Portal:Cars

The Cars Portal

The Toyota Corolla, which has been in production since 1966, is the best-selling series of automobile of all time.

A car, or an automobile, is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of cars state that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people over cargo. There are around one billion cars in use worldwide. The car is considered an important part of the developed economy.

The French inventor Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot built the first steam-powered road vehicle in 1769, while the Swiss inventor François Isaac de Rivaz designed and constructed the first internal combustion-powered automobile in 1808. The modern car—a practical, marketable automobile for everyday use—was invented in 1886, when the German inventor Carl Benz patented his Benz Patent-Motorwagen. Commercial cars became widely available during the 20th century. The 1901 Oldsmobile Curved Dash and the 1908 Ford Model T, both American cars, are widely considered the first mass-produced and mass-affordable cars, respectively. Cars were rapidly adopted in the US, where they replaced horse-drawn carriages. In Europe and other parts of the world, demand for automobiles did not increase until after World War II. In the 21st century, car usage is still increasing rapidly, especially in China, India, and other newly industrialised countries.

Cars have controls for driving, parking, passenger comfort, and a variety of lamps. Over the decades, additional features and controls have been added to vehicles, making them progressively more complex. These include rear-reversing cameras, air conditioning, navigation systems, and in-car entertainment. Most cars in use in the early 2020s are propelled by an internal combustion engine, fueled by the combustion of fossil fuels. Electric cars, which were invented early in the history of the car, became commercially available in the 2000s and are predicted to cost less to buy than petrol-driven cars before 2025. The transition from fossil fuel-powered cars to electric cars features prominently in most climate change mitigation scenarios, such as Project Drawdown's 100 actionable solutions for climate change. (Full article...)

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The Talbot Samba is a city car manufactured by the PSA Group in the former Simca factory in Poissy, France, and marketed under the short-lived modern-day Talbot brand from 1981 to 1986. Based on the Peugeot 104, it and the Talbot Express were the only Talbots not inherited from Chrysler Europe, engineered by PSA alone. It was also the last new Talbot car to be launched. Its demise in 1986 was effectively the end of the Talbot brand for passenger cars. Launched initially as a three-door hatchback, it was also for some time the only small car available in a factory-ordered cabrio body style, and the most economical car in Europe. (Full article...)

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Alfa Romeo Automobiles S.p.A. (Italian: [ˈalfa roˈmɛːo]) is an Italian luxury carmaker known for its sports-oriented vehicles, strong auto racing heritage, and iconic design. Headquartered in Turin, Italy, it is a subsidiary of Stellantis Europe and one of 14 brands of multinational automotive company Stellantis.

Founded on 24 June 1910 in Milan, Italy as A.L.F.A.—an acronym for Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili—the company was established by Cavaliere Ugo Stella to acquire the assets of the ailing Italian subsidiary of French carmaker Darracq, of which he had been an investor and manager. Its first car was the 24 HP, designed by Giuseppe Merosi, which became commercially successful and participated in the 1911 Targa Florio endurance race. In August 1915, ALFA was acquired by Neapolitan entrepreneur and engineer Nicola Romeo, who vastly expanded the company's portfolio to include heavy machinery and aircraft engines. In 1920, the company's name was changed to Alfa Romeo, with the Torpedo 20–30 HP being the first vehicle to bear the new brand. (Full article...)

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2002 Jeep Grand Cherokee

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Takeo Fujisawa (藤沢武夫, Fujisawa Takeo, November 10, 1910 – December 30, 1988) was a Japanese businessman who co-founded Honda Motor Co., Ltd. alongside Soichiro Honda. Fujisawa oversaw the financial side of the company while Honda handled the engineering and product development. Together, they took the company from a small manufacturer of bicycle engines to a worldwide car manufacturer. (Full article...)

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On this day November 25

1844 — Karl Benz is born

1920 — Gaston Chevrolet is killed in a racing accident in Beverly Hills, California

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Did you know...

...that the racing version of the Dauer 962 Le Mans, winner of 1994 24 Hours of Le Mans, is a roadcar converted from a Porsche 962 racecar, which dominated Le Mans, Group C and IMSA during the 1980s?
...that the 25 Millionth VW Golf rolled off the production line in Wolfsburg in March 2007? The first Golf started production in 1974, 33 years later the 1.4 litre TSI version became the 25 Millionth car.
...that the 2011 Ford Crown Victoria was the last car to offer a cassette tape player as an option?
...that the first production turbocharged cars were General Motors' A-body 1962 Chevrolet Corvair and Oldsmobile F-85?
...that Jeep introduced the 1993 Grand Cherokee and 2007 Wrangler in the same way — by driving them through a plate glass window?
...that a small number of Renault 20s, badged as Dacia 2000, were made in the 1980s by Dacia in Romania for Romanian communist dignitaries of that time?
...that the Autobianchi Primula was the Fiat's first automobile with the front-wheel drive, transverse engine setup and rack and pinion steering?
...that the Plymouth Sundance is a liftback, even though the outside appearance might suggest that it is a sedan?
...that the name Volvo really means 'I Roll?' That's how Volvo rolls.

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It was Holden working at its best, doing a lot with a little. Some of the subterfuge we got up to to make things happen was probably more risky than we realised, but it was worth it.

—Tony Hyde

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General images

The following are images from various car-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Cugnot's steam wagon, the second (1771) version (from History of the automobile)
Image 2Fiat 4 HP, the first car model produced by Italian manufacturer Fiat in 1899 (from History of the automobile)
Image 3Gurgel Supermini (from History of the automobile)
Image 4The weight of the low battery stabilises the car. This is a dual-motor, four-wheel-drive layout but many cars only have one motor. (from Car)
Image 5The Präsident automobile (from History of the automobile)
Image 6The Selden Road-Engine (from History of the automobile)
Image 7Bertha Benz, the first long distance driver (from Car)
Image 8Ransom E. Olds founded Olds Motor Vehicle Company (Oldsmobile) in 1897. (from Car)
Image 9Model-T Ford car parked near the Geelong Art Gallery at its launch in Australia in 1915 (from History of the automobile)
Image 101885-built Benz Patent-Motorwagen, the first modern car—a practical, marketable automobile for everyday use (from History of the automobile)
Image 11A Chevrolet Suburban extended-length SUV weighs 3,300 kilograms (7,200 lb) (gross weight). (from Car)
Image 12Rolls-Royce Phantom III (from History of the automobile)
Image 13Volkswagen Beetle (from History of the automobile)
Image 141974 Citroën DS (from History of the automobile)
Image 15Isotta Fraschini Tipo 8A (from History of the automobile)
Image 16Ford Motor Company automobile assembly line in the 1920s (from Car)
Image 17Stuttgart, a cradle of the car with Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach working there at the Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft and place of the modern day headquarters of Mercedes-Benz Group and Porsche (from Car)
Image 181924 Doble Model E (from History of the automobile)
Image 19Cugnot's 1771 fardier à vapeur, as preserved at the Musée des Arts et Métiers, Paris (from Car)
Image 20The first automobile in Japan, a French Panhard-Levassor, in 1898 (from History of the automobile)
Image 21The Toyota Corolla is the world's bestselling nameplate. (from History of the automobile)
Image 22The Ford Model T (foreground) and Volkswagen Beetle (background) are among the most mass-produced car models in history. (from History of the automobile)
Image 23Panel for fuses and circuit breakers (from Car)
Image 24A robotic Volkswagen Passat shown at Stanford University is a driverless car. (from Car)
Image 25A replica of Richard Trevithick's 1801 road locomotive 'Puffing Devil' (from History of the automobile)
Image 261926 Bugatti Type 35 (from History of the automobile)
Image 27Audi A4 daytime running lights (from Car)
Image 28Road congestion is an issue in many major cities (pictured is Chang'an Avenue in Beijing). (from Car)
Image 29The Vélib' in Paris, France, is the largest bikesharing system outside China. (from Car)
Image 301958 Lancia Appia (from History of the automobile)
Image 311954 Plymouth Savoy Station Wagon, one of the first US all-metal station wagons (from History of the automobile)
Image 32Carl Benz, the inventor of the modern car (from Car)
Image 33The Flocken Elektrowagen was the first four-wheeled electric car (from Car)
Image 34The second Marcus car of 1888 (from History of the automobile)
Image 35A Tesla Model Y electric car, the world's best-selling car in the first and second quarters of 2023. (from History of the automobile)
Image 36A Stanley Steamer racecar in 1903. In 1906, a similar Stanley Rocket set the world land speed record at 205.5 km/h (127.7 mph) at Daytona Beach Road Course. (from History of the automobile)
Image 37Trucks' share of US vehicles produced, has tripled since 1975. Though vehicle fuel efficiency has increased within each category, the overall trend toward less efficient types of vehicles has offset some of the benefits of greater fuel economy and reductions in pollution and carbon dioxide emissions. Without the shift towards SUVs, energy use per unit distance could have fallen 30% more than it did from 2010 to 2022. (from Car)
Image 38The Toyota Corolla is the best-selling car of all-time. (from Car)
Image 391946 GAZ-M20 Pobeda, one of the first mass-produced cars with pontoon design (from History of the automobile)
Image 40A car being assembled in a factory (from Car)
Image 41The German Flocken Elektrowagen of 1888, perhaps the first electric car in the world (from History of the automobile)
Image 421929 Alfa Romeo 6C (from History of the automobile)
Image 43In the Ford Model T the left-side hand lever sets the rear wheel parking brakes and puts the transmission in neutral. The lever to the right controls the throttle. The lever on the left of the steering column is for ignition timing. The left foot pedal changes the two forward gears while the centre pedal controls reverse. The right pedal is the brake. (from Car)
Image 44Steam machine of Verbiest, in 1678 (Ferdinand Verbiest) (from Car)
Image 45The original Benz Patent-Motorwagen, the first modern car, built in 1885 and awarded the patent for the concept (from Car)
Image 462011 Nissan Leaf electric car (from Car)
Image 471929 Austin Seven (from History of the automobile)
Image 48Car exhaust gas is one type of pollution
Image 491959 Morris Mini-Minor (from History of the automobile)
Image 50Result of a serious car collision (from Car)