History of the Automobile

Starting with 1768's Cugnot Wagon the quest for the alternative to the horse continued with improved products every few years.  Up until Henry Ford's assembly line cars were made individually and cars were often special ordered.

In the Early 20th century cars began being manufactured rather than built to spec.  More and more people began buying cars.

Until the early 20th century cars used a wide variety of fuels including, electricity, gasoline, diesel and coal.  After the 1920's cars moved towards gasoline.  Trucks and large engine applications started using diesel.

The 1920's, 1930's and 1940's were decades of advancement.  Cars became more user friendly, reliable and powerful.  People customized their cars for specific purposes and manufacturers followed.

Car culture comes into it's own as a part of the US.  Car design changes with the redesign of roads and the interstate. Cars got powerful and luxurious, V-8's became common and so did large comfortable cars.

The 1990's brought in a lot of new technology including fuel injection and computer chips.  This was when Japanese cars began being sold on large scales in the US.

The 2000's brought in the SUV and cars that needed specialized tools to repair.  For many repairs the metric wrenches and OBD2 scan tool were no longer enough to work on cars.

The late 1990's and early 2000's saw a resurgence of alternative fuel vehicles.  Battery technology improved greatly and electric vehicles are able to have a decent range thanks to NIMH, and Lithium Ion batteries.