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Nicolas Joseph Cugnot, a French military engineer, builds the first steam vehicle to run under its own power on a common road. His vehicle weighs about two and one-half tons and travels six miles per hour. The capacity of the steam boiler is too small though and the vehicle can be driven for only about 12 to 15 minutes, after which it is necessary to stop for the same length of time to generate more steam. Its tremendous weight and poor balance make it very difficult to steer and hard to handle. A second vehicle is built about 18 months later, but the project is soon dropped.

1787

Oliver Evans, in Maryland, patents a steam engine for use in land transportation.

1789

Oliver Evans is the first American to apply a steam engine to a road vehicle. He obtains the first American patent covering a “self-propelled” carriage on October 17, 1789.

1797

The English mining engineer, Richard Trevithick, Jr., begins to work on a high-pressure steam engine. His work is seen by many as publicly hazardous.

1801

After experimenting for several years with small models, Richard Trevithick is the first to make a real steam carriage for road use and to carry passengers. On Christmas Eve, 1801, the first test is conducted. He chooses a steep hill for the initial trial, to make the experiment more difficult. Horses have difficulty going up the hill at a walking speed. The half-mile test is completed with several passengers at a speed of five to six miles per hour on the hill and eight or nine miles per hour on the level. Three days later a longer trip of three miles is made. During another run a few days later, the boiler catches fire, destroying the carriage.

Oliver Evans begins to build what turned out to be a combination land and water vehicle.

1803

Richard Trevithick builds an improved steam carriage. He drives it around London, reaching speeds of 8 to 9 miles per hour. His funding then runs out, and the engine is sold.

1804

When completed in 1804, the land and water vehicle, a 30-feet long 20-ton steam dredge called the “Orukter Amphiblolos” or Amphibious Digger, is driven through the streets of Philadelphia and launched in the river. This is the first vehicle to move under its own power across the streets of Philadelphia as well as the first amphibian vehicle built.

1827

The differential gear for automobiles is invented by the Frenchman, Onesiphore Pecqueur. While building a small model of Cugnot’s vehicle, Pecqueur realizes its limitations and designs an improved steam wagon upon which he applies for patents in 1827. This early vehicle uses the differential gear to compensate for the difference in speeds of the two rear wheels when going around corners. Today’s automobiles use a differential almost identical with Pecqueur’s.

1832

W. H. James of England patents a vehicle having a rudimentary three-speed transmission. He is one of the first to recognize the need for flexibility in a self-propelled vehicle.

1837

Thomas Davenport, a blacksmith from Vermont, patents the first electric motor.

1839

The first electric-powered road vehicle is believed to have been built in Scotland about 1839 by Robert Anderson. An electrical engine can start immediately and run quietly but batteries are heavy, unreliable and need to be recharged after a short run.

1860

The first internal combustion engine is built by Etienne Lenoir of France. It is quite different from the modern engine as it uses illuminating gas for fuel and an electric spark for ignition. It is used to drive machinery and becomes the first commercial gas engine.

1866

Otto and Langen of Germany improve upon the gas engine by developing and patenting a petroleum engine, which uses the four-stroke principle (induction, compression, explosion, exhaust). This type of engine is still used today on almost all cars.

1869

Robert McLaughlin opens a carriage shop in Enniskillen, Ontario. From this, eventually came General Motors of Canada.

1870

A small steam-condensing engine, which works by solar power, is built in England by John Ericson.

1873

In France, Amédée Bollée builds a self-propelled carriage called L’Obéissante and drives it around Paris. It has independently suspended front wheels and two V-twin steam engines, one for each rear wheel.

1878

Amédée Bollée’s second vehicle, La Mancelle, is revolutionary in design. It has a front-mounted engine with a hood.

1879

Karl Benz builds his first two-stroke gasoline engine.

1882

Backed by French aristocrat Comte Albert de Dion, George Bouton and George Trépardoux build a factory to make steam carriages. They quickly start filling up orders for light steam vehicles.

1885

An automobile is put into production for the first time by Karl Benz. For the first time a vehicle was perfected, put into production and people bought it. The automobile is a three-wheeled vehicle with a four-cycle gasoline engine.

1886

Daimler carries out tests with a gas engine mounted on a converted four-seater phaeton carriage.

In Lansing, Michigan, Olds builds his first steam-powered automobile (He will later switch to internal combustion). He enters the 1895 Great Chicago Auto Race, but does not have a car ready in time that he thinks would be good enough to compete with the Benz models from Europe.

1887

In France, Léon Serpollet obtains the first driving licence.

1888

A race between the de Dion-Bouton and Serpollet steam vehicles is organized in Paris. The de Dion-Bouton steamer wins.

1893

An early American automobile was the one-cylinder, three-wheeled phaeton built by Charles Duryea and his brother Frank.

German inventor Rudolph Diesel builds and patents an engine in which air is compressed by a piston to a very high pressure, causing a high temperature. Fuel is then injected and ignited by the compression temperature.

1895

Benz builds the first motor powered omnibus in the world.

Six cars are at the starting line of the great Chicago Auto Race on Nov. 28. Two of them are electrics and quickly run out of power. Left to race are the Duryea and three Benz “motocycles”. When the race is over, an American car has beaten the best from Europe. Perhaps more importantly, the Duryeas’ car make it clear that the automobile is here to stay and that it will soon become the prime mode of transportation.

1896

After his success in Chicago, Frank Duryea returns to Massachusetts and begins building the Duryea car. Together with his brother Charles, they found the U.S. auto industry by building and selling 13 vehicles based on the same design. Benz builds the world’s first truck.

Daimler Motor Company Ltd. is formed.

1897

After he has already built a number of vehicles, R. E. Olds forms the Olds Motor Vehicle Company.

The first automobile insurance is sold.

In Cleveland, Alexander Winton, another early carmaker, uses a steering wheel instead of a tiller for the first time and puts the engine in front of the driver instead of under the car. He is also credited with franchising the first new-car dealer.

In France, Louis Renault builds the Voiturette on the Dion-Bouton tricycle base and featuring the first direct drive transmission. He drives it on an impressive 13% gradient street without difficulty, a first for the “horseless carriage”. The response is immediate: 12 Voiturettes are ordered to be delivered by the end of 1899.

1899

The first garage in the U.S. opens in Boston.

1900

By 1900, steam-powered vehicles proved dangerous, and though they still have 40% of the market, their share is rapidly declining. Electrics, on the other hand, double their share between 1898 and 1900, grabbing 38% of the market. Gasoline engines at the time are so unreliable their share is stagnant at 22%.

Ransom E. Olds builds a plant especially for the production of cars. Among the cars built there is a small, light horseless carriage with a single-cylinder, water-cooled four-cycle engine at the rear, the Curved Dash Olds.

First National Auto Show opens at Madison Square Garden in New York.

1901

Discovery of a seemingly inexhaustible supply of oil near Beaumont, Texas. These rich deposits of petroleum make gasoline readily available and give added impetus to the internal combustion engine in its competition with steam and electric power.

In March, fire destroys most of the Olds Plant and the only car that is saved is the Curved Dash olds. Olds decides to rebuild immediately and to put all the firm’s production resources into the little Curved Dash Olds, the “Merry Oldsmobile”.

To Oldsmobile also goes the credit for bringing the automobile out of the luxury class, and down to a price level which makes it available to more of the general public. A car was envisioned which weighed 500 pounds and could be sold for $500. Actually, when the famous Curved-Dash Oldsmobile runabout car is finished, it weighs 700 pounds and is sold for $650. Between 1901 and 1904, over 12,000 Oldsmobile cars are built and sold. This is the first volume production car in the world.

Speedometers appear first on Oldsmobile.

To serve as an advertisement, a Curved Dash Olds is driven from Detroit to New York. This is the longest automobile trip that had been made in the U.S. up until that time.

1902

Packard patents the “H” gear shift pattern.

1903

Ford Motor Company is incorporated with $28,000 capital. Model A, a small, two-cylinder car with an eight-horsepower engine, is the first Ford model to come out.

1904

Early British nameplates are Rolls Royce and Rover.

1905

Cars are sold for the first time on an installment plan.

1906

New York holds two auto shows. Ford’s Model K is introduced at Madison Square Garden. It is big, heavy, and expensive. It can go 90 km/h with its six-cylinder, 40-horsepower engine, it sells for $2,800, $2,000 more than a Cadillac. Ford loses money on every one sold, and decides to concentrate on a light, simple model that can be sold inexpensively. The new design is to be called the Model T.

The first car is stolen in St. Louis.

1908

Ford’s Model “T” or the “universal car” as Henry Ford called it, becomes the symbol of low-cost, reliable transportation. The first year’s production of Model T’s reaches 10,660, breaking all records for the industry.

The General Motors Company is incorporated in New Jersey by William Durant. Buick and Oldsmobile become part of it.

Cadillac is the first U.S. automaker to be awarded the prestigious Dewar Trophy for the concept of standardized interchangeable parts.

154 McLaughlin automobiles are built – the first ever in Canada. The Canadian auto industry is born with the McLaughlin Motor Car Co.

Packard introduces the first rumble seat.

General Motors introduces the first electric headlamps.

1909

Cadillac and Oakland join the General Motors Company.

1911

Another outstanding contribution to automotive progress is the electric self-starter, invented by Charles F. Kettering and applied to the 1911 Cadillac. The self-starter doubles the market for cars since it allows women to start the engine without danger of a vicious kickback.

Chevrolet Motor Company is organized.

1912

Cadillac adopts the modern electric starter.

First gas station opens by Standard Oil (Cincinnati, OH).

1913

The Royal Mail and the Baby Grand are the first to carry the now-famous Chevrolet “bowtie”, a design motif William Durant reportedly had seen in some wallpaper in a Paris hotel.

1914

Henry Ford announces the $5 day for workers at his company. His theory is: If more cars are to be sold, people must be able to afford them.

Already rich and famous (they have been building engines, transmissions and axles for R.E. Olds and Henry Ford for years), John and Horace Dodge begin building their own car. “Dependability” is the word for those true pioneers of the auto industry.

1915

Cadillac introduces the first successfully-built V8 engine in the United States.

McLaughlin Carriage Co sold; Chevrolet Motor Co. of Canada formed by R.S. and G.W. McLaughlin.

1917

Leland leaves General Motors and organizes the Lincoln Motor Co. to build airplane engines.

Car heaters start to appear on several models.

1918

Chevrolet Motor Company joins General Motors.

Chevrolet Motor Co. of Canada and McLaughlin Motor Car Co. merged and sold to General Motors Corporation to form General Motors of Canada Limited. 20,000 vehicles built in Canada that year.

1919

Oregon enacts the first state gasoline tax.

1920

Leland builds the first Lincoln car to challenge Cadillac in the luxury-car field.

The pneumatic tire is introduced.

1921

The first drive-in restaurant in the United States opens in Dallas, Texas.

1923

The Sloan era begins at General Motors, an era that would transform the corporation, the American auto industry and American industry in general.

Out of a product first discovered almost a century before as a high explosive is developed a highly durable coloured finish for automobile bodies. Duco Lacquers, one of the greatest aids to true mass production, are first introduced on a production automobile by Oakland in 1923.

GM initiates annual model change.

1924

Another outstanding improvement on a production automobile is made in 1924 when Buick introduces four-wheel brakes. These have been used on custom-built cars, here and abroad, for several years but the problem of applying them in quantity production is not solved until this time.

Walter P. Chrysler forms Chrysler Corporation.

Detroit has its Big Three.

Leaded gasoline goes on sale.

Chevrolet offers first radio option.

An innkeeper in California puts up a sign that is to spread across the nation. He combines hotel and motor into the word “motel”. At the same time in Florida, the word “drive-in” comes to life.

1925

The Dodge Brothers Motor Car Co. is sold to a New York bank for $146 million, the biggest cash deal up to that time in the auto industry. Less than three years later, the bankers sell it to Chrysler Corp. for $170 million.

The Lincoln Highway, the first interstate highway, opens. It connects motorists from New York to San Francisco.

The first rental car: the Hertz “Driveurself”.

1926

Cadillac introduces shatter-resistant safety glass.

Chrome plated trim, an important styling asset, is first introduced. Oldsmobile first uses it on radiator shell.

Oakland introduces the Pontiac.

The Daimler and Benz companies merge and Mercedes becomes Mercedes-Benz

1927

The last of 15.5 million Model Ts are built, and the Ford Model A is unveiled.

The LaSalle is the first production car done completely by an automobile stylist, Harley Earl.

1927 is referred to as “the polychrome year of automotive history” as Buick models are offered in a striking new range of paint colours.

A Swedish ball-bearing company named Volvo (Latin for “I roll”) begins building automobiles.

1928

Cadillac introduces synchromesh transmission.

Coast-to-coast bus service begins.

A German company named Bayerische Motoren-Werke begins building a car called BMW.

1929

The modern automobile is mechanically complete by 1929. All the major mechanical developments since then have been improvements or refinements of existing systems.

The Great Depression of 1929 causes a slump in U.S. automotive sales. New-car sales in the U. S. drop drastically and would not reach pre-crash level again for 20 years. General Motors stock went from $73 in September 1929 to $36 in October, to $8 in 1932. U.S. auto plants produced more than 5.5 million cars and trucks. By 1932, output fell to less than 1.4 million. Many nameplates are wiped out. Essex gives up in 1931, Franklin in 1934, Reo (Ransom E. Olds second automotive venture) in 1936 and the magnificent Pierce-Arrow goes under in 1937.

1930

The Auburn Automobile Co., Auburn, Ind., produces three American classics, the Auburn, the Cord and the Duesenberg (among the very finest cars ever built in the U.S.), all of which go out of production during the Depression.

1932

Oldsmobile and Packard engines feature automatic chokes.

In Japan, DAT builds a car called Datsun. Most of the Japanese nameplates familiar to the modern world did not yet exist.

1933

General Motors develops the built-in-trunk.

The first drive-in theater in the U. S opens in Camden, New Jersey.

1934

Knee action (individual front wheel suspension by means of coil springs) for safer and smoother riding is introduced on all 1934 model GM cars. Also, passenger safety is increased with the introduction of the solid steel turret top. General Motors conducts the first rollover and barrier impact tests.

In Germany, the “Volkswagen”, or “People’s Car”, is introduced.

1935

Chevrolet is a pioneer in the station wagon field with the introduction of the Suburban Carryall, the first all-steel wagon.

First automatic parking meter, the Park-O-Meter, is installed in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

1936

Fifty-four per cent of U.S. families now own cars.

1937

The first automatic transmission, as we know it, appears on an Oldsmobile.

Pontiac moves the gearshift from the floor where it had always been to the steering column, a complicated change.

1938

Studebaker offers windshield washers.

1939

General Motors introduces Hydra-matic, the first completely automatic shift transmission, on Oldsmobile’s 1940 models.

General Motors introduces the first turn signals in the automotive industry.

The first concept car is the Buick “Y-Job”. It incorporates ideas that have been used for years throughout General Motors’ lineup.

1940

Two outstanding developments reach the commercial stage and are made available to car buyers in 1940. The GM-developed automatic transmission (Hydra-matic) eliminates the need for operating a clutch and shifting gears by hand. Sealed beam headlamps improve night time visibility and are used by almost all automakers on their 1940 models. The sealed beam headlamps are developed through the cooperation of the automotive and electrical industries, motor vehicle administrators, and various safety organizations.

1941

Packard is the first to offer air conditioning.

The Automotive Council for War Production is organized, forming the core of the Arsenal of Democracy. Chrysler becomes the first company in the world to mass-produce tanks, Ford builds combat vehicles, General Motors turns out machine guns and antiaircraft guns, Studebaker accepts a contract for aircraft engines and Willys begins delivering the “Jeep”.

1942

On February 9, the last passenger car for the duration of the war rolls off the line.

1946

Chevrolet’s television advertisements are among the first to appear.

Oldsmobile becomes the first automobile manufacturer to consider the needs of the physically impaired with the introduction of the Valiant program.

1947

Packard offers power seats and windows in its automobiles.

1948

General Motors introduces curved glass windshields, increasing driver vision and reducing glare.

The ‘48 Cadillac has small, attractive fin-like curves on its rear fenders to house its taillights. GM styling boss Harley Earl says he was inspired by the P-38, a twin-fuselage World War II fighter plane.

First radial tire, the Michelin X, is introduced.

1949

The ‘49 model year is the big one. All remaining prewar designs are swept away. The ‘49 Ford, with fenders fully integrated into the body, is a classic statement of modern car design.

General Motors fields the first true hardtops.

The horsepower race starts with the introduction of General Motors’ new high compression engines introduced by Cadillac (V-8) and Oldsmobile (Rocket 88). These engines provide improved efficiency, greater power, and better fuel economy and are designed to be readily adaptable to even higher compression as the continuing progress in fuels permitted.

VW Beetle comes to America.

Seat belts are introduced but consumers complain.

1950

Nash introduces the first mass-produced compact car, the Rambler, with a 100-inch wheelbase.

GM’s 1950 LeSabre, perhaps the most famous concept car of all. Many of the styling concepts used on the LeSabre find their way into GM models and the name is used on a Buick car line.

1952

Packard offers power brakes.

1953

Chevrolet introduces the Corvette, a beautiful fiberglass-bodied sports car.

1954

The Ford Thunderbird is introduced as a V-8 two-seater.

1955

The first McDonald’s drive-in opens.

General Motors establishes the world’s first safety test laboratory at the GM Proving Grounds, Milford, Michigan.

1958

The first cars from Toyota (Toyota Toyopets) and Nissan (Nissan Datsuns) arrive in the United States. The cars are second-rate and there is no sound dealer network to service them. Nissan and Toyota withdraw. But they will be back.

Ford introduces the Nucleon, a futuristic model designed to run on atomic power. It is never manufactured.

1959

Chrysler offers non-glare rearview mirrors.

1960

The Big Three American car companies introduce compact cars to fight Volkswagen. Ford Falcon, Plymouth Valiant and Chevrolet Corvair. The Falcon and the Valiant are very conventional, but the Corvair is all new and revolutionary in many ways. This rear-engine, air-cooled car is obviously designed with the Volkswagen Beetle in mind.

Eighty percent of U.S. families have cars.

1962

The Ford Fairlane and the Mercury Meteor are the first “intermediates”.

1963

The first emission controls are mandated.

1964

The Pontiac GTO is introduced, just beating the Mustang to become the first “muscle car”. The GTO is the car all succeeding muscle cars will be judged by.

All new American cars have front seatbelts standard.

Cadillac is the first to develop automatic temperature control heating and air conditioning for automobiles.

1966

Rear seat belts become standard in the United States.

1967

The Mercury Cougar, Chevrolet Camaro, and the Pontiac Firebird join Mustang as “ponycars”.

1969

The Subaru makes its U.S. debut.

Front headrests are mandated in the United States.

1971

Emission controls are on their way up, horsepower is on its way down, and muscle cars are on their way out.

1973

Chevrolets are offered with air bags, but there are few takers.

The oil embargo. As American cars grew larger, heavier and loaded with options, the problems of excessive fuel consumption becomes clear.

1974

General Motors becomes the first to offer air bags in production vehicles.

Import automotive milestone: Toyota passes VW in sales.

1975

U.S. domestic cars install catalytic converters to cut emissions.

1976

GM begins to market Isuzu under the Opel name through its Buick dealers.

1977

Import sales in the United States hit 2 million for the first time.

1978

Cadillac dashboards feature trip computers to display engine temperature, gas tank level and battery voltage.

1979

The second energy crisis begins.

Two more Japanese nameplates appear in the U.S., Honda and Mazda.

1980

Japanese automakers agree to import restraints.

1982

In June, General Motors launches the Saturn project to develop new designs and advanced manufacturing techniques for small-car production.

Honda becomes the first Japanese maker to assemble cars in the United States.

1984

Chrysler launches the modern minivan.

The world’s first electrically driven, fuel-saving, integral power brake system for cars and light trucks -Powermaster- is unveiled.

1985

The Saturn Corporation is organized.

1986

Centre-mounted brake lights are mandated.

1987

Chrysler takes over AMC, and gets its Jeep.

1989

General Motors introduces its Geo brand.

Automakers join oil Companies in joint venture to develop reformulated fuels to reduce vehicle emissions.

1990

Ford buys Jaguar.

The Cadillac Allante is the first front-wheel drive with traction control.

1991

Saturn’s line debuts, the first new U.S. make in 30 years.

1992

Saturn ranks No. 1 in new-car sales per retailer --the first time in 15 years that a domestic nameplate tops the list.

Dodge releases the 400-horsepower Viper.

1993

Pickup and sport utility vehicle sales begin to take off.

1994

Nonpolluting air-conditioning coolant is adopted.

1995

Chevrolet unveils the first three-door pickup.

1996

With the introduction of the EV1 and the Chevrolet S-10 pickup, GM becomes the first automaker in modern times to market a specifically-designed electric vehicle to the public.

100th anniversary of the assembly and sale of the first “production” vehicle, the 1896 Duryea.

1997

Oldsmobile celebrates its 100th birthday, becoming America’s oldest car company.

1998

Saturn introduces the world’s first 3-door Coupe.