Without a doubt, one of the greatest inventions man has ever made has been the automobile. It has revolutionized transport unlike any other vehicle.

The invention of the automobile was not the work of one person. Instead, many great inventors from different countries contributed to its making.

The meaning of the word “automobile” is a vehicle that powers itself. Automobiles have been around as early as 1335.

However, the first time self-powered vehicles were seen was in France in 1769 and even though they were quite slow (travelling up to about 2 miles per hour) they were the beginning of the cars that run today.

In the 1880s in Germany, Gottlieb Daimler, and Karl Benz created motorized vehicles and many countries started inventing cars.

The first types of cars to be made were steam powered, and since the steam engine had been running before the cars came, many railroad owners did not like the competition.

The first gasoline powered car in America was built in 1893, but many people were at first scared of these vehicles that could move without animals (before the car was invented the main mode of transport was horse and carriage).

Many people assume that Henry Ford built the car for the first time. This is not so. Even though he did build cars, he was not the first to do so.

He modified a method of building cars called the ‘assembly line method’ using conveyer belts, and through this, his company produced 15 million cars in 15 years.

One specific car gave Henry Ford superstar fame in the history of motor cars. This vehicle was the Ford Model T.

He started producing this vehicle in 1908 and by 1927; over 18 million vehicles had been produced, making it a clear favourite of many people.

Since then the car has gone through some revolutionary changes, and with the increase in prices of fuel, many companies are making energy efficient vehicles.

The invention of the car changed the world in many ways. Firstly, the old way of horse drawn carriages were not used anymore. That meant that a person could travel faster (without stops in-between to water the horses) either by himself or with others.

The invention of the car also made it necessary for man to build proper roads, and the production of gasoline for as a source of energy because necessary

Clearly, the car changed the lives of humans not only by making lives easier and saving more time, but also by changing the entire economies of countries.