Automobiles and their history

Automobile (from ancient Greek αὐτός - itself and Latin mobilis - mobile, fast), Self-propelled crew [1] - motor road and off-road vehicle used to transport people or goods.

The main purpose of the car is to carry out transport work [2]. Automobile transport in industrialized countries occupies a leading place in comparison with other modes of transport in terms of the volume of passenger traffic [3]. A modern car consists of 15–20 thousand parts, of which 150–300 are the most important and require the greatest operating costs [4]. The concept includes a passenger car, truck, bus, trolleybus, armored vehicle, but does not include an agricultural tractor and motorcycle.

A power-driven vehicle commonly used to transport people or goods on the road, or to tow vehicles used to transport people or goods on the road. This term covers trolleybuses, that is, non-rail vehicles connected to an electric wire; it does not cover vehicles such as agricultural tractors, the use of which to transport people or goods is only an auxiliary function.

- Art. 1, Convention on Road Traffic (Vienna, 8 November 1968)

Any mechanical self-propelled vehicle normally used for the transport of people or goods on the road, or for towing on the road vehicles used to transport people or goods; this term does not include agricultural tractors.

- Art. 1, European Agreement concerning the Work of Crews of Vehicles Engaged in International Road Transport (AETR) Geneva, 1 July 1970

A land vehicle propelled by its own means, running on at least four wheels, not in line, which must always be in contact with the ground; steering must be provided by at least two of the wheels, and movement by at least two of the wheels.

- FIA International Sports Code, Art. 13

Benz Velo is one of the first cars.

The first Russian car of Yakovlev and Frese was presented at the 16th All-Russian Industrial and Art Exhibition, Nizhny Novgorod, 1896.

The 1959 Cadillac is one of the symbols of the mid-20th century automobile.

The 2008 Volkswagen Scirocco is one of many popular cars.

Classification

Passenger car - with a total mass of not more than 3500 kg for the carriage of passengers (from 1 to 8, not including the driver) and luggage. Passenger cars are available with closed bodies (sedan, limousine, coupe, hatchback, station wagon, van and minibus) and with bodies that can be retracted (convertible, roadster, landau and phaeton).

Cargo vehicle (truck) - a vehicle for the transport of goods. Special and special purpose vehicles are also produced on truck chassis.

An extra-heavy vehicle is an automobile, road train or other vehicle with axle loads exceeding 120 kN (12 tonnes of force) and a width of more than 2.5 m.

Off-road vehicle - a car or truck with a drive on more than one axle (or with a driving one axle, but with the ability to lock the axle differential), adapted for movement off-road with a hard surface. Off-road vehicles are equipped with transmissions with an extended gear ratio range, as well as tires with a special tread pattern, often with centralized tire pressure adjustment and other technical features.

An all-terrain vehicle is a vehicle adapted to travel on all types of roads, including those without a hard surface (unpaved and field). Off-road vehicles are usually characterized by all-wheel drive, increased ground clearance.

Buggy is a light off-road vehicle. Usually has an open frame construction.

A pickup truck is a cargo and passenger modification based on a car or SUV with an open platform with a tailgate. Carrying capacity from 150 to 4500 kg.

Floating vehicle (Amphibious vehicle)

Flying car

Fire truck

Bus - a vehicle for the transport of more than 8 passengers, which is not a trolleybus.

Trolleybus is a vehicle designed to carry more than 8 passengers, powered by an external contact wire.

By engine type:

* Steam
* Petrol
* Diesel
* Gas
* Gas generator
* Hydrogen

An electric car is a car that uses the electric energy of its own batteries to drive.

A hybrid car is a car that uses both an electric and a traditional combustion engine.

Special purpose vehicles (wheeled):

* civilian use
* tractor
* ambulance
* hearse (transportation)
* snowplow
* truck crane
* aerial platform
* garbage truck
* fire truck
* police car
* military use
* armored car
* wheeled armored personnel carrier
* military vehicles

Specialized vehicles (wheeled):

* civilian use
* refrigerated truck
* tank truck

Vehicle design

Despite the wide variety of cars produced, three main parts can always be distinguished in their device: the chassis (it consists of: transmission, chassis and control mechanisms - steering and braking system), the body (serves to accommodate people or goods) and the engine.

Car manufacturing

Car manufacturer - a car manufacturer, company, or firm that designs, manufactures or assembles cars. At the beginning of the 20th century, Oldsmobile revolutionized the automotive industry, pioneering assembly-line assembly and launching the world's mass motorization.

The largest manufacturing companies (for 2012) [5]:

General Motors (USA + UK + Australia + Germany) - US $ 9.03 million
Volkswagen Group (Germany + France + Italy + Spain + UK) - 8.16 million
Toyota (Japan) - 8 million
Hyundai Motor (South Korea) - 6.59 million units
Ford (USA) - 6.3 million units
Renault-Nissan (Japan + France + South Korea + Romania + Russia) - 6.16 million units.
For many decades, the United States was the world leader in automotive production. Since the 1980s, Japan has become the new leader, since 2009 - China, which since 2010 has also produced more cars than all the countries of the European Union combined, and since 2009 has been the largest market in the world. The USSR ranked 5th in the world for the automotive industry as a whole (including 3rd for trucks and 1st for buses), Russia is among the 15 largest automakers.

Car history

The first known drawings of the car (with a spring drive) are from Leonardo da Vinci (p. 812R Codex Atlanticus), but neither a working copy nor information about its existence has survived to this day. In 2004, experts from the Museum of the History of Science from Florence were able to restore this car from drawings, thereby proving the correctness of Leonardo's idea. During the Renaissance and later in a number of European countries, "self-propelled" carts and carriages with a spring engine were built in single quantities for participation in masquerades and parades.

In 1769, the French inventor Cugno tested the first prototype of a machine with a steam engine [6], known as the "Cuyuglot small cart," and in 1770, the "Cuyuglot large cart." The inventor himself called it "Fire cart" - it was intended for towing artillery pieces.

The Cunyo Cart is considered the predecessor not only of the automobile, but also of the steam locomotive, since it was driven by the power of steam. In the 19th century, steam-powered stagecoaches and routiers (steam tractors, that is, trackless steam locomotives) for ordinary roads were built in England, France and were used in a number of European countries, including Russia, but they were heavy, voracious and inconvenient, therefore they were not widely used ...

In 1791, the Russian inventor Ivan Kulibin made a "scooter carriage".

There were isolated cases of building cars as luxury goods. So, La Marquise (the official name is De Dion-Bouton et Trepardoux), built in 1884 and working on steam, went down in history.

The advent of a lightweight, compact and powerful enough internal combustion engine has opened up wide opportunities for the development of the car. In 1885, the German inventor Gottlieb Daimler, and in 1886 his compatriot Karl Benz produced and patented the first self-propelled carriages with gasoline engines. In 1895, Benz manufactured the first ICE bus. In 1896 Daimler produced the first taxi and truck. In the last decade of the 19th century, the automotive industry was born in Germany, France and England.

In the first quarter of the 20th century, electric vehicles and cars with a steam engine became widespread. In 1900, about half of the cars in the United States were steam-powered; in the 1910s, up to 70,000 electric vehicles operated in taxis in New York.

In the same 1900, Ferdinand Porsche designed an electric car with four drive wheels, in which the electric motors driving them were located. Two years later, the Dutch company Spyker released a racing car with four-wheel drive, equipped with a center differential [7].

The first racing car was equipped with a 35 hp engine. from. and was delivered to Emil Jellinek from DMG on December 22, 1900. This Mercedes was developed by Wilhelm Maybach, Chief Engineer of DMG, and included innovative design solutions: long wheelbase, wide track and low center of gravity, steel frame, honeycomb radiator and steering wheel. The light and high-performance engine reached 75 km / h and could gain from 300 to 1000 rpm. It had 4 cylinders and the ratio of each cylinder to the piston stroke was 116 × 140 mm. Volume - 5918 cm³. Each pair of cylinders had its own carburetor, two camshafts and controlled intake valves, low-voltage ignition magneto.

The Stanley brothers produced about 1000 cars a year. In 1909, the brothers opened the first luxury hotel in Colorado and a steam bus carried guests from the railway station to the hotel, which became the actual beginning of automobile tourism. Stanley produced steam-powered cars until 1927. Despite a number of advantages (good traction, multi-fuel capacity), steam cars left the scene by the 1930s due to their uneconomic and operational difficulties.

The American inventor and industrialist Henry Ford made a significant contribution to the widespread use of road transport, since 1913 he introduced the conveyor system for assembling cars.

In 1923, the Benz company manufactured the first truck with a Diesel engine.

Speed ​​records by car

The fastest speed in the world - 1229.88 km / h in a land vehicle - the Thrust SSC jet car - was shown by the Englishman Andy Green on October 15, 1997. And the average speed for the two arrivals was 1226.522 km / h. Green's crew was propelled by two Rolls-Royce jet engines with a total capacity of 110,000 horse powers.

The highest speed that a woman has developed in a car is 843.323 km / h. It was shown in December 1976 by the American Kitty Humbleton in a three-wheeled car S.M. Motivator with a capacity of 48 thousand. l. c. On the sum of two races in two directions, its official record is 825.126 km / h.

The world speed record was set by the British supercar Keating TKR with a 7-liter 1500 hp engine. from. - the car accelerated to 416 km / h. In 2010, the Bugatti Veyron again occupied the niche of the fastest production car, creating the Bugatti Veyron Super Sport, increasing power to 1200 hp. In Top Gear, James May reached over 407 km / h in his Bugatti Veyron Super Sport. And the Bugatti test pilot showed an average speed of 431 km / h, driving in one direction at 427 km / h and 434 km / h in the opposite direction.

Car contests

The contests of passenger cars and then of trucks “Car of the Year” became widely known, first European, then Japanese and North American, as well as world and international passenger (English) and trucks, on which the victories were alternately won by cars of different classes, manufacturers and countries ...

Also among passenger cars there was held a competition "car of the century", where the victory was won by Ford T, which launched the world mass motorization.