• Home
  • About Evelyn Kanter
  • Evelyn Kanter’s Books & Apps
  • Evelyn Kanter In The News
  • Workshops
  • NYC Travel Guru

Evelyn Kanter ecoXplorer

smarter traveling, driving and spending

  • Green Hotels
  • Green Cars
    • Best Cars under $20,000
    • Test Drives
    • Diesel Cars
    • Electric Cars
    • Hybrid Cars
    • Hydrogen Fuel Cell
    • Luxury Drives
  • Travel Deals
    • Free
    • Budget Travel
    • Discount Tickets
  • Xplore More
    • Safety and Health
    • How To
    • Five Best
    • Travel Pioneers
    • Motorcycles
    • Vintage Cars
  • Scam Alert
  • Where to Go Next
    • Historic Travel
    • Epic Adventures
    • National Parks
Home » Happy 130th Birthday of the Automobile

Happy 130th Birthday of the Automobile

1 Comment

Carl Benz patent for motorized wagon

It was a day that would change the world by setting it in motion. Happy 130th birthday to the automobile, born January 29, 1886, when German engineer Carl Benz applied for a patent on his “gas-powered vehicle”.

Later the same year and independently of Benz, German engineer and tinkerer Gottlieb Daimler built his motorized carriage and also applied for a patent.

It was not until many years later that the two competitors merged their companies to create the company we all know as Mercedes-Benz.

The birth certificate of the automobile bears the number DRP 37435, for the patent on a “gas-powered vehicle” filed by the Mannheim engineer Carl Benz and registered with the German Imperial Patent Office in Berlin.

The 130-year-old document is testimony to Carl Benz’s innovative spirit, creative power and entrepreneurial vision.

Since 2011, the patent document has been part of UNESCO’s Memory of the World Programme, which also includes the Gutenberg Bible, the Magna Carta and Johann Sebastian Bach’s Mass in B Minor.

 

Carl Benz 1886 patent motorwagen
Carl Benz patented his patented motorized vehicle in 1886, in a 1915 photo

Today it sounds simple, something nearly anybody can do in their garage, but 130 years ago it was revolutionary.


This article is from 2016

Please see a more recent article about

Dr. Carl Benz and Bertha Benz


Dr. Carl Benz installed a high-speed one-cylinder four-stroke engine (954 cc displacement running at 400 rpm with 0.55 kW/0.75 hp output) horizontally in a specially designed chassis.

Top speed was 16 km/h. This three-wheeled patent motor car was an absolute world first: a totally self-contained, self-propelled vehicle powered by an internal combustion engine.

First public appearance of the motorcar

The patent motor car made its first public appearance on 3 July 1886 on Ringstrasse in Mannheim.

But it was the long-distance journey by Bertha Benz from Mannheim to Pforzheim and back in 1888 in the improved Model III patent motor car that was to fully demonstrate the automobile’s suitability for everyday use.

The contraptions were not selling well. They scared the horses, and getting fuel was complicated.

So Mrs. Benz decided to take matters into her own hands and save her husband’s invention to save the family from financial ruin.

Bertha Benz_500p

Bertha Benz Route

One morning, Bertha Benz left her husband asleep in his bed in Manheim, and bundled up two of their sons to make the first long-distance journey in history, the grand distance of about 75 miles,

 

to her mother’s house in Pforzheim.  The escapade generated headlines throughout Germany, even internationally, and helped popularize the horseless carriage.

Today, her trip likely would go viral on social media, and Bertha Benz would be crowned as the marketing queen of the automotive industry.

The Bertha Benz Route is now a historical trail in Germany.  Read my recent article for AOL Travel.

Mercedes Benz Museum Stuttgart

Mercedes-Benz Museum

The pioneering inventions of Carl Benz and Gottlieb Daimler brought a revolutionary, new dimension to mobility. Both Carl Benz’s patent motor car and Gottlieb Daimler’s motorized carriage, both deveoped in 1886, are the first things visitors see on the tour of the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart.

The visionary path continues through 130 years of mobility, including the latest developments in connectivity and the road to the driverless car.

The Museum celebrates its tenth anniversary in 2016, growing the number of seven million visitors. I’ve visited several times, and it never gets old.

I will admit that my favorite car here is the 1936 500K.  The last time I visited, I specifically wore a red top to match the car.

1936 Mercedes-Benz 500K
ecoXplorer Evelyn Kanter with the 500K

photos courtesy Mercedes-Benz and ecoXplorer Evelyn Kanter

Thanks for visiting ecoXplorer. Stay up to date with the latest news about green travel, green cars, smart spending and frugal living by subscribing. It's free. RSS feed.
Welcome back to exoXplorer. Stay up to date with the latest news about green travel, green cars and smart spending by subscribing. It's free. RSS feed.

Share this:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Telegram (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Skype (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)

Related

Related Posts:

  • Bertha Benz: Automotive Pioneer
  • Happy Birthday to the Automobile, Born Aug. 26, 1885
  • Automotive History: 120 Years of Mercedes
  • 24 Best Historic Golf Courses in USA
  • Mercedes-Benz Relaunches Maybach Super-Luxury Car
  • Historic Hotels for a Romantic Proposal

Filed Under: Grab Bag, Travel Pioneers, Travel Technology, Vintage Cars, Where to go Next Tagged With: Auto_History, Bertha Benz, Carl Benz, GermanyTourism, Gottlieb Daimler, MBUSA, Mercedes-Benz, Stuttgart

What do you think? We value your comments and love hearing from you. Cancel reply

ecoXplorer is your guide to smart spending and eco-friendly living

Evelyn Kanter is a journalist with 20+ years of experience as a newspaper and magazine writer, radio & TV news producer & reporter, and guidebook and smartphone app author – all focusing on travel, automotive, the environment and your rights as a consumer.

Evelyn currently serves as President of the International Motor Press Assn. (IMPA), and is a past Board Member of a prestigious professional group for travel journalists.

Contact me at evelyn@ecoxplorer.com.

Most Popular Recent Posts

  • Scam Alert: Kars4Kids Car Donation Charity
    Scam Alert: Kars4Kids Car Donation Charity
  • 2 Reasons to Avoid Jimmy John's
    2 Reasons to Avoid Jimmy John's
  • Where to Eat in Times Square & Theater District at Local Restaurants Not National Chains
    Where to Eat in Times Square & Theater District at Local Restaurants Not National Chains
  • How to Help Victims of Earthquake in Turkey & Syria
    How to Help Victims of Earthquake in Turkey & Syria
  • Scam Alert: Mideast Peace Charities
    Scam Alert: Mideast Peace Charities
  • Free Hotel Rooms for Cancer Patients
    Free Hotel Rooms for Cancer Patients
  • Veterans Day Restaurant Freebies & Discounts
    Veterans Day Restaurant Freebies & Discounts
  • Donating Your Car to Charity Pros & Cons
    Donating Your Car to Charity Pros & Cons
  • Caribbean Resort Update After Hurricane Irma
    Caribbean Resort Update After Hurricane Irma
  • NYC Guide: Airport Transportation
    NYC Guide: Airport Transportation

Search ecoXplorer by category

© 2010-2022 EcoXplorer by Evelyn Kanter. All the stories and photos on our site are protected by US (C) Copyright laws. Any unauthorized copying is strictly prohibited. Plus, it’s just not nice.

  • Home
  • About Evelyn Kanter
  • Evelyn Kanter’s Books & Apps
  • Evelyn Kanter In The News
  • Workshops
  • NYC Travel Guru

ecoXplorer.com is an independent information service which is compensated by advertisers and sponsors. This site includes some links to other websites which are compensated for by our sponsors when you click them.

 

Loading Comments...