Saddlebags or panniers
Saddlebags or panniers mount on either side of the rear wheel behind the saddle to carry parts, tools, and/or travel gear. They can be made of fiberglass, ABS, leather, Cordura, or other appropriate sturdy material. They are normally standard items on touring motorcycles, but are usually optional on other types of motorcycles. They can be model-specific and available from a motorcycle's manufacturer, or after-market and designed to fit on numerous models.
Heated handgrips on a BMW
Heated hand grips/seats
As motorcycles lack climate control or proper protection from the wind, some manufacturers offer heated seats or hand grips to relieve the discomfort of wind chill during night riding or the colder months. They can also be added on as after market accessories and are powered by the bike's battery.
Luggage rack
A common addition to many bikes is an attachment onto which bags or other luggage can be fastened. This removes the need for rider backpacks and is generally a more secure and safe way to add carrying capacity to a motorcycle.
Sidecar
Main article: Sidecar
IMZ-Ural motorcycle with sidecar
A sidecar is a one-wheeled device attached to the side of a motorcycle, producing a three-wheeled vehicle. Early sidecars were intended to be removable devices that could be detached from the motorcycle. Sidecars gradually superseded forecars and trailers. The forecar comprised a two-wheeled attachment attached to the front of the motorcycle; the trailer was just that, leaving the passenger to be hauled along behind the vehicle. In neither case could rider and passenger converse easily – this may be why early sidecars were often called 'sociable' attachments.
Trailer hitch
Main article: Motorcycle trailer
A trailer hitch or tow hitch is a device mounted on a motorcycle that enables it to tow a motorcycle trailer, usually in order to haul additional gear. No motorcycle manufacturer recommends that a trailer be towed by one if its motorcycles because it creates additional safety hazards for motorcyclists.
Trunk
Main article: Trunk (motorcycle)
A motorcycle trunk is a storage compartment in the vicinity of the seat, other than panniers or saddlebags. A trunk mounted above and to the rear of the seat is also called a top box.
[edit] Social aspects
Main article: Motorcycling
[edit] Subcultures
A motorcycle rally in Ontario
Around the world, motorcycles have historically been associated with subcultures. Some of these subcultures have been loose-knit social groups such as the cafe racers of 1950s Britain, and the Mods and Rockers of the 1960s. A few are believed to be criminal gangs.
Social motorcyclist organisations are popular and are sometimes organised geographically, focus on individual makes, or even specific models. Example motorcycle clubs include: American Motorcyclist Association, Harley Owners Group, Gold Wing Road Riders (GWRRA), and BMW MOA.
Many motorcycle organisations raise money for charities through organised events and rides. Some organisations hold large international rallies in different parts of the world that are attended by many thousands of riders.
[edit] Mobility
While the reasons for people choosing to ride motorcycles are many and varied, those reasons are increasingly practical, with riders opting for a powered two-wheeler as a cost-efficient alternative to infrequent and expensive public transport systems, or as a means of avoiding or reducing the effects of urban congestion.[8] In places where it is permitted, lane splitting, also known as filtering, allows motorcycles to use the space between vehicles to continue moving through stationary or slow traffic.[9]
In England, motorcycles are exempt from the £8 per day London congestion charge other vehicles have to pay to enter the city during the day. Motorcycles are also exempt from toll bridge charges at some crossings, such as the Severn Bridge and Dartford Crossing. Some cities, such as Bristol, allow motorcycles to use bus lanes and provide dedicated free parking. In the United States, those states that have high-occupancy vehicle lanes also allow for motorcycle travel in them. Other countries have similar policies.
In many cultures, motorcycles are the primary means of motorised transport. According to the Taiwanese government, for example, "the number of automobiles per ten thousand population is around 2,500, and the number of motorcycles is about 5,000."[10]
[edit] Safety
Main articles: Motorcycle safety and Motorcycle safety clothing
Motorcycles have a far higher rate of crippling and fatal accidents per unit distance than automobiles. According to the U. S. Highway Safety Authority, in 2004 15.0 cars out of 100,000 ended up in fatal crashes while the rate for motorcycles is 69.3 per 100,000 (a ratio of 4.6 to 1). The picture is worse when distance travelled are taken into account: in 2004 in the U.S., there were 0.4 motorcyclist fatalities per million miles compared to 0.012 passenger car occupant fatalities per million miles (a ratio of 33 to 1).
The two major causes of motorcycle accidents in the United States, i.e., (1) motorists pulling out or turning in front of motorcyclists and violating their rights-of-way and (2) motorcyclists running wide in turns and crashing, are made more likely when motorcyclists mix drinking with riding.[11] Motorcyclists can do much to anticipate and avoid these crashes by getting proper training, increasing their conspicuity to other traffic, and separating alcohol and riding.
An MSF rider course for novices
The United Kingdom has a number of organisations which are dedicated to improving motorcycle safety by providing advanced rider training over and above what is necessary to pass the basic motorcycle test. These include the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) and the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA). Along with increased personal safety, riders with these advanced qualifications often benefit from reduced insurance costs.
Motorcycle Safety Education is offered throughout the United States by a number of organisations ranging from state agencies to non-profit organisations to corporations. The courses, designed by the Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF), include a Basic Rider Course, an Intermediate Rider Course and an Advanced Rider Course.
In some Australian jurisdictions, such as New South Wales,[12] the Australian Capital Territory[13] and the Northern Territory,[14] it is compulsory to undertake a rider training course before being issued a Learners Licence.
In Canada, motorcycle rider training is compulsory in Quebec and Manitoba only, but all provinces and territories have Graduated Licensing programs which place restrictions on new drivers until they have gained more experience. Eligibility for a full motorcycle license or endorsement for completing a Motorcycle Safety course varies from province to province. The Canada Safety Council (CSC), a non-profit safety organisation, offers the Gearing Up program across Canada and is endorsed by the Motorcycle and Moped Industry Council.[15] Again, training course graduates often benefit with reduced insurance premiums.
[edit] Types of motorcycles
Main article: Types of motorcycle
There are three major types of motorcycle, street, off-road, and dual purpose. Within these types, there are many different sub-types of motorcycles for many different purposes.
Harley-Davidson Softail Heritage Classic. A typical "cruiser" design
Modenas Kriss underbone motorcycle.
An Italian 125cc Cagiva Planet.A standard motorbike
A Kawasaki ZX-7RR sport bike
A BMW R1200RT touring bike
A Honda motocross bike
The popular Kawasaki KLR650 dual-purpose motorcycle
[edit] Street
Choppers: Highly customised motorcycles based on a cruiser-style frame with long rake (longer front forks) and wild paint jobs. These are created more for show than ridability.
Cruisers: A range of small to large motorcycles designed for comfort and looks with a relaxed upright seating position. They are notable for their heavy use of chrome and are often highly customised.
Electric motorcycles: Nearly silent, zero-emission electric motor-driven vehicles. Operating range and top speed suffer because of limitations of battery technology. Fuel cells and petroleum-electric hybrids are also under development to extend the range and improve performance of the electric motors.
Mini bikes: Very small bikes designed to be simple runaround fun for both children and adults. Generally they have no hand-operated clutch or gearbox to simplify operation. Also known as Mini Motos. Not street-legal in most countries and jurisdictions. May be used for racing by all age levels.
Mopeds: Small, light, inexpensive, efficient rides for getting around town. Usually started by pedaling (motorcycle + pedals = moped).
Underbones: Small motorcycle which is a crossover between a scooter and a true motorcycle with step-through frame, popular in Southeast Asia. While the fuel tank for most motorcycles are tear-shaped and located at the top and just behind the instrument panel, the fuel tank for an underbone motorcycle is located under the seat.
Naked bikes/Standard/Street bikes: Naked bikes have a riding position midway between the forward position of a sports bike and the reclined position of a cruiser. Unlike touring bikes, naked bikes often have little or no fairing (hence the title). Luggage capabilities are often an optional extra. Naked bikes are popular for commuting and other city riding as the upright riding position gives greater visibility in heavy traffic (both for the rider and to other road users) and are more comfortable than the hunched over sport bikes. Note that naked bike and standard are not fully interchangeable terms. Naked refers to the lack of bodywork and standard refers to the upright riding position.
Scooters: Motorbikes with a step-through frame and generally smaller wheels than those of a traditional motorcycle. Can be ridden without straddling any part of the bike. Available in sport, commuter, and touring models.
Sport bikes: Fast, light, sleek motorcycles designed for maximum performance, for racing or spirited road riding. They are distinguishable by their full fairings and the rider's tipped-forward seating position. They are also called "race replicas" because of their connection to the racing category for production motorcycles known as Superbike racing. The power to weight ratio of the 900 cc+ models typically matches or exceeds one bhp of power for every one kg of mass.
Racing bikes: Motorcycles designed for circuit or road racing, including mass-production motorcycles modified for motorcycle racing or sport riding.
Street customs: Highly customised motorcycles with wild paint jobs also built for show, but constructed from a sport bike frame instead of a cruiser-style frame.
Touring motorcycles: Touring bikes are designed for rider and passenger comfort, luggage carrying capacity, and reliability. Cruisers, sport bikes and some dual-sports can also be used as touring bikes with the addition of aftermarket luggage and seats. Common throughout the touring market are usually large-displacement fairings and windshields (for weather and wind protection), large-capacity fuel tanks (for long-range travel), engines offering lots of torque instead of horsepower, and a more relaxed, basically upright seating position.
Sport touring motorcycles: Sport-tourers are factory-built hybrids of a sport bike and a touring motorcycle. They are built for comfort, while maintaining a forward-leaning riding position.
[edit] Off-road
Motocross bikes: Motorcycles designed for racing over closed circuits, often with jumps, over varied terrain of gravel/mud/sand. Sometimes simply called "dirt bikes" when not being raced, they can also be used for informal off-road recreation, or "mudding."
Supermotos: Beginning in the mid-1990s, motocross machines fitted with street wheels and tyres similar to those used on Sport bikes began to appear. These are known as "Supermotards", and riders of these machines compete in specially organised rallies and races.
Trials motorcycles: Motorcycles made as light as possible, with no seat (as they are designed to be ridden standing up), in order to provide maximum freedom of body positioning and stunt capability for use in observed trials competition.
[edit] Dual-purpose
Dual-sports: Road-legal machines offering a compromise in highway and off-road performance, durability and comfort. Since the requirements are often conflicting, the manufacturer has to choose one or the other, resulting in a great variety of bikes in this category.
Enduros: Road-legal versions of a motocross machine, i.e., featuring high ground clearance and copious suspension with minimal creature comforts. Highly unsuitable for long distance road travel. The features that differ from the motocross versions are the silencers, the flywheel weights and the presence of features necessary for highway use.
Adventure Touring: Closely related to dual-sports, adventure tourers are motorcycles with lighter weight than just about any other bike considered a tourer, but heavier than any traditional dual-sport. Adventure tourers can handle with aplomb rough dirt paths such as fire roads however, for their weight they are generally not suited for anything more strenuous than that. The advantage is their increased number of luxury features and larger engines which make on-road
Various additions may be attached to a motorcycle or come as an integral part of a motorcycle from the factory.
Full fairing on a Honda Gold Wing
Fairing
Main article: Fairing
A plastic or fibreglass shell, known as a "fairing", is placed over the frame on some models to shield the rider from the wind, aid in aerodynamics and protect engine components in an accident and also from theft. Drag is the major factor that limits motorcycle speed, as it increases at the square of the velocity, with the resultant required power increasing with the cube of velocity. As can be seen from the streamlined appearance of new performance motorcycles, there is much aerodynamic technology included in the design. Unfortunately, since the 1958 FIM ban on "dustbin" fairings no major manufacturer has been bold enough to overcome the effect of the turbulence caused by the spinning front wheel, which prevents the motorcycle from cutting a clean path through the air. The "dustbin" fairing can improve aerodynamic performance without unacceptably compromising the rider's ability to control the machine, although with a weight penalty.
An example of a fairing on a Honda CBR1000F
In the absence of a fairing or windshield, a phenomenon known as the windsock effect occurs at speeds above 100 km/h, where the rider becomes a major source of drag and is pushed back from the handlebars, tiring the rider. However, these motorcycles still effectively push their way through the atmosphere with brute force. A cabin cycle, which has a hull that wraps around the basic cycle frame, solved the problem of aerodynamics by isolating driver from outside air.
Modern fairings on touring and sport-touring motorcycles dramatically improve a rider's comfort and attention on long rides by reducing the effect of the wind and rain on the body. They also help keep a rider warm in cold weather, reducing hypothermia. Heated hand grips, and even heated seats, also improve rider comfort in cold weather. Motorcycles from a number of manufacturers now have electric windshields, introduced on the 1986 BMW K100LT, which raise and lower the windshield with the push of a button to the optimum height for conditions.
[edit] Fuel economy
Motorcycle fuel economy benefits from the relatively small mass of the vehicle, compared to its passengers and to other motor vehicles, and subsequent small engine displacement. However, poor aerodynamics of exposed passengers and engines designed for goals other than fuel economy can work to reduce these benefits.
Fuel economy varies greatly with engine displacement from a low of 29 mpg U.S. (8.1 L/100km) reported by a Honda VTR1000F rider,[4] to 107 mpg U.S. (2.2 L/100km) reported for the Verucci Nitro 50 cc Scooter.[5] A specially designed Matzu Matsuzawa Honda XL125 achieved 470 mpg U.S. (0.5 L/100km) "on real highways - in real conditions."[6]
[edit] Dynamics
Main article: Bicycle and motorcycle dynamics
Motorcycles must be leaned in order to turn. This lean can be induced by a method known as countersteering, in which the rider turns the handlebars in the direction opposite of the desired direction of turn. In other words, press forward on the handgrip in the desired direction—press right to go right, press left to go left. This concept is counter-intuitive and often very confusing to novices—and even to many experienced motorcyclists.[7]
The primary effect of countersteering is to shift the front tire contact patch such that a lean is initiated. Other methods allegedly used for turning a motorcycle, such as shifting weight to the side or the pegs, only help leaning the body of the motorcycle towards a direction; thus turning the front wheel in the opposite direction due to the preservation of angular momentum, and eventually resulting in countersteering.
Short wheelbase motorcycles, such as sport bikes, can generate enough torque at the rear wheel and enough stopping force at the front wheel to lift the other wheel off the pavement. These actions, if performed on purpose, are known as wheelies and stoppies respectively. If carried past the point of recovery the resulting upset is known as "looping" the vehicle.
However, if one counts two wheels with steam propulsion as being a motorcycle, then the first one may have been American. One such machine was demonstrated at fairs and circuses in the eastern U.S. in 1867, built by Sylvester Howard Roper of Roxbury, Massachusetts.[1]
In 1894, Hildebrand & Wolfmüller became the first motorcycle available for purchase.[2] In the early period of motorcycle history, many producers of bicycles adapted their designs to accommodate the new internal combustion engine. As the engines became more powerful, and designs outgrew the bicycle origins, the number of motorcycle producers increased.
An historic 1941 Crocker
Until the First World War, the largest motorcycle manufacturer in the world was Indian, producing over 20,000 bikes per year. By 1920, this honour went to Harley-Davidson, with their motorcycles being sold by dealers in 67 countries, until 1928 when DKW took over as the largest manufacturer.
After the Second World War, the BSA Group became the largest producer of motorcycles in the world, producing up to 75,000 bikes a year in the 1950s. The German company NSU Motorenwerke AG held the position of largest manufacturer from 1955 until the 1970s.
From the 1960s through the 1990s, small two-stroke motorcycles were popular worldwide, partly as a result of East German Walter Kaaden's engine work in the 1950s.[3]
Today, the Japanese manufacturers, Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki, and Yamaha dominate the motorcycle industry, although Harley-Davidson still maintains a high degree of popularity in the United States. Recent years have also seen a resurgence in the popularity of several other brands sold in the U.S. market, including BMW, Triumph, Aprilia, Moto Guzzi and Ducati.
Outside of the USA, these brands have enjoyed continued and sustained success, although Triumph, for example, has been re-incarnated from its former self into a modern world-class manufacturer. In overall numbers, however, the Chinese currently manufacture and sell more motorcycles than any other country and exports are rising. The quality of these machines is asserted to be somewhat lower than their Japanese, European and American counterparts [citation needed].
Additionally, the small-capacity scooter is very popular through most of the world. The Piaggio group of Italy, for example, is one of the world's largest producers of two-wheeled vehicles. The scooter culture has, as yet, not been adopted widely in North America.[
The design of modern cars is typically handled by a large team of designers and engineers from many different disciplines. As part of the product development effort the team of designers will work closely with teams of design engineers responsible for all aspects of the vehicle. These engineering teams include: chassis, body and trim, powertrain, electrical and production. The design team under the leadership of the design director will typically comprise of an exterior designer, an interior designer (usually referred to as stylists), and a color and materials designer. A few other designers will be involved in detail design of both exterior and interior. For example, a designer might be tasked with designing the rear light clusters or the steering wheel. The color and materials designer will work closely with the exterior and interior designers in developing exterior color paints, interior colors, fabrics, leathers, carpet, wood trim, and so on.
In 1924 the American national automobile market began reaching saturation. To maintain unit sales, General Motors instituted annual model-year design changes (also credited to Alfred Sloan) in order to convince car owners they needed a replacement each year. Since 1935 automotive form has been driven more by consumer expectations than engineering improvement.
There have been many efforts to innovate automobile design funded by the NHTSA, including the work of the NavLab group at Carnegie Mellon University.[9] Recent efforts include the highly publicized DARPA Grand Challenge race.[10]
Acceleration, braking, and measures of turning or agility vary widely between different makes and models of automobile. The automotive publication industry has developed around these performance measures as a way to quantify and qualify the characteristics of a particular vehicle. See quarter mile and 0 to 60 mph.
Most automobiles in use today are propelled by gasoline (also known as petrol) or diesel internal combustion engines, which are known to cause air pollution and are also blamed for contributing to climate change and global warming.[11] Increasing costs of oil-based fuels and tightening environmental law and restrictions on greenhouse gas emissions are propelling work on alternative power systems for automobiles. Efforts to improve or replace these technologies include hybrid vehicles, electric vehicles and hydrogen vehicles.
Diesel
Diesel engined cars have long been popular in Europe with the first models being introduced in the 1930s by Mercedes Benz and Citroen. The main benefit of Diesels are a 50% fuel burn efficiency compared with 27%[12] in the best gasoline engines. A down side of the diesel is the presence in the exhaust gases of fine soot particulates and manufacturers are now starting to fit filters to remove these. Many diesel powered cars can also run with little or no modifications on 100% biodiesel.
Gasoline
Gasoline engines have the advantage over diesel in being lighter and able to work at higher rotational speeds and they are the usual choice for fitting in high performance sports cars. Continuous development of gasoline engines for over a hundred years has produced improvements in efficiency and reduced pollution. The carburetor was used on nearly all road car engines until the 1980s but it was long realised better control of the fuel/air mixture could be achieved with fuel injection. Indirect fuel injection was first used in aircraft engines from 1909, in racing car engines from the 1930s, and road cars from the late 1950s.[12] Gasoline Direct Injection (GDI) is now starting to appear in production vehicles such as the 2007 BMW MINI. Exhaust gases are also cleaned up by fitting a catalytic converter into the exhaust system. Clean air legislation in many of the car industries most important markets has made both catalysts and fuel injection virtually universal fittings. Most modern gasoline engines are also capable of running with up to 15% ethanol mixed into the gasoline - older vehicles may have seals and hoses that can be harmed by ethanol. With a small amount of redesign, gasoline-powered vehicles can run on ethanol concentrations as high as 85%. 100% ethanol is used in some parts of the world (such as Brazil), but vehicles must be started on pure gasoline and switched over to ethanol once the engine is running. Most gasoline engined cars can also run on LPG with the addition of an LPG tank for fuel storage and carburetion modifications to add an LPG mixer. LPG produces fewer toxic emissions and is a popular fuel for fork lift trucks that have to operate inside buildings.
Ethanol
Ethanol and other alcohol fuels have widespread use a automotive fuel. Most alcohols have less energy per liter than gasoline and are usually bended with gasoline. Alcohols are used for a variety of reasons - to increase octane, to improve emissions and as an alternative to petroleum based fuel, since they can be made from agricultural crops. Brazil's ethanol program provides about 20% of the nations automotive fuel needs, including several million cars that operate on pure ethanol.
Electric
Main articles: Battery electric vehicle, Hybrid vehicle, and Plug-in hybrid
The Henney Kilowatt, the first modern (transistor-controlled) electric car.
2007 Tesla electric powered Roadster
The first electric cars were built around 1832 well before internal combustion powered cars appeared.[13] For a period of time electrics were considered superior due to the silent nature of electric motors compared to the very loud noise of the gasoline engine. This advantage was removed with Hiram Percy Maxim's invention of the muffler in 1897. Thereafter internal combustion powered cars had two critical advantages: 1) long range and 2) high specific energy (far lower weight of petrol fuel versus weight of batteries). The building of battery electric vehicles that could rival internal combustion models had to wait for the introduction of modern semiconductor controls and improved batteries. Because they can deliver a high torque at low revolutions electric cars do not require such a complex drive train and transmission as internal combustion powered cars. Some post-2000 electric car designs such as the Venturi Fétish are able to accelerate from 0-60 mph (96 km/hour) in 4.0 seconds with a top speed around 130 mph (210 km/h). Others have a range of 250 miles (400 km) on the EPA highway cycle requiring 3-1/2 hours to completely charge[14]. Equivalent fuel efficiency to internal combustion is not well defined but some press reports give it at around 135 mpg(1.74 l/100 km).
Steam
Main article: steam car
Steam power, usually using an oil or gas heated boiler, was also in use until the 1930s but had the major disadvantage of being unable to power the car until boiler pressure was available. It has the advantage of being able to produce very low emissions as the combustion process can be carefully controlled. Its disadvantages include poor heat efficiency and extensive requirements for electric auxiliaries.[15]
Gas turbine
In the 1950s there was a brief interest in using gas turbine (jet) engines and several makers including Rover produced prototypes. In spite of the power units being very compact, high fuel consumption, severe delay in throttle response, and lack of engine braking meant no cars reached production.
Rotary (Wankel) engines
Rotary Wankel engines were introduced into road cars by NSU with the Ro 80 and later were seen in several Mazda models. In spite of their impressive smoothness, poor reliability and fuel economy led to them largely disappearing. Mazda, however, has continued research on these engines and overcame most of the earlier problems.
An automobile (from Greek auto, self and Latin mobile moving, a vehicle that moves itself rather than being moved by another vehicle or animal) or motor car (usually shortened to just car) is a wheeled passenger vehicle that carries its own motor. Most definitions of the term specify that automobiles are designed to run primarily on roads, to have seating for one to eight people, to typically have four wheels, and to be constructed principally for the transport of people rather than goods.[1] However, the term is far from precise.
There were 590 million passenger cars worldwide (roughly one car for every eleven people) as of 2002
Although Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot is often credited with the first self-propelled mechanical vehicle or automobile, this claim is disputed by some, who doubt Cugnot's three-wheeler ever ran, while others claim Ferdinand Verbiest, a member of a Jesuit mission in China, built the first steam powered car around 1672.[3][4] In either case François Isaac de Rivaz, a Swiss inventor, designed the first internal combustion engine which was fuelled by a mixture of hydrogen and oxygen and used it to develop the world's first vehicle to run on such an engine. The design was not very successful, as was the case with Samuel Brown, Samuel Morey, and Etienne Lenoir who each produced vehicles powered by clumsy internal combustion engines.[5]
In November 1881 French inventor Gustave Trouvé demonstrated a working three-wheeled automobile. This was at the International Exhibition of Electricity in Paris.[6]
An automobile powered by an Otto gasoline engine was built in Mannheim, Germany by Karl Benz in 1885 and granted a patent in January of the following year under the auspices of his major company, Benz & Cie. which was founded in 1883.
Although several other German engineers (including Gottlieb Daimler, Wilhelm Maybach, and Siegfried Marcus) were working on the problem at about the same time, Karl Benz is generally acknowledged as the inventor of the modern automobile.[5] In 1879 Benz was granted a patent for his first engine, designed in 1878. Many of his other inventions made the use of the internal combustion engine feasible for powering a vehicle and in 1896, Benz designed and patented the first internal combustion flat engine.
Approximately 25 Benz vehicles were built and sold before 1893, when his first four-wheeler was introduced. They were powered with four-stroke engines of his own design. Emile Roger of France, already producing Benz engines under license, now added the Benz automobile to his line of products. Because France was more open to the early automobiles, more were built and sold in France through Roger than Benz sold in Germany.
Daimler and Maybach founded Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft (Daimler Motor Company, DMG) in Cannstatt in 1890 and under the brand name, Daimler, sold their first automobile in 1892. By 1895 about 30 vehicles had been built by Daimler and Maybach, either at the Daimler works or in the Hotel Hermann, where they set up shop after falling out with their backers. Benz and Daimler seem to have been unaware of each other's early work and worked independently.
Daimler died in 1900 and later that year, Maybach designed a model named Daimler-Mercedes, special-ordered by Emil Jellinek. Two years later, a new model DMG automobile was produced and named Mercedes after the engine. Maybach quit DMG shortly thereafter and opened a business of his own. Rights to the Daimler brand name were sold to other manufacturers.
Karl Benz proposed co-operation between DMG and Benz & Cie. when economic conditions began to deteriorate in Germany following the First World War, but the directors of DMG refused to consider it initially. Negotiations between the two companies resumed several years later and in 1924 they signed an Agreement of Mutual Interest valid until the year 2000. Both enterprises standardized design, production, purchasing, sales, and advertising—marketing their automobile models jointly—although keeping their respective brands. On June 28, 1926, Benz & Cie. and DMG finally merged as the Daimler-Benz company, baptizing all of its automobiles Mercedes Benz honoring the most important model of the DMG automobiles, the Maybach design later referred to as the 1902 Mercedes-35hp, along with the Benz name. Karl Benz remained a member of the board of directors of Daimler-Benz until his death in 1929.
In 1890, Emile Levassor and Armand Peugeot of France began producing vehicles with Daimler engines, and so laid the foundation of the motor industry in France. The first American car with a gasoline internal combustion engine supposedly was designed in 1877 by George Selden of Rochester, New York, who applied for a patent on an automobile in 1879. In Britain there had been several attempts to build steam cars with varying degrees of success with Thomas Rickett even attempting a production run in 1860.[7] Santler from Malvern is recognized by the Veteran Car Club of Great Britain as having made the first petrol-powered car in the country in 1894[8] followed by Frederick William Lanchester in 1895 but these were both one-offs.[8] The first production vehicles came from the Daimler Motor Company, founded by Harry J. Lawson in 1896, and making their first cars in 1897.[8]
In 1892, German engineer Rudolf Diesel got a patent for a "New Rational Combustion Engine". In 1897 he built the first Diesel Engine.[5] In 1895, Selden was granted a United States patent(U.S. Patent 549,160 ) for a two-stroke automobile engine, which hindered more than encouraged development of autos in the United States. Steam, electric, and gasoline powered autos competed for decades, with gasoline internal combustion engines achieving dominance in the 1910s.
Ransom E. Olds.
The large-scale, production-line manufacturing of affordable automobiles was debuted by Ransom Olds at his Oldsmobile factory in 1902. This assembly line concept was then greatly expanded by Henry Ford in the 1910s. Development of automotive technology was rapid, due in part to the hundreds of small manufacturers competing to gain the world's attention. Key developments included electric ignition and the electric self-starter (both by Charles Kettering, for the Cadillac Motor Company in 1910-1911), independent suspension, and four-wheel brakes.
Although various pistonless rotary engine designs have attempted to compete with the conventional piston and crankshaft design, only Mazda's version of the Wankel engine has had more than very limited success.
Ford Model T, 1927, regarded as the first affordable automobile
Since the 1920s, nearly all cars have been mass-produced to meet market needs, so marketing plans have often heavily influenced automobile design. It was Alfred P. Sloan who established the idea of different makes of cars produced by one company, so buyers could "move up" as their fortunes improved. The makes shared parts with one another so larger production volume resulted in lower costs for each price range. For example, in the 1950s, Chevrolet shared hood, doors, roof, and windows with Pontiac; the LaSalle of the 1930s, sold by Cadillac, used cheaper mechanical parts made by the Oldsmobile division.