Friday 29th January 1886

The world’s first patent for a practical internal-combustion-engine-powered automobile was submitted by German engineer Karl Benz. With a tubular framework mounted on a Benz-designed, one-horsepower, single-cylinder, 954-cc engine, the carriage-like three-wheeler Motorwagen had tiller steering and a buggy seat for two. The engine was a refinement of the four-stroke engine designed by Nikolaus Otto 10 years earlier. Although awkward and frail, it incorporated some still-familiar features: an electrical ignition, differential, mechanical valves, a carburettor, an engine-cooling system, oil and grease cups for lubrication, and a braking system.