First Wheels

07/18/2026

France’s 1873 Amédée Bollée “L’Obéissante” was an ambitious steam-powered road carriage built before petrol cars became practical.
Its size, passenger capacity, and advanced steering showed how inventors were already imagining motorized public travel.

07/18/2026

Austria’s 1900 Lohner-Porsche explored electric propulsion more than a century ago, using motors connected near the wheel hubs.
It remains a fascinating reminder that electric-car innovation began surprisingly early.

07/18/2026

The 1903 Spyker 60 HP was not merely a powerful Dutch racing car; it brought together several major technical breakthroughs in one dramatic machine. Built with a six-cylinder petrol engine, it is recognized by the Louwman Museum as the first petrol car with four-wheel drive and the first car with braking connected to all four wheels. Its long bonnet, exposed chassis, large spoked wheels, and minimal racing body made its engineering easy to see. Although created for competition during the heroic age of road racing, the car’s greatest legacy lies in its advanced drivetrain and braking concepts, which appeared decades before such systems became common.

Historical basis: Louwman Museum.

07/18/2026

The 1893 Duryea Motor Wagon is often remembered as one of America’s earliest successful petrol automobiles.
Its carriage-like body reveals how closely the first motorcars still resembled horse-drawn vehicles.

07/18/2026

Built in 1897 by the Nesselsdorfer Wagenbau-Fabriks-Gesellschaft in Austria-Hungary, the Präsident marked a decisive step from carriage building into automobile manufacture. Its Benz-pattern, two-cylinder petrol engine sat near the rear axle, while the vehicle retained the tall proportions, wooden-spoked wheels, and elegant coachwork of a horse-drawn phaeton. Steering was controlled by handlebars rather than the more familiar circular wheel. The car was created through the company’s earliest experimental automobile program and later appeared at an exhibition in Vienna. As the ancestor of the manufacturer eventually known as Tatra, the Präsident occupies an important place in Central European motoring history.

Historical basis: Tatra history and preserved Präsident documentation.

07/18/2026

The 1891 Panhard et Levassor Système Panhard helped establish a mechanical layout that would influence automobile design for decades. Built in France and powered by a petrol engine made under Daimler licence, it placed the engine at the front, followed by a clutch and centrally positioned gearbox, with power sent to the rear wheels. This arrangement was strikingly advanced when many early cars still resembled modified horse carriages with engines mounted beneath or behind the seats. Tiller steering, wooden construction, exposed chains, and solid tyres still revealed its experimental age, yet its basic architecture pointed directly toward the conventional motor car.

Historical basis: Science Museum Group Collection.

07/11/2026

Built in France in 1873, Bollée’s “L’Obéissante” was an ambitious steam-powered passenger carriage.

07/11/2026

The electric La Jamais Contente set a historic speed record in 1899 in Belgium.

07/11/2026

Introduced in the United States in 1908, the Ford Model T transformed personal transportation.

07/10/2026