Motorwagen with code DRP 37435 and officially introduced it to the Germans on July 3, 1886. The car was produced from 1886 to 1893 in limited quantities, Only 25 pieces. At the time of launch, the selling price of the Benz Patent Motorwagen was about 150 USD (~ more than 4,000 USD now) and was later raised to 1,000 USD (~ 26,337 USD today).
In 2001-2002, Mercedes re-produced a small number of Benz Patent Motorwagen vehicles.
After the Benz Patent Motorwagen, since 1888, Karl Benz and his team embarked on a more professional phase of automobile production, paving the way for the birth of a series of impressive car models from the famous Mercedes-Benz brand. hours later. Karl Benz’s inventions such as the carburetor, accelerator pedal, ignition, spark plug, clutch, and water cooling system are truly important contributions to the development of the automotive mechanical industry.
The original Benz Patent Motorwagen is currently on display at the German National Museum. The cars were remanufactured in 2002 and were restored by Mercedes-Benz’s Classic Center department.
The appearance of the Benz Patent Motorwagen not only marked a new era in the history of transportation but also the beginning of the modern automobile industry. Karl Benz left behind an extremely important legacy, contributing to changing the way we move and work every day.