Old “Firsts” in Automobiles

[Black95]

Here are some “Firsts” in American Automobiles. Some of the features we think of as fairly new had a much earlier introduction. I found these while perusing my old copy of Popular Science of March 1964.

[mrvette]

A FB/CF? thread about first gasoline station, some woman named Benz ran outta gas and bought a bunch of alky at a bar type joint......and so it was the first gas station.....but it was in German

steam was the first power, but what was the fuel?? who invented the internal combustion engine?? what was the fuel?? who thought of much less came up with refining crude oil into gasoline/compound that could be pumped and burnt in an engine???

I assume from the thread that kraut woman was burning alky ....

[JRD77VET]

Originally Posted by mrvette

A FB/CF? thread about first gasoline station, some woman named Benz ran outta gas and bought a bunch of alky at a bar type joint......and so it was the first gas station.....but it was in German

steam was the first power, but what was the fuel?? who invented the internal combustion engine?? what was the fuel?? who thought of much less came up with refining crude oil into gasoline/compound that could be pumped and burnt in an engine???

I assume from the thread that kraut woman was burning alky ....

Nicholas A Otto and mr langen combined to produce the first "atmospheric" engine ( meaning one that compressed the fuel charge). They built the first one in 1867. Rough and Tumble Historical Engineers owns serial number 31 which is the third oldest running atmospheric engine in the world and the oldest in the Americas.

It was designed to run of "city gas". You heat coal and collect the gas vapor which comes off of it. It's high in hydrogen gas. One of the volunteers at Rough and Tumble ( who is an engineer with his doctorate) designed a hydrogen system so we can safely run the Otto and Langen engine. Hydrogen has a BTU value of about 650. natural gas is between 1200 and 1500 BTU and propane has a BYU value of 2500. Both NG and Propane have too much energy to safely run a O&L engine without incurring serious damage.


Here's R&T Otto Langen

1868 Otto Langen - Oldest running gas engine in the USA - YouTube

want to learn more about it? Wayne Grenning built two exact replicas of the original Otto and langen engines. he kept one and the other sold for close to a 1/4 MIL$

Startup & Instructional explaination of 1867 Otto Langen engine operation - YouTube

~~~~~~

Edwin Drake was the first to distill petroleum in 1859 to get kerosene and gasoline was a "useless" byproduct.
https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/...soline_history

[Aerovette]

Before there was GPS: The world's first automobile navigation devices - YouTube